By Kate Davidson 

WASHINGTON -- The federal government has the capacity to borrow more if Congress chooses, despite high and rising federal debt, Congressional Budget Office Director Phillip Swagel said Monday.

The agency released new projections showing weaker economic growth and significantly higher federal debt over the next 30 years than it forecast in June 2019, the last time it released long-term economic projections and before the coronavirus pandemic swept across the U.S., triggering a deep recession.

Although the long-term fiscal challenges are daunting, Mr. Swagel said, "the U.S. is not facing an immediate fiscal crisis."

"The current low interest rates indicate that the debt is manageable for now and that fiscal policy could be used to address national priorities, if the Congress chose to do so," he said in a statement accompanying the new projections.

The projections released Monday are an extension of forecasts the CBO released over the summer, showing debt as a share of the economy is on track to hit 100% next year and reach 108.9% by the end of the next decade, the highest since World War II.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 21, 2020 14:26 ET (18:26 GMT)