Will the payroll tax conference committee be ‘Supercommittee 2.0’?

When Congress reconvenes in January, at the top of its agenda will be an effort by a bipartisan, bicameral group of lawmakers to strike a deal that either finds savings in the federal budget or raises taxes -- or both.

Sound familiar?

The mandate of the 20 lawmakers tapped to serve on the payroll tax conference committee is somewhat similar to that of the bipartisan “supercommittee” that fell short in its effort to tame the debt this fall. But there are several key differences between the two panels.

Below is our comparison of the two committees. Thoughts? Questions? The comments section is open for business.