§ 1951.102 - Administrative offset.

§ 1951.102 Administrative offset.

(a) General. Collections of delinquent debts through administrative offset will be taken in accordance with 7 CFR part 3, subpart B and § 1951.106.

(b) Definitions. In this subpart:

(1) Agency means Farm Service Agency, Farm Loan Programs; Rural Housing Service, except direct Single Family Housing loans and direct Multi-Family Housing loans; and Rural Business-Cooperative Service, or any successor agency.

(2) Contracting officer is any person who, by appointment in accordance with applicable regulations, has the authority to enter into and administer contracts and make determinations and findings with respect thereto. The term also includes the authorized representative of the contracting officer, acting within the limits of the representative's authority.

(3) County Committee means the local committee elected by farmers in the county, as authorized by the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act and the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994, to administer FSA programs approved for the county as appropriate.

(4) Creditor agency means a Federal agency to whom a debtor owes a monetary debt. It need not be the same agency that effects the offset.

(5) Debt management officer means an agency employee responsible for collection by administrative offset of debts owed the United States.

(6) Delinquent or past-due means a payment that was not made by the due date.

(7) Entity means a corporation, joint stock company, association, general partnership, limited partnership, limited liability company, irrevocable trust, revocable trust, estate, charitable organization, or other similar organization participating in the farming operation.

(8) FP means Farm Programs.

(9) FLP means Farm Loan Programs.

(10) FSA means Farm Service Agency.

(11) National Appeals Division means the organization within the Department of Agriculture that conducts appeals of adverse decisions for program participants under the purview of 7 CFR part 11.

(12) Offsetting agency means an agency that withholds from its payment to a debtor an amount owed by the debtor to a creditor agency, and transfers the funds to the creditor agency for application to the debt.

(13) Propriety means the offset is feasible. It includes offsetting a debtor's payments due any entity in which the debtor participates either directly or indirectly equal to the debtor's interest in the entity. To be feasible the debt must exist and be 90 days past due or the borrower must be in default of other obligations to the Agency, which can be cured by the payment.

(14) Reviewing officer means an agency employee responsible for conducting a hearing or documentary review on the existence of debt and the propriety of administrative offset in accordance with 7 CFR 3.29. FSA District Directors or other State Executive Director designees are designated to conduct the hearings or reviews.

[65 FR 50602, Aug. 21, 2000, as amended at 67 FR 69671, Nov. 19, 2002; 69 FR 5267, Feb. 4, 2004]