The extension of a 2 percentage point payroll tax cut through the end of the year moves a step closer to passage after a House-Senate conference committee approves an agreement brokered just minutes before a midnight deadline to assure a House and Senate vote before the Presidents' Day recess. The agreement (H.R. 3630) extends the 2 percentage point payroll tax cut through Dec. 31. The revenue the Social Security Trust Fund loses because of the cut will be replaced by savings from Treasury's General Fund, according to the House Ways and Means Committee. All 13 House members and four Senate Democrats sign the measure, which also includes an extension of unemployment benefits and prevents cuts in Medicare payments to doctors. The three Senate Republicans do not sign the agreement.