Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Friday urged Congress to raise the debt ceiling by mid-July "to protect the full faith and credit of the United States."
"After receiving receipts for the recent April tax filing season, there is a reasonable probability that the federal government's cash and extraordinary measures will be exhausted in August while Congress is scheduled to be in recess," Bessent wrote in a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La.
"Therefore, I respectfully urge Congress to increase or suspend the debt limit by mid-July, before its scheduled break, to protect the full faith and credit of the United States."
The U.S. national debt stands are more than $36 trillion. Raising the debt limit allows the government to pay what it already owes.
Republicans plan to raise the debt ceiling by $4 trillion or $5 trillion in their major reconciliation bill.
"A failure to suspend or increase the debt limit would wreak havoc on our financial system and diminish America's security and global leadership position," Bessent said.