WASHINGTON, Jan 18 (KUNA) -- U.S. Secretary of Treasury Janet L. YJanet said her department would start next Tuesday the application of "extraordinary measures" to avoid government failure to meet its financial obligations amid Congress reluctance to raise federal debts.
"The period of time that extraordinary measures may last is subject to considerable uncertainty, including the challenges of forecasting the payments and receipts of the U.S. Government months into the future," she said in a letter to the Congress late Friday.
"The debt limit does not authorize new spending, but it creates a risk that the federal government might not be able to finance its existing legal obligations that Congresses and Presidents of both parties have made in the past," she added.
The secretary of treasury urged the Congress to act promptly to protect the full faith and credit of the United States. (end) asj.mt