Treasury Secretary Yellen tells Congress US expected to hit debt limit next week

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen alerted Congress on Friday that the United States is expected to reach its debt limit on Jan. 19. 

According to Yellen, the U.S. may have to resort to “extraordinary measures” to avoid default, the Associated Press reports. 

Some of the measures include payment delays in federal employment retirement plans.

Yellen stated that she can't know for sure how long the measures will sustain the U.S. to continue to pay the government’s obligations, but she said “it is unlikely that cash and extraordinary measures will be exhausted before early June."