This regulation prescribes standards and procedures for the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) collection and disposal of debts. These standards and procedures are applicable to all debts for which a statute, regulation or contract does not prescribe different
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This regulation does not apply to debts owed EPA by other Federal agencies. Such debts will be resolved by negotiation between the agencies or by referral to the General Accounting Office (GAO).
(a) This regulation does not supersede or require omission or duplication of administrative proceedings required by contract, statute, regulation or other Agency procedures,
(b) The remedies and sanctions available to the Agency under this regulation for collecting debts are not intended to be exclusive. The Agency may impose, where authorized, other appropriate sanctions upon a debtor for inexcusable, prolonged or repeated failure to pay a debt. For example, the Agency may stop doing business with a grantee, contractor, borrower or lender; convert the method of payment under a grant or contract from an advance payment to a reimbursement method; or revoke a grantee's or contractor's letter-of-credit.
(a) The Administrator will refer cases of suspected criminal activity or misconduct to the EPA Office of Inspector General. That office has the responsibility for investigating or referring the matter, where appropriate, to the Department of Justice (DOJ), and/or returning it to the Administrator for further actions. Examples of activities which should be referred are matters involving fraud, anti-trust violations, embezzlement, theft, false claims or misuse of Government money or property.
(b) The Administrator will not administratively compromise, terminate, suspend or otherwise dispose of debts involving criminal activity or misconduct without the approval of DOJ.
A claim will not be subdivided to avoid the $20,000 limit on the Agency's authority to compromise, suspend, or terminate a debt. A debtor's liability arising from a particular transaction or contract is a single claim.
Failure by the Administrator to comply with any provision of this regulation is not available to a debtor as a defense against payment of a debt.