debt limit

The Treasury Department will have to take extraordinary measures, which may include borrowing from the Thrift Savings Plan’s G fund, for the next few months in order to keep the federal government from defaulting on its debts.

The federal government will reach its borrowing cap on Nov. 3, two days earlier than the Treasury Department first anticipated, according to Treasury Secretary Jack Lew.

House Republicans are offering to pass legislation to avert a default and end the 11-day partial government shutdown as part of a framework that would include cuts in benefit programs, officials said Friday. Republicans also seek changes in the three-year-old health care law known as Obamacare as part of an end to an impasse that has roiled financial markets and idled 350,000 federal workers. President Barack Obama has insisted he will not negotiate with Republicans over federal spending – or anything else – until the government is reopened and the $16.7 debt limit raised to avert the possibility of default.

On this week’s Capital Impact show, Bloomberg Government analysts discuss how the debt limit and furloughs are affecting the economy, and how a case being reviewed by the Supreme Court, could impact future elections. October 10, 2013

Congress returns to work today with a crowded agenda and little time. Lawmakers must come to agreement on 2014 funding before the fiscal year ends Sept. 30 or risk a government shutdown. Also on the agenda: coming up with an alternative to the automatic spending constraints known as sequestration and negotiating a raise in the government’s borrowing limit. There are also other measures affecting federal employees that remain to be worked out, including legislation to overhaul the cash-strapped Postal Service and a potential 1 percent pay raise for civilian federal workers.

On this week’s Bloomberg Government Capital Impact show, analysts examine the hurdles that remain for natural gas vehicles. Plus what does the future hold for housing, jobs and the debt limit in 2013? January 31, 2013

The House has postponed a vote on a bill to extend the federal pay freeze through the rest of 2013. In its place, the House is set to vote on a measure withholding congressional pay unless lawmakers pass a budget — part of a broader deal to extend the debt limit.

Just about every federal investor knows that the super-safe, never-has-a-bad day Treasury securities G Fund is the place to be when times are tough, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says. But what happens if Uncle Sam loses the ability to borrow in order to pay off debts? Where should G Fund investors go?

Trey Hodgkins, senior vice president for Global Public Sector at TechAmerica, will discuss how sequestration and other issues will affect contracting and acquisition. October 8, 2012

Bruce Moyer, spokesman for the Federal-Postal Coalition, joined Your Turn with Mike Causey to discuss the group’s efforts to learn information about what a government default would mean for federal employees. The coalition, made up of scores of federal groups, sent a letter to administration officials last week seeking information about a possible shutdown, federal furloughs and the impact of a default on the assets of the G Fund of the Federal Employees’ Retirement System.