[Code of Federal Regulations]

[Title 44, Volume 1]

[Revised as of October 1, 2005]

From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access

[CITE: 44CFR11.43]



[Page 119-120]

 

              TITLE 44--EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AND ASSISTANCE

 

 CHAPTER I--FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 

                                SECURITY

 

PART 11_CLAIMS--Table of Contents

 

     Subpart C_Collection of Debts by the Government Under the Debt 

                         Collection Act of 1982

 

Sec. 11.43  Collection by administrative offset.



    (a) General. The Agency Collections Officer (ACO) or the ACO's 

designee may collect debts owed to the United States by means of offsets 

against monies due from the United States under provisions of 31 U.S.C. 

3716 and the procedures set forth below. Under provisions of 31 U.S.C. 

3716(h)(1) and reciprocal agreements entered into by the Secretary of 

the Treasury and the States concerned, the ACO or the ACO's designee may 

institute administrative offsets covered in this section to collect 

debts that are owed to States and which arise under programs 

administered by FEMA. The procedures prescribed by this section shall 

not be used if the debtor has executed a written agreement satisfactory 

to the ACO or the ACO's designee for the payment of the debt so long as 

the debtor adheres to the provisions of the agreement. Before using the 

procedures of this section, the ACO or the ACO's designee shall examine 

the debt to determine whether the likelihood of collecting such a debt 

and the best interests of the United States justify the use of 

administrative offset. If the debt is over 6 years old but is not 10 

years old, the ACO or the ACO's designee shall examine the debt and 

decide whether using these procedures is cost effective. Further, FEMA 

shall not use administrative offset procedures on debts existing for 

more than 10 years after the Government's right to collect the debt 

first accrued unless facts material to the Government's right to collect 

the debt were not known and could not have been known by the officials 

of the Government who were charged with responsibility to discover and 

collect the debt. FEMA may refer debts to the Department of the Treasury 

for Government-wide administrative offset under the provisions of 31 

U.S.C. 3716(c) and for offsets against Federal tax refunds under 

provisions of 31 U.S.C. 3720A.

    (b) Written notice. After the ACO or the ACO's designee has examined 

the debt under procedures set forth in paragraph (a) of this section, 

FEMA shall hand deliver or send by mail a notice to the debtor advising 

the debtor of:

    (1) Nature and amount of the debt determined by the Agency to be 

due, and of intention to collect by administrative offset;



[[Page 120]]



    (2) Rights available under this section;

    (3) Opportunity to inspect and copy the records relating to the 

debt;

    (4) Opportunity for review within the Agency with respect to the 

debt; and

    (5) Opportunity to enter into an agreement with the ACO with respect 

to the debt. Such agreement may include voluntary but nonrevocable 

withholding of monies due from the United States to the debtor.

    (c) Review within the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The 

debtor may request, within sixty calendar days after mailing or hand-

delivery of the written notice specified in paragraph (b) of this 

section, review within the Agency as to the existence or amount of the 

debt or terms of repayment. An attorney in the Office of General 

Counsel, acting as an Administrative Review Official (ARO), shall 

conduct the review. The ARO may determine that no debt is due, that the 

amount of the debts should be reduced, that terms of repayment should be 

set, or that the demanded amount should be paid in full.

    (1) If the debtor has made a timely request for a review within the 

Agency, then FEMA shall stay any offsets until the ARO has rendered a 

decision. However, interest, penalties and administrative charges, as 

specified in Sec. 11.48, shall continue to accrue during the pendency 

of the review within the Agency. If the debtor files a request for a 

review within the Agency after the 60 days specified above, then FEMA 

shall continue with the offset action. However, if the ARO finds that 

the debtor owes less than the amount offset, then FEMA will refund the 

amount over-withheld. For purposes of determining whether the debtor has 

filed a timely request for administrative review, the date of FEMA's 

receipt of the debtor's request establishes the time of filing.

    (2) The ARO shall transmit the decision on the debtor's request for 

review within the Agency. The ARO may contact the debtor directly to 

request additional information and data in order to allow the ARO to 

reach a knowledgeable decision. The ARO's decision shall be final 

insofar as FEMA's administrative processing of the debt is concerned.

    (3) FEMA shall use procedures in this section to decide debtors' 

requests for review within FEMA under the provisions of Sec. 11.64(d).

    (d) If the debtor does not execute a written agreement, if the 

debtor does not request review within the Agency, or if the review 

within the Agency determines that a debt is due, then FEMA shall use 

administrative offset against monies payable by the United States in 

accordance with this section and appropriate regulations. However, if a 

statute or FEMA agreement either prohibits or explicitly provides for 

collection through administrative offset for the debt or the type of 

debt involved then the provisions of that statute or FEMA agreement 

rather than the provisions of this section shall be used for such 

offset.

    (e) If the debtor has a judgment against the United States, then 

notice shall be provided to the General Accounting Office for offset in 

accordance with 31 U.S.C. 3728.

    (f) In addition to administrative offset remedies described above, 

FEMA may use its rights to collect debts by offsets conducted under 

principles of common law.

    (g) The debtor's failure to receive notice, described in paragraph 

(b) of this section, mailed by FEMA to the debtor's last-known address, 

shall not impair the validity of offsets taken under this section.

    (h) If FEMA or any other Federal department or agency incurs costs 

in taking offsets to collect delinquent debts, then the debtor shall be 

liable for such costs as administrative costs in accordance with section 

11.48(d).



[63 FR 1066, Jan. 8, 1998]