31 USC § 3713 - Priority of Government claims | LII / Legal Information Institute

(a)

(1) A claim of the United States Government shall be paid first when—

(A) a person indebted to the Government is insolvent and—

(i) the debtor without enough property to pay all debts makes a voluntary assignment of property;

(ii) property of the debtor, if absent, is attached; or

(iii) an act of bankruptcy is committed; or

(B) the estate of a deceased debtor, in the custody of the executor or administrator, is not enough to pay all debts of the debtor.

(2) This subsection does not apply to a case under title 11.

(b) A representative of a person or an estate (except a trustee acting under title 11) paying any part of a debt of the person or estate before paying a claim of the Government is liable to the extent of the payment for unpaid claims of the Government.

Source

(Pub. L. 97–258, Sept. 13, 1982, 96 Stat. 972.)

Historical and Revision Notes
Revised Section	Source (U.S. Code)	Source (Statutes at Large)
3713(a)	31:191.	R.S. § 3466; Nov. 6, 1978, Pub. L. 95–598, § 322(a), 92 Stat. 2678.
3713(b)	31:192.	R.S. § 3467; restated May 10, 1934, ch. 277, § 518(a), 48 Stat. 760; Nov. 6, 1978, Pub. L. 95–598, § 322(b), 92 Stat. 2679.

In the section, the word “claim” is substituted for “debts” for consistency. The word “due” is omitted as unnecessary.

In subsection (a)(1), before clause (A), the word “paid” is substituted for “satisfied” for consistency. In clause (A)(i), the words “and the priority established shall extend as well to cases in which” are omitted because of the restatement. In clause (A)(ii), the word “property” is substituted for “estate and effects” to eliminate unnecessary words. The words “absconding, concealed, or” and “by process of law” are omitted as surplus.

In subsection (a)(2), the words “The priority established under . . . however” are omitted as surplus.

In subsection (b), the words “A representative of a person or an estate” are substituted for “executor, administrator, or assignee, or other” for clarity and to eliminate unnecessary words. The words “for whom or for which he acts”, “satisfies and”, and “from such person or estate” are omitted as surplus. The word “liable” is substituted for “answerable in his own person and estate” for consistency.

The table below lists the classification updates, since Jan. 7, 2011, for this section. Updates to a broader range of sections may be found at the update page for containing chapter, title, etc.

The most recent Classification Table update that we have noticed was Friday, May 13, 2011

An empty table indicates that we see no relevant changes listed in the classification tables. If you suspect that our system may be missing something, please double-check with the Office of the Law Revision Counsel.

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Abbreviations used in the Description of Change column:

An empty field implies a standard amendment.
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"nt" means note.
"nt [tbl]" means note [table].
"prec" means preceding.
"fr" means a transfer from another section.
"to" means a transfer to another section.
"omitted" means the section is omitted.
"repealed" means the section is repealed.
"nt ed change" and "ed change" - See the Editorial Classification Change Table [pdf].

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General Reference

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You can look for information about what it is and is not, which titles are positive law, the schedule of Supplements, etc. Under download you can find the source data we use here (GPO locator files), as well as, PDF files that look just like the paper books (these may be rather large).

Refer to the Thomas site for changes that have not yet made it into the classification tables.

31 USC	Description of Change	Session Year	Public Law	Statutes at Large

This is a list of parts within the Code of Federal Regulations for which this US Code section provides rulemaking authority.

This list is taken from the Parallel Table of Authorities and Rules provided by GPO [Government Printing Office].

It is not guaranteed to be accurate or up-to-date, though we do refresh the database weekly. More limitations on accuracy are described at the GPO site.

10 CFR - Title 10—Energy

10 CFR 1015 - COLLECTION OF CLAIMS OWED THE UNITED STATES

10 CFR 16 - SALARY OFFSET PROCEDURES FOR COLLECTING DEBTS OWED BY FEDERAL EMPLOYEES TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

12 CFR - Title 12—Banks and Banking

12 CFR 1208 - DEBT COLLECTION

12 CFR 1408 - COLLECTION OF CLAIMS OWED THE UNITED STATES

12 CFR 608 - COLLECTION OF CLAIMS OWED THE UNITED STATES

14 CFR - Title 14—Aeronautics and Space

14 CFR 1261 - PROCESSING OF MONETARY CLAIMS (GENERAL)

17 CFR - Title 17—Commodity and Securities Exchanges

17 CFR 143 - COLLECTION OF CLAIMS OWED THE UNITED STATES ARISING FROM ACTIVITIES UNDER THE COMMISSION'S JURISDICTION

22 CFR - Title 22—Foreign Relations

22 CFR 309 - DEBT COLLECTION

22 CFR 34 - DEBT COLLECTION

29 CFR - Title 29—Labor

29 CFR 1450 - COLLECTIONS OF CLAIMS OWED THE UNITED STATES

29 CFR 20 - FEDERAL CLAIMS COLLECTION

29 CFR 4903 - DEBT COLLECTION

36 CFR - Title 36—Parks, Forests, and Public Property

36 CFR 1201 - COLLECTION OF CLAIMS

38 CFR - Title 38—Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans' Relief

38 CFR 1 - GENERAL PROVISIONS

45 CFR - Title 45—Public Welfare

45 CFR 2506 - COLLECTION OF DEBTS

45 CFR 30 - CLAIMS COLLECTION

47 CFR - Title 47—Telecommunication

47 CFR 1 - PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE

49 CFR - Title 49—Transportation

49 CFR 89 - IMPLEMENTATION OF THE FEDERAL CLAIMS COLLECTION ACT

31 USC § 3713 - Priority of Government claims

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