The US Senate voted on Thursday night to pass a bill that would extend the debt ceiling for two years and establish a two-year budget agreement, NBC News reported.
The vote was 63-36.
Having already cleared the House on Wednesday, the legislation now goes to President Joe Biden, who is expected to sign it and avert an economically catastrophic debt default with mere days to spare before Monday's deadline.
“Just now, Senators from both parties voted to protect our hard-earned economic progress and prevent a first-ever default,” tweeted Biden after the vote.
“No one gets everything they want in a negotiation, but make no mistake: this bipartisan agreement is a big win for our economy and the American people,” he added.
“Our work is far from finished, but I look forward to signing this bill into law as soon as possible and addressing the American people directly tomorrow,” concluded Biden.
The agreement was brokered by Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy over the weekend, after a lengthy stalemate and a few weeks of negotiations.
"America can breathe a sigh of relief. Because in this process we are avoiding default," said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who added, "The consequences of default would be catastrophic."
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell championed the bill as "an urgent and important step in the right direction — for the health of our economy and the future of our country."
Once signed into law, the bill will cap spending for the next two years with a modest cut to non-military spending and a modest expansion in defense spending. It includes conservative measures to claw back about $28 billion in unspent Covid relief funds, eliminate $1.4 billion in IRS funding and overhaul the permitting process for energy projects.
The Biden-McCarthy agreement would not make any changes to Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid.