WASHINGTON — Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is urging Congress and the Obama administration to start plotting a strategy to curb record-high U.S. budget deficits. Failing to do so could eventually erode investor confidence and endanger the economy's prospects for long-term health, he said.

Bernanke's comments, before the House Budget Committee today, come as concerns grow at home and overseas about the United States' mounting red ink.

"Even as we take steps to address the recession and threats to financial stability, maintaining the confidence of the financial markets requires that we, as a nation, begin planning now for the restoration of fiscal balance," Bernanke said.

The White House estimates that the government will rack up an unprecedented $1.8 trillion budget deficit this year. That would be more than four times last year's all-time high.

The recession has taken a bite out of tax revenues paid by people and companies. At the same time, the government's spending has risen, paying billions to shore up banks, help the unemployed and others hurt by the downturn, the longest since World War II.