KFF March 1, 2023
In January 2023, Treasury Secretary Yellen announced that the U.S. had reached the $31.381 trillion debt limit, prompting the Treasury Department to begin taking so-called “extraordinary measures” that are expected to help the government avoid defaulting on its debt until the summer of 2023. The debt limit, also known as the debt ceiling, is the maximum amount of money that the federal government is legally authorized to borrow to cover federal spending, including Social Security, Medicare, defense, and other federal government programs and obligations. The amount of the debt limit is established by law and increasing or suspending it requires legislative action. Congress has passed legislation 20 times since 2001 to increase or suspend the debt limit to avoid the...
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