Title 20—Employees' Benefits--Volume 1
PART 366—COLLECTION OF DEBTS BY FEDERAL TAX REFUND OFFSET
§ 366.1   Notification to Internal Revenue Service.
Upon entering into an agreement with the Internal Revenue Service and the Financial Management Service with regard to its participation in the tax refund offset program, the Board may notify the Internal Revenue Service, pursuant to the terms of such agreement, of past-due legally enforceable debts owed to the Board that are to be collected by tax refund offset. The Board's notification to the Internal Revenue Service will be as prescribed by the Internal Revenue Service in regard to information included and format, and will be made by such dates as prescribed by the Internal Revenue Service. The Board will provide the Internal Revenue Service with a toll-free or collect telephone number which the Internal Revenue Service may furnish to debtors whose refunds have been offset for use in obtaining information from the Board concerning the offset.
§ 366.2   Past-due legally enforceable debt.
A past-due legally enforceable debt which may be referred to the Internal Revenue Service is a debt:
(a) Which arose under any statute administered by the Board or under any contract;
(b) Which is an obligation of a debtor who is a natural person or a business;
(c) Which, except in the case of a judgment debt, has been delinquent at least three months but not more than ten years at the time the offset is made;
(d) Which is at least $25.00;
(e) With respect to which the rights regarding reconsideration, waiver, and appeal, described in part 260 or 320 of this chapter or in other law, if applicable, have been exhausted;
(f) With respect to which either:
(1) The Board's records do not contain evidence that the debtor (or, if an individual, his or her spouse) has filed for bankruptcy under title 11 of the United States Code; or
(2) The Board can clearly establish at the time of the referral that the automatic stay under section 362 of the Bankruptcy Code has been lifted or is no longer in effect with respect to the debtor (or, if an individual, his or her spouse) and the debt was not discharged in the bankruptcy proceeding;
(g) Which cannot currently be collected pursuant to the salary offset provisions of 5 U.S.C. 5514(a)(1);
(h) Which is not eligible for administrative offset under 31 U.S.C. 3716(a) by reason of 31 U.S.C. 3716(c)(2), or cannot currently be collected by administrative offset under 31 U.S.C. 3716(a) by the Board against amounts payable to the debtor by the Board;
(i) Which cannot currently be collected by administrative offset under § 255.6 or § 340.6 of this chapter against amounts payable to the debtor under any statute administered by the Board;
(j) With respect to which the Board has notified, or has made a reasonable attempt to notify, the debtor that the debt is past due, and that unless the debtor repays the debt within 60 days, will be referred to the Internal Revenue Service for offset against any overpayment of tax; and
(k) With respect to which the Board has given the debtor at least 60 days from the date of the notification required in paragraph (j) of this section to present evidence that all or part of the debt is not past due or legally enforceable, has considered evidence, if any, presented by such debtor, and has determined that an amount of such debt is past due and legally enforceable.
§ 366.3   Reasonable attempt to notify.
In order to constitute a reasonable attempt to notify the debtor the Board must have used a mailing address for the debtor obtained from the Internal Revenue Service pursuant to section 6103 (m)(2) or (m)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code within a period of one year preceding the attempt to notify the debtor, whether or not the Board has used any other address maintained by the Board for the debtor.
§ 366.4   Notification to debtor.
The notification provided by the Board to the debtor will inform the debtor how he or she may present evidence to the Board that all or part of the debt is not past due or legally enforceable.
§ 366.5   Consideration of evidence.
Evidence submitted by the debtor will be considered only by officials or employees of the Board and a determination that an amount of such debt is past-due and legally enforceable will be made only by such officials or employees.
§ 366.6   Change in notification to Internal Revenue Service.
If, after submitting to the Internal Revenue Service notification of liability for a debt, the Board:
(a) Determines that an error has been made with respect to the information contained in the notification,
(b) Receives a payment or credits a payment to the account of the debtor named in the notification that reduces the amount of the debt referred to the Internal Revenue Service for offset, or
(c) Receives notification that the debtor has filed for bankruptcy under title 11 of the United States Code or has been adjudicated bankrupt and the debt has been discharged, the Board will promptly notify the Internal Revenue Service. However, the Board will make no notification to the Internal Revenue Service to increase the amount of a debt owed by a debtor named in the Board's original notification to the Internal Revenue Service. If the amount of a debt is reduced after referral by the Board and offset by the Internal Revenue Service, the Board will refund to the debtor any excess amount and will promptly notify the Internal Revenue Service of any refund made by the Board.