White House, Congressional Leaders Report Debt Ceiling Deal Getting Closer, Lawmakers Head Home for Memorial Day but Urged to Prepare for Quick Return

After a tumultuous week, Congressional leaders and White House negotiators have reportedly gotten closer to a resolution on the debt ceiling. The news of progress comes as the date by which the nation could default on its debts and no longer pay its bills, June 1, is less than one week away. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) told reporters on Thursday afternoon, “We worked well past midnight last night. There’s still some outstanding issues and I’ve directed our teams to work 24/7 to try to solve this problem.” He also noted that the two sides were making progress. Media reports suggest that the debt ceiling could be lifted for two years with spending caps on non-defense discretionary spending over the same period. Defense and Veterans discretionary funding would be set at the President’s FY 2024 levels and unobligated COVID funds would be rescinded as would some of the new money given to the IRS. The reports also indicate that there would also be a mechanism to ensure passage of all twelve appropriations bills each year without the need for an end of the year omnibus package, permitting reform for energy production, and work requirements under some programs, such as SNAP.

It is believed that an agreement needs to be reached today or Saturday in order for the House to consider the measure on Wednesday and the Senate to pass it on Thursday. Members of the House of Representatives left for recess on Thursday but received word from Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) that they would receive 24-hour notice should they need to return to Washington, D.C., for a vote on the agreement. Meanwhile, the House Appropriations Committee postponed a series of markups planned for Wednesday of this week, including a markup of the agriculture appropriations bill, because the outcome of debt ceiling negotiations may well impact topline spending numbers for FY 2024 appropriations bills. House Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Kay Granger (R-TX) stated, “Given the recent developments in the negotiations between Speaker McCarthy and the president, in order to give the Speaker maximum flexibility as talks continue, the committee will postpone this week’s markups.” Read more here.

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