45 CFR § 2506.50 - Under what circumstances will the Corporation collect amounts that I owe to the Corporation (or some other Federal agency) by offsetting the debt against payments that the Corporation (or some other Federal agency) owes me?

(a) The regulations in this subpart apply to the collection of any debts you owe to the Corporation, or to any request from another Federal agency that the Corporation collect a debt you owe by offsetting your debt against a payment the Corporation owes you. Administrative offset is authorized under section 5 of the Federal Claims Collection Act of 1966, as amended (31 U.S.C. 3716). The Corporation will carry out administrative offset in accordance with the provisions of the Federal Claims Collection Standards. The regulations in this subpart are intended only to supplement the provisions of the FCCS.

(b) The Chief Executive Officer, after attempting to collect a debt you owe to the Corporation under section 3(a) of the Federal Claims Collection Act of 1966, as amended (31 U.S.C. 3711(a)), may collect the debt by administrative offset only after giving you:

(1) Written notice of the type and amount of the debt, the intention of the Chief Executive Officer to collect the debt by administrative offset, and an explanation of the rights of the debtor;

(2) An opportunity to inspect and copy the records of the Corporation related to the debt;

(3) An opportunity for a review within the Corporation of the decision of the Corporation related to the debt; and

(4) An opportunity to make a written agreement with the Chief Executive Officer to repay the amount of the debt.

(c) No collection by administrative offset will be made on any debt that has been outstanding for more than 10 years, unless facts material to the Corporation's or the requesting Federal agency's right to collect the debt were not known, and reasonably could not have been known, by the official or officials responsible for discovering and collecting the debt.

(d) The regulations in this subpart do not apply to:

(1) A case in which administrative offset of the type of debt involved is explicitly prohibited by statute; or

(2) Debts owed to the Corporation by Federal agencies.