A compromise bill that would give the Treasury the flexibility it needs to handle the national debt was approved last week by the House Ways & Means Committee. Engineered by Committee Chairman Wilbur Mills of Arkansas and approved by Treasury Secretary Robert Anderson, the bill would eliminate, on many issues, the 41% ceiling on long-term bonds that now hampers Government financing.
The bill provides that the ceiling may be exceeded by bond issues totaling up to 2% of the federal debt whenever the President decides that the national interest requires it. It also provides that the Treasury may 1) refund in advance...