Debt Ceiling: Time's Running Out

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — So little time. So little clarity. So much at stake.

It’s T minus two weeks until July 1. That’s the chosen deadline for the small bipartisan group of lawmakers negotiating a debt-reduction “framework” to accompany an increase in the country’s debt ceiling.

Indeed, the reality of the legislative process makes a short-term increase until September or October likely, some believe.

“In the next six weeks, there really isn’t the time to technically draft that legislation, take it through the Congress, vote on it and have it signed,” said former Congressional Budget Office director Barry Anderson at a conference held by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget last week.

There’s another problem: It’s still not clear that the group, led by Vice President Joe Biden, can even come to an agreement.

“They are probably making progress, but that doesn’t mean you have a deal,” said longtime political observer Norm Ornstein, a resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.

Nor is there any firm indication of what might be included in a final deal. Broadly, it appears there will be spending cuts, a debt or spending cap to shoot for over time and a trigger to keep lawmakers on the debt-reduction path they agree to.

Debt ceiling: What you need to know

It’s also possible a deal will include some items that won’t be called stimulus but which will cost money and be intended to help spur the economy since Main Street is still feeling less than robust.

For example, there’s been chatter recently about extending the payroll tax cut for individuals passed in last December’s $858 billion tax cut deal and possibly extending it to employers.

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