The statutory debt limit is a cap on the total amount of federal debt the United States government can have outstanding at any given time. According to the Treasury Department, the U.S. government has already reached the current debt limit of $7.384 trillion. While the Treasury is currently using accounting maneuvers to avoid a breach of this limit, these actions are only temporary, and Congress must take action soon to raise the ceiling in order to avoid government default on current obligations. Some observers argue that the need to raise the debt limit is a reflection of fiscal irresponsibility, but as this report explains, the debt limit should not be used as a barometer of economic or fiscal health.