Barack Obama again seeks to pare tax breaks for corporations, wealthiest

Republican Representative Dave Camp, who chairs the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee, is working on a plan to revamp the tax code. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, a Democrat, is also working on a proposal.

But a full-scale tax code overhaul is a massive endeavor, and it has been somewhat crowded out by issues like immigration and gun control in recent weeks and months.

"It is not an issue that has much momentum behind it, but having people like the president and Dave Camp talking about it will help that," said Erik Smith, a former adviser to Obama who now advises companies at Blue Engine Media.

Obama has also called for review of the corporate tax code - including lowering the top corporate tax rate to 28 percent from 35 percent, to be paid for by closing business tax breaks.

Republicans back a lower corporate rate, but have resisted the idea of tackling it in isolation because many businesses file taxes through the individual side of the tax code and would be left out.