Toomey Hails House Passage of Full Faith & Credit Act

Member Group : U.S. Senator Pat Toomey

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 9, 2013

Contact E.R. Anderson (202) 224-8609
or Bill Rivers (202) 228-6837

SEN. TOOMEY APPLAUDS HOUSE PASSAGE OF FULL FAITH AND CREDIT ACT

Urges Senate To Also Pass Legislation

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) applauded the House of Representatives after it passed the Full Faith and Credit Act today. The legislation will ensure that the U.S. government does not default on its debt by requiring the Treasury to prioritize payments on the debt in case the debt ceiling is not raised.

Sen. Toomey authored the Senate version of the bill. It protects Social Security benefits and military pay and requires that the United States Government prioritize all obligations on the debt held by the public in the event that the debt limit is reached.

For months, some political leaders have argued that failure to raise the debt ceiling would necessarily cause the United States to default on its debt. This is not the case. If Congress refuses to raise the debt ceiling, the federal government will have more than enough money to service its debt. This year, about 6 percent of all projected federal government expenditures will go to pay off the interest on our debt, and tax revenue is projected to cover about 76 percent of all government expenditures.

"We need to end government by crisis," Sen. Toomey said. "As the sequester proved, limiting spending does not cause the sky to fall. The Full Faith and Credit Act will allow Congress and the President to have a frank discussion about putting our nation on a path to balance by taking the specter of default off the table. I am pleased the House approved it, and I urge my Senate colleagues to take up and pass this important legislation."

The House version of the bill is sponsored by Rep. Tom McClintock (R-Calif.). H.R. 807 passed 221-207.

The Administration is promising to veto the measure.

Bill Rivers
Press Assistant
Senator Pat Toomey
Office: 202-228-6837
248 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510