About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

1 1 (July 29, 2021)

handle is hein.crs/goveebv0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Congressional ~.Research Service Extraordinary Measures and the Debt Limit Updated July 29, 2021 The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2019 (PL. 116-37) suspended the statutory debt limit from August 2, 2019, through July 31, 2021. Upon reinstatement, the statutory debt limit will be set at a level precisely accommodating federal borrowing (matching the federal debt subject to limit on August 2, 2021). Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen informed Congress in a July 23, 2021, letter that she would implement extraordinary measures starting on August 2, 2021, to prevent the debt limit from binding. Extraordinary measures were most recently implemented from March 2019 to August 2019, following the expiration of the statutory debt limit suspension in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (PL. 115-123). This Insight briefly examines the use of extraordinary measures and the subsequent effects on federal debt activity. What Is the Debt Limit? As part of its power of the purse, Congress uses the statutory debt limit (codified at 31 U.S.C. §3101) as a means of restricting federal debt. Debt subject to the limit is more than 99% of total federal debt, and includes debt held by the public (which is used to finance budget deficits) and debt issued to federal government accounts (which is used to meet federal obligations). The debt limit was created to act as a congressional check on recent revenue and expenditure trends, though the budgetary decisions affecting debt levels may have been the result, at least partly, of policies enacted well in the past. Some past debt limit legislation has linked debt limit increases with other fiscal policy proposals. What Are Extraordinary Measures? Extraordinary measures represent a series of actions used to extend the date by which debt limit legislation must be enacted. The authority for using extraordinary measures rests with the Treasury Secretary (codified at 5 U.S.C. §8348 and 5 U.S.C. §8909). Invoking extraordinary measures has been used regularly in recent years, and has delayed required action on the debt limit by periods ranging from a few weeks to several months, depending on when such measures were enacted (see the How Long Do Extraordinary Measures Last? section). Ultimately, accounts and members of the public that are affected by extraordinary measures must be compensated for the delay in payment that results from such actions when the debt limit is subsequently modified. Before or during a period when extraordinary measures are implemented, Treasury typically provides a description of the extraordinary measures available and estimates of their effect on federal borrowing Congressional Research Service https://crsreports.congress.gov IN10837 CRS INSIGHT Prepared for Membersand Committeesof Congress

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most