Bill Would Require Treasury Secretary to Appear Before Congress When Debt Ceiling Is Near
Rep. David Schweikert (R.Ariz.), introduced a bill requiring the U.S. Treasury Secret to appear before Congress before reaching the debt limit or when extraordinary steps are taken to avoid the nation defaulting on its financial obligations.
H.R. 846, referred to as the ‘Debt Explanation Before Taxwriters Act, or DEBT Act, was introduced Feb. 6 and assigned to the House Ways and Means Committee.
“As Secretary of the Treasury, Janet Yellen has the responsibility of deciding what extraordinary steps are necessary to prevent us from defaulting on our debt, which will absolutely never happen,” Schweikert said in a statement.
“It’s imperative that Secretary Yellen be transparent with Congress on Treasury’s debt management capabilities so that we rein in unsustainable spending and boost financial security for hardworking families.”
Last month, the United States was close to its $31.4 trillion debt ceiling. On Jan. 13, Yellen wrote to Kevin McCarthy, the House Speaker (R-Calif.), announcing that she had taken extraordinary steps authorized by Congress in order to avoid the ceiling.
The DEBT Act would require that the Secretary appear in person before both the House Ways and Means Committee and Senate Finance Committee. He will provide details on the extraordinary measures taken by the country to avoid the debt ceiling and an estimate for the cost.
The debt ceiling is the maximum amount of debt Congress authorizes the government to keep at one time.
President Joe Biden is currently negotiating with Speaker McCarthy to raise the debt limit.
McCarthy stated that he would like to see a referendum. “responsible” He calls for an increase in the debt ceiling and a reduction of what he terms as excessive federal spending.
Biden repeatedly stated that he won’t negotiate about raising the debt ceiling, as failure to do so would expose the entire faith and credit of America.
Schweikert asked Yellen Jan. 31 whether she could prioritize bill payments in the face of the current debt-ceiling crisis.
Ex-Treasury officials claimed that this would not be possible due to the complexity and inefficiencies of its payment systems.
The Epoch Times asked for comment from Treasury but they did not respond.
Rep. Adrian Smith (R. Neb.), co-sponsors The DEBT Act Rep. Lloyd Smucker, R-Pa.
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