Republican House Speaker John Boehner and other leaders were struggling on July 28 to convince rank and file lawmakers to vote for his bill.

The plan, however, is almost certain to fail in the Democratic-led Senate, and the White House has warned of a veto.

Congress must raise the US debt limit by a deadline of next Tuesday.

The US Treasury has warned the government will run out of money to pay all its bills unless a US$14.3 trillion borrowing limit is increased by next Tuesday.

On July 28, White House spokesman Jay Carney said a possible compromise would involve "significant deficit reduction, a mechanism by which Congress would take on the tough issues of tax reform and entitlement reform, and a lifting of the debt ceiling beyond - into 2013, so that we do not have the cloud of uncertainty that is hanging over our economy right now".

Washington hit its debt ceiling in May, but has used accounting adjustments, as well as higher-than-expected tax receipts, to continue operating.

In recent decades, the US Congress has increased the government's borrowing authority dozens of times as a matter of routine, but this year newly elected conservative Republicans have demanded steep cuts to the budget deficit as the price of an increase.