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Members of the Senate voted 58-42 to reject a motion for cloture.
Supporters of a bill need 60 votes in the Senate to prevent a filibuster, or endless round of debate by bill opponents, and allow the bill to come up for a vote.
H.R. 5297 focuses mainly on efforts to create jobs by reviving expiring tax cuts. The bill also includes a provision long sought by the life insurance industry that would simplify the rules dealing with partial withdrawal of funds contained in an annuity contract.
The revised bill also would let self-employed people deduct health insurance premiums for 1 year, and a third provision would let individuals with traditional 401(k), 403(b) and 457 retirement plan accounts roll assets into the Roth versions of the accounts.
The National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors, Falls Church, Va., and the American Council of Life Insurers, Washington, are supporting the bill.
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., and Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., have been leading efforts to get the bill through the Senate.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., voted against the cloture motion, so that he will have the parliamentary right to call for another vote on cloture at another time.