The US Treasury will launch emergency measures on January 21 to prevent a default.
This is stated in a letter from the head of the department in the outgoing US administration Janet Yellen, sent on Friday to House Speaker Mike Johnson and the leaders of the Republican and Democratic factions in both chambers of the legislature and the chairmen of the relevant committees.
“With this letter, I inform you of the emergency measures that the Treasury will launch on January 21“, the document says. According to Yellen's statement, the department will stop allocating funds for the payment of some benefits.
The minister explained that “the period of time during which the emergency measures will be in effect is not clear. She urged Congress “to take action as soon as possible” to resolve the situation with the US national debt.
In late December 2024, Yellen said that the US national debt would reach its ceiling between January 14 and 23, and the authorities would be forced to take emergency measures to prevent bankruptcy. The national debt is now about $36.2 trillion.
In January 2023, the US national debt ceiling, set at $31.4 trillion, was exceeded. The Treasury Department was then forced to use emergency measures to continue its financial operations. The administration called on Congress to increase the debt limit. Republicans, who control the House of Representatives, agreed to raise the debt ceiling, but on the condition of significant budget cuts. US President Joe Biden signed a bill approved by Congress on June 3 to increase the national debt ceiling.