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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 38 / Monday, March 1, 2021 / Proposed Rules record of oral hearings provided under the procedures in this section.

g Request for waiver. In certain instances, an employee may have a statutory right to request a waiver of overpayment of pay or allowances e.g., 5 U.S.C. 5584 or 5 U.S.C. 5724i. When an employee requests waiver consideration under a right authorized by statute, the Agency will suspend further collection on the debt until it makes a final administrative decision on the waiver request. However, when it appears that an employees resignation, termination, or other action may prejudice the Governments ability to recover the debt, the suspension of recovery is not required. During the period of the suspension, USAID will not assess interest, penalties, charges, and administrative costs against the debt. The Agency will not duplicate, for purposes of salary offset, any of the procedures already provided the debtor under a request for waiver. See 213.13.

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1 Deductions to liquidate an employees debt will begin on the date stated in the Agencys written demandfor-payment notice of intention to collect, from the employees current pay unless he or she has paid the debt or filed a timely request for a hearing on issues for which a hearing is appropriate.

n Interest, penalties, and administrative cost. USAID will assess interest, penalties, and administrative costs on debts collected under the procedures in this section. Interest, penalties, and administrative costs will continue to accrue during the period that the debtor is seeking a review of the debt or requesting a waiver. The following guidelines apply to the assessment of these costs on debts collected by salary offset:
1 USAID will start to assess interest on all debts not collected by the payment due date specified in the initial written demand-for-payment notice.
USAID will waive the collection of interest and administrative charges on the portion of the debt paid within 30
days after the date on which interest begins to accrue.

3 Deductions by administrative offset normally begin prior to the time for assessment of a penalty. Therefore, USAID will not assess a penalty charge unless deductions occur more than 90
days from the due date in the initial written demand-for-payment notice.

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26. Amend 213.23 by:
a. Revising the section heading;
b. Removing creditor agency and creditor agencys and adding creditor Agency and creditor Agencys, respectively, in their places everywhere they appear; and c. Revising paragraph b.
The revisions read as follows:

213.23 Salary offset when USAID is not the creditor Agency.

b Requests to USAID by another Agency to offset salary. Requests for salary offset must be sent to the Office of the Chief Financial Officer, United States Agency for International Development, 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, USAID Annex, Room 8.80D, Washington, DC 205234601.

27. Revise the heading for subpart D
to read as follows:
Subpart DCompromise of Claims

28. Revise 213.24 to read as follows:

213.24

General.

The CFO may compromise claims for money or property when the principal balance of a claim, exclusive of interest, penalties, and administrative costs, does not exceed $100,000. Where the claim exceeds $100,000, the authority to accept the compromise rests with DOJ.
The CFO may reject an offer of compromise in any amount. DOJs approval is not required if the Agency rejects a compromise offer. When the claim exceeds $100,000 and the CFO
recommends acceptance of a compromise offer, he or she will refer the claim with his or her recommendation to DOJ for approval.
The referral may be in the form of the Claims-Collection Litigation Report CCLR and will outline the basis for USAIDs recommendation. USAID refers compromise offers for claims in excess of $100,000 to the Commercial Litigation Branch of the Civil Division of the Department of Justice, Washington, DC 20530, unless otherwise provided by DOJs delegations or procedures.
29. Revise 213.25 to read as follows:
213.25
claims.

Standards for the compromise of
a The CFO may compromise a claim pursuant to this section if USAID cannot collect the full amount because:
1 The debtor is unable to pay the full amount of the debt within reasonable time, as verified through credit reports or other financial information;
2 The Federal Government is unable to collect the debt in full within a
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reasonable time by enforced collection proceedings;
3 The cost of collecting the debt does not justify the enforced collection of the full amount; or 4 There is significant doubt concerning the Governments ability to prove its case in court;
b In evaluating the debtors inability to pay, the CFO may consider, among other factors, the following:
1 Age and health of the debtor;
2 Present and potential income;
3 Inheritance prospects;
4 The possibility that assets have been concealed or improperly transferred by the debtor;
5 The availability of assets or income which may be realized by enforced collection proceedings; or 6 The applicable exemptions available to the debtor under State and Federal law in determining the Federal Governments ability to enforce collection;
c The CFO may compromise a claim, or recommend acceptance of a compromise to DOJ, where there is significant doubt concerning the Federal Governments ability to prove its case in court for the full amount of the claim, either because of the legal issues involved or because of a bona fide dispute as to the facts. The amount accepted in compromise in such cases will fairly reflect the probability of prevailing on the legal issues involved, considering fully the availability of witnesses and other evidentiary data required to support the Governments claim. In determining the litigative risks involved, USAID will give proportionate weight to the likely amount of court costs and attorney fees the Government could incur if it is unsuccessful in litigation;
d The CFO may compromise a claim, or recommend acceptance of a compromise to DOJ, if the cost of collection does not justify the enforced collection of the full amount of the debt.
The amount accepted in compromise in such cases may reflect an appropriate discount for the administrative and litigative costs of collection, taking into consideration the time it will take to effect collection. Costs of collection might be a substantial factor in the settlement of small claims, but normally will not carry great weight in the settlement of large claims. In determining whether the cost of collection justifies enforced collection of the full amount, USAID may consider the positive effect that enforced collection of the claim could have on the collection of other similar claims;
e To assess the merits of a compromise offer, the CFO should
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