Housing -- White House Endorses Frank-Style Plan: In a case of strange bedfellows, the administration now supports the plan supported by Democrats to stabilize the battered housing market by allowing a homeowner, who may now owe more than his home is worth, to get out of an expensive adjustable-rate mortgage and refinance into a more stable and affordable 30-year loan backed by the federal government. Story. Taxes -- House Panel OKs Bill to End IRS Private Collection: Yesterday, the House Ways and Means Committee April 9 passed H.R. 5719, the Taxpayer Assistance and Simplification Act of 2008, 23-17, to remove the Internal Revenue Service's authority to conduct its private debt collection program. The bill's fate in the Senate is uncertain. CPA endorsement. Economy -- Small Respite in Jobless Claims: Initial jobless claims dropped by 53,000, more than double the decline economists had forecast, to 357,000 in the week ended April 5, the Labor Department said yesterday. The four-week moving average, a less volatile measure, increased to 378,250, reaching the highest level since October 2005. Bloomberg.