Application and Coverage

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

10 C.F.R. § 15.1 Application.

(a) This part applies to claims for the payment of debts owed to the United States Government in the form of money or property and; unless a different procedure is specified in a statute, regulation, or contract; prescribes procedures by which the NRC— (1) Collects, compromises, suspends, offsets, and terminates collection action for claims; (2) Determines and collects interest and other charges on these claims; and (3) Refers unpaid claims over 180 days delinquent to Treasury for offset and collection and to the DOJ for litigation. (b) The following are examples of kinds of debts to which special statutory and administrative procedures apply: (1) A claim against an employee for erroneous payment of pay and allowances subject to waiver under 5 U.S.C. 5584 are covered by the provisions of 10 CFR part 16. (2) A claim against an applicant for, or a holder or former holder of, an NRC license involving the payment of civil penalties imposed by the NRC under 10 CFR 2.205. (3) A claim involved in a case pending before any Federal Contract Appeals Board or Grant Appeals Board. However, nothing in this part prevents negotiation and settlement of a claim pending before a Board. (c) The NRC is not limited to collection remedies contained in the revised Federal Claims Collection Standards (FCCS). The FCCS is not intended to impair common law remedies.

10 C.F.R. § 15.2 Definitions.

Administrative offset means withholding money payable by the United States Government to, or held by the Government for, a person to satisfy a debt the person owes the United States Government. Administrative wage garnishment is the process of withholding amounts from an employee's disposable pay and the paying of those amounts to a creditor in satisfaction of a withholding order. Claim and debt are used synonymously to refer to an amount of money, funds, or property that has been determined by an agency official to be owed to the United States from any person, organization, or entity, except another Federal agency. For the purposes of administrative offset under 31 U.S.C. 3716, the terms claim and debt include an amount of money, funds, or property owed by a person to a State (including past-due support being enforced by a State), the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, the United States Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Cross-servicing means that the Treasury or another debt collection center is taking appropriate debt collection action on behalf of one or more Federal agencies or a unit or subagency thereof. Delinquent. A debt is considered delinquent if it has not been paid by the date specified in the initial written demand for payment or applicable contractual agreement with the NRC unless other satisfactory payment arrangements have been made by that date. If the debtor fails to satisfy obligations under a payment agreement with the NRC after other payment arrangements have been made, the debt becomes a delinquent debt. Federal agencies include agencies of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the Government, including Government corporations. License means any license, permit, or other approval issued by the Commission. Payment in full means payment of the total debt due the United States, including any interest, penalty, and administrative costs of collection assessed against the debtor. Recoupment is a special method for adjusting debts arising under the same transaction or occurrence. For example, obligations arising under the same contract generally are subject to recoupment. Salary offset means an administrative offset to collect a debt under 5 U.S.C. 5514 by deduction(s) at one or more officially established pay intervals from the current pay account of an employee without his/her consent. Tax refund offset means withholding or reducing a tax refund payment by an amount necessary to satisfy a debt owed by the payee(s) of a tax refund payment. Treasury as used in 10 CFR part 15 means the Department of the Treasury. Withholding order means any order for withholding or garnishment of pay issued by an agency, or judicial or administrative body.

10 C.F.R. § 15.3 Communications.

Unless otherwise specified, communications concerning the regulations in this part may be addressed to the Secretary of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and sent either by mail to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, ATTN: Rulemakings and Adjudications Staff; by hand delivery to the NRC's offices at 11555 Rockville Pike, One White Flint North, Rockville, Maryland; or, where practicable, by electronic submission, for example, via Electronic Information Exchange, or CD-ROM. Electronic submissions must be made in a manner that enables the NRC to receive, read, authenticate, distribute, and archive the submission, and process and retrieve it a single page at a time. Detailed guidance on making electronic submissions can be obtained by visiting the NRC's Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html; by e-mail to MSHD.Resource@nrc.gov; or by writing the Office of the Chief Information Officer, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001. The guidance discusses, among other topics, the formats the NRC can accept, the use of electronic signatures, and the treatment of nonpublic information.

10 C.F.R. § 15.5 Claims that are covered.

(a) These procedures generally apply to any claim for payment of a debt which: (1) Results from activities of the NRC, including fees imposed under part 170 and part 171; or (2) Is referred to the NRC for collection. (b) These procedures do not apply to: (1) A claim based on a civil monetary penalty for violation of a licensing requirement unless § 2.205 of this chapter provides otherwise; (2) A claim as to which there is an indication of fraud, the presentation of a false claim, or misrepresentation on the part of the debtor or any other party having an interest in the claim; (3) A claim based in whole or in part on conduct in violation of the antitrust laws; (4) A claim under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. (5) A claim between Federal agencies. Federal agencies should attempt to resolve interagency claims as referenced in Executive Order 12146 (3 CFR, 1980 Comp., pp. 409-412). (6) A claim once it becomes subject to salary offset under 5 U.S.C. 5514. These claims are subject to the provisions of 10 CFR part 16. (7) A claim involving bankruptcy is covered by Title 11 of the United States Code.

10 C.F.R. § 15.7 Monetary limitation on NRC's authority.

The NRC's authority to compromise a claim, or to terminate or suspend collection action on a claim covered by these procedures, is limited by 31 U.S.C. 3711(a) to claims that— (a) Have not been referred to another Federal Agency for further collection actions; and (b) Do not exceed $100,000 (exclusive of interest, penalties, and administrative charges) or such higher amount as the Attorney General shall from time to time prescribe for purposes of compromise or suspension or termination of collection activity.

10 C.F.R. § 15.8 Information collection requirements: OMB approval.

This part contains no information collection requirements, and therefore, is not subject to the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

10 C.F.R. § 15.9 No private rights created.

(a) The failure of NRC to include in this part any provision of the FCCS, 31 CFR Chapter IX, parts 900-904, does not prevent the NRC from applying these provisions. (b) A debtor may not use the failure of the NRC to comply with any provision of this part or of the Federal Claims Collections Standards as a defense.

10 C.F.R. § 15.11 Form of payment.

These procedures are directed primarily to the recovery of money on behalf of the Government. The NRC may demand: (a) The return of specific property; or (b) The performance of specific services.

10 C.F.R. § 15.13 Subdivision of claims.

The NRC shall consider a debtor's liability arising from a particular transaction or contract as a single claim in determining whether the claim is less than the monetary limitation for the purpose of compromising or suspending or terminating collection action. A claim may not be subdivided to avoid the monetary limitation established by 31 U.S.C. 3711(a)(2) and § 15.7.

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