Senate approves massive economic stimulus package

The price tags of the two bills are roughly the same: the House bill is $819 billion and the Senate's is $838 billion. The composition, however, is different.

The House version includes more spending on education and aid to states, totaling about $100 billion.

The Senate's bill includes more in tax cuts, including $70 billion to patch the Alternative Minimum Tax. The tax was intended to target the wealthy, but now hits many middle-class families.

The Senate version of the bill also makes changes to the president's signature middle-class tax cuts. Obama had campaigned on tax breaks for those making $75,000 or less. The Senate version provides tax breaks for individuals making $70,000 a year or less or for couples making $140,000 a year or less. That's different than the $150,000 in the House bill.

Some other differences between the two bills:

• The Senate bill, unlike the House version, would make the first $2,400 of unemployment benefits tax free. Both the Senate and House bills extend the time that jobless workers can collect benefits.

• The Senate bill includes an amendment that would let those who buy a car in 2009 deduct the interest they pay on their car loan as well as the sales tax charged in the purchase. The House bill doesn't include this provision.

• The Senate bill doubles the House's tax credit for first-time homebuyers to $15,000, a measure championed by Republicans in the Senate.