The measure would have allowed some committee chairmen and their staff unfettered access to personal federal tax records, but that raised the ire of both Democratic and Republican lawmakers who attacked it as an assault on individual privacy.

Although the House previously approved the overall bill, the Senate insisted on removing the provisions, forcing the House to follow suit this week.

The provision in question was buried in the massive bill, reportedly inserted by a senior Hill aide, without the knowledge of lawmakers, in an attempt to make congressional oversight of the IRS easier.

The removal of the offending provision clears the way for President Bush's approval of the bill, which contains the annual discretionary appropriations for the vast majority of federal agencies.