By Kim Dixon WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Coffee chain Starbucks Corp, which has faced criticism for its low tax rate in Britain, has sought new tax breaks in the United States in comments to a congressional committee. As U.S. lawmakers move closer to possibly overhauling the tax code for the first time since 1986, scores of companies and interest groups have submitted comments to the tax law-writing Ways and Means Committee in the U.S. House of Representatives.

By Lisa Baertlein (Reuters) - Starbucks Corp <SBUX.O> investors are scheduled to vote later on Wednesday on a proposal to reverse its current policy of allowing political contributions - an idea that is opposed by the world's biggest coffee chain. The vote at Starbucks comes two years after its chief executive, Howard Schultz, organized scores of fellow CEOs to boycott campaign contributions until lawmakers came up with a plan to fix the nation's financial woes.

Starbucks, the world's biggest coffee chain, launched its first outlet in central New Delhi on Wednesday and vowed an aggressive drive for business across India. "We are committed to the India market for the long term and will aggressively grow our business, expanding stores and providing locally relevant innovations," John Culver, company president for China and South Pacific, said in a statement. Starbucks entered the vast Indian market in a joint venture with the country's giant Tata conglomerate and launched its first store in the commercial hub Mumbai last October.