'No Pay for Congress' Bill passes in US House amid debt ceiling crisis

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
18 May 2023 22:27

The bill stipulates that US lawmakers will not receive their paychecks in the event that the US fails to meet its financial obligations.

The Rotunda of the US Capitol Building is seen with a statue of George Washington in the foreground, in Washington, Wednesday, May 17, 2023. (AP)

The US House of Representatives introduced a new bill that would prevent paycheck payments for lawmakers in the event that a debt ceiling deal is not achieved and the country goes into default resulting in the shutdown of the government.

"The No Pay for Congress During Default or Shutdown Act would block the pay of Members of Congress if the public debt limit is reached or a federal government shutdown occurs," US representatives Abigail Spanberger and Brian Fitzpatrick said in a press release.

As of June 1, the US government will fail to meet its financial obligations in the event that Congress does not, by then, increase the debt ceiling. In recent weeks, negotiations between congressional leaders and the White House have been ongoing, however, no deal has yet been achieved to avert the expected crisis.

The US debt presently stands at $31.4 trillion. US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen emphasized that a debt ceiling increase is necessary by June 1 to prevent a default, which would have far-reaching effects on the US economy and the way of life for Americans.

Congress inaction on debt ceiling threatens US economy: Treasury

Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Wally Adeyemo said on Wednesday the US Congress' inaction in enabling the US to meet its obligations by raising the debt ceiling is the "greatest threat" to the US economy since the global pandemic.

"The single greatest threat to the progress the American economy has made since the pandemic is Congress’s failure to take action to meet the United States’s obligations," Adeyemo said at the National Asian/Pacific Islander American Chamber of Commerce and Entrepreneurship (National ACE) 2023 Business Summit.

He further warned that failing to raise the debt ceiling would lead up to a recession and would severely impact small businesses and trigger a massive wave of company closures.

The U.S. economy is growing with over 200,00 jobs created this past month. If Congress fails to raise the debt limit, we would go into a recession and it would be catastrophic. pic.twitter.com/f7KQIkY6AH
— Deputy Secretary Wally Adeyemo (@TreasuryDepSec) May 15, 2023

"Congress must take action to raise the debt limit and do what is needed to protect families and small businesses, as it has done nearly 80 times before. It is the only way to maintain the economic progress we’ve made," he said.

Last week, the US Congressional Budget Office warned that if lawmakers fail to raise the amount of debt the country is legally allowed to build up, the US will be faced with a "significant risk" of defaulting within the first two weeks of June.