Referrals to the Department of Justice

10 C.F.R. Part ..., Subpart E
in effectEffective: 2024-07-01

10 C.F.R. § 1015.500 Scope.

This subpart sets forth the standards for referrals to the Department of Justice. This subpart corresponds to 31 CFR part 904 of the Treasury Federal Claims Collection Standards.

10 C.F.R. § 1015.501 Referrals to the Department of Justice and the Department of the Treasury's Cross-Servicing Program.

(a) DOE may authorize Treasury to refer a delinquent debt to the DOJ for litigation in accordance with 31 U.S.C. 3711(g), the DCIA, the revised Federal Claims Collection Standards (31 CFR parts 900-904), and other applicable authorities. DOE shall ensure that all of the rights and protections afforded to the debtor under 31 U.S.C. 3711(e) have been fulfilled. (b) As described in § 1015.201(e), under the DCIA (31 U.S.C. 3711(g)), DOE is required to transfer all debts over 180 days delinquent to Treasury for purposes of debt collection (i.e., cross-servicing). As part of its regular debt collection procedures, Treasury will refer debts to the DOJ for litigation on behalf of DOE.

10 C.F.R. § 1015.502 Prompt referral.

(a) If a debt is not referred to the DOJ through Treasury's cross-servicing program, DOE shall promptly refer to the DOJ for litigation debts on which aggressive collection activity has been taken in accordance with § 1015.200 of this part and that cannot be compromised, or on which collection activity cannot be suspended or terminated, in accordance with §§ 1015.300 and 1015.400 of this part. DOE may refer those debts arising out of activities of DOE. Debts for which the principal amount is over $1,000,000, or such other amount as the Attorney General may direct, exclusive of interest and penalties, shall be referred to the Civil Division or other division responsible for litigating such debts at the DOJ, Washington, DC. Debts for which the principal amount is $1,000,000, or less, or such other amount as the Attorney General may direct, exclusive of interest or penalties, shall be referred to the DOJ's Nationwide Central Intake Facility as required by the CCLR instructions. Claims will be referred as early as possible, consistent with aggressive agency collection activity and the observance of the standards contained in the Federal Claims Collection Standards (31 CFR parts 900-904), and, in any event, well within the period for initiating timely lawsuits against the debtors. DOE shall make every effort to refer delinquent debts to the DOJ for litigation within one year of the date such debts last became delinquent. In the case of guaranteed or insured loans, DOE will make every effort to refer these delinquent debts to the DOJ for litigation within one year from the date the loan was presented to DOE for payment or re-insurance. (b) The DOJ has exclusive jurisdiction over the debts referred to it pursuant to this section. DOE shall refrain from having any contact with the debtor and shall direct all debtor inquiries concerning the claim to the DOJ. DOE shall notify the DOJ immediately of any payments credited by DOE to the debtor's account after referral of a debt or claim under this section. The DOJ shall notify DOE, in a timely manner, of any payments it receives from the debtor.

10 C.F.R. § 1015.503 Claims Collection Litigation Report.

(a) Unless excepted by the DOJ, DOE shall complete the CCLR (see § 1015.301 of this part), accompanied by a signed Certificate of Indebtedness, to refer all administratively uncollectible claims to the DOJ for litigation. DOE shall complete all of the sections of the CCLR appropriate to each claim as required by the CCLR instructions and furnish such other information as may be required in specific cases. (b) DOE shall indicate clearly on the CCLR the actions it wishes the DOJ to take with respect to the referred claim. The CCLR permits DOE to indicate specifically any of a number of litigative activities which the DOJ may pursue, including enforced collection, judgment lien only, renew judgment lien only, renew judgment lien and enforce collection, program enforcement, foreclosure only, and foreclosure and deficiency judgment. (c) DOE also shall use the CCLR to refer claims to the DOJ to obtain the DOJ's approval of any proposals to compromise the claims or to suspend or terminate DOE collection activity.

10 C.F.R. § 1015.504 Preservation of evidence.

DOE will take care to preserve all files and records that may be needed by the DOJ to prove its claims in court. DOE ordinarily will include certified copies of the documents that form the basis for the claim in the packages referring its claims to the DOJ for litigation. DOE shall provide originals of such documents immediately upon request by the DOJ.

10 C.F.R. § 1015.505 Minimum amount of referrals to the Department of Justice.

(a) DOE shall not refer for litigation claims of less than $2,500, exclusive of interest, penalties, and administrative costs, or such other amount as the Attorney General shall from time to time prescribe. The DOJ promptly shall notify DOE if the Attorney General changes this minimum amount. (b) DOE shall not refer claims of less than the minimum amount unless: (1) Litigation to collect such smaller claims is important to ensure compliance with DOE's policies or programs; (2) The claim is being referred solely for the purpose of securing a judgment against the debtor, which will be filed as a lien against the debtor's property pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 3201 and returned to DOE for enforcement; or (3) The debtor has the clear ability to pay the claim and the Government effectively can enforce payment, with due regard for the exemptions available to the debtor under state and Federal law and the judicial remedies available to the Government. (4) DOE will consult with the Financial Litigation Staff of the Executive Office for United States Attorneys in the DOJ prior to referring claims valued at less than the minimum amount.

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