US House has passed a budget deal that will boost overall spending levels and suspend the federal debt ceiling for the next two years.
The agreement, struck between the White House and Congress in a bipartisan fashion Monday, covers fiscal years 2020 and 2021, and would raise overall spending levels by USD 320 billion above the strict limits set in 2011, Xinhua reported on Friday.
It would also suspend the federal debt ceiling until July 31, 2021, preventing the US from defaulting on its payment obligations. The Treasury Department has estimated that a potential default could have happened as soon as early September.
The passage of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2019 in the House by a vote of 284-149 came one day before lawmakers in the chamber leaves town for the summer recess.
The Senate’s recess starts on August 2, giving the upper chamber additional time to vote on the measure. If passed by the Senate, the proposed bill will be sent to President Donald Trump’s desk for a signature.
US President Donald Trump tweeted earlier in the day urging House Republicans to support the deal, which is not yet a law until the president signs on it. Trump applauded the agreement, saying it “greatly helps our Military and our Vets.”
Representing a significant bipartisan compromise, the bill will see the budget cap for discretionary spending rise to USD 1.37 trillion in 2020 and USD 1.375 trillion in 2021. It includes parity between increases in defense spending and domestic, non-defense outlays, a priority for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat.
While Democrats managed to clinch USD 77.4 billion in “offsets” for spending increases — down from the original White House proposal asking for USD 150 billion — Republicans can boast the victory of securing more defense spending in the agreement — USD 738 billion in 2020 and USD 741 billion in 2021.
Meanwhile, the USD 320-billion rise in overall spending levels for the next two years is USD 30 billion less than what the Democrats have sought.
