House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) has released the full text of the debt ceiling bill to which he and President Joe Biden have agreed.
The text, in its entirety, has been published by several outlets, including Fox News. It can be found here.
Just before the Memorial Day weekend, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen estimated that the U.S. government would default on its debts should the debt ceiling not be raised by June 5. At the time, Biden and McCarthy appeared to finally be making some progress on a deal after a months-long impasse.
On Saturday, McCarthy indicated that a deal "in principle" had been reached. And, on Sunday, this was confirmed by both sides and McCarthy released the text of the deal.
The deal reached by Biden and McCarthy has been named the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023. In general, it will prevent default by suspending the debt ceiling for a two-year period. In exchange, there are cutbacks on spending.
The Washington Examiner highlights some of the key aspects of the deal.
The deal, according to the outlet, will keep non-defense and non-veteran discretionary spending down until 2025 when it will increase by about 1%.
The Examiner further reports:
Other provisions include rescinding unspent COVID-19 funds, reducing the planned IRS expansion, adding stricter work requirements to Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), as well as permitting reform.
Overall, it appears that both sides are referring to the deal as a compromise. Biden, in a statement on Sunday, said:
[The deal] represents a compromise, which means no one got everything they wanted. But that’s the responsibility of governing. The agreement prevents the worst possible crisis and default for the first time in our nation’s history.
Next, the deal reached between Biden and McCarthy will have to be approved by both the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives.
McCarthy has repeatedly promised to give House members a full three days - or 72 hours - to review the bill before he will call for a floor vote. And, it appears that McCarthy will stand by this promise.
It remains to be seen whether the House and the Senate will approve Biden and McCarthy's deal.
Reports have indicated that there are some Republicans and some Democrats who are not happy with the deal. But, whether there are enough dissatisfied members to block the bill's passage remains unclear.
The House is expected to vote on the bill on Wednesday.
