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Title 31, Money and FinanceRelease 119-102

§3530 Adjusting Accounts

Title 31 › SUBTITLE III — FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT › CHAPTER 35 — ACCOUNTING AND COLLECTION › SUBCHAPTER III — AUDITING AND SETTLING ACCOUNTS › § 3530

Last updated Aug 21, 2026|Official source

Summary

Charge an available appropriation or fund used for accountable duties with the money needed to settle an accountable official’s or agent’s account when two things are true: the loss happened because of the official’s fault or negligence, and the agency head decides the government cannot collect the money. Making that charge does not remove the person’s personal financial responsibility. The Comptroller General must write rules to carry this out. Under those rules, an agency head may net unpaid and overpaid amounts in individual pay accounts against the appropriation for the fiscal year when they happened, and the net amount is charged to and paid from the matching appropriation for the next fiscal year.

Full Legal Text

Title 31, §3530

Money and Finance, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)An appropriation or fund currently available for the expense of an accountable function shall be charged with an amount necessary to adjust an account of an accountable official or agent when—
(1)necessary to adjust the account for a loss to the United States Government resulting from the fault or negligence of the official or agent; and
(2)the head of the agency decides the loss is uncollectable.
(b)An adjustment does not affect the personal financial liability of an official or agent for the loss.
(c)The Comptroller General shall prescribe regulations to carry out subsection (a) of this section.
(d)Under procedures prescribed by the Comptroller General, the head of an agency may charge the net amount of unpaid and overpaid balances in individual pay accounts against the appropriation for the fiscal year in which the balances occurred and from which the accounts were payable. The net amount shall be credited to and paid from the corresponding appropriation for the next fiscal year.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Historical and Revision Notes

Revised SectionSource (U.S. Code)Source (Statutes at Large) 3530(a)31:1202(a)(1st sentence).June 6, 1972, Pub. L. 92–310, § 102, 86 Stat. 201. 3530(b)31:1202(a)(last sentence). 3530(c)31:1202(b). 3530(d)31:581d.July 15, 1954, ch. 509, § 3(a), 68 Stat. 483. In subsection (a), before clause (1), the words “restore or otherwise” are omitted as surplus. The word “currently” is substituted for “at the time the restoration or adjustment is made” to eliminate unnecessary words. The word “official” is substituted for “officer” for consistency in the revised title and with other titles of the United States Code. In clause (2), the words “concerned” and “the amount of” are omitted as surplus. In subsection (b), the words “restoration or” are omitted as surplus and because of the restatement. In subsections (c) and (d), the words “of the United States” are omitted as surplus. In subsection (c), the words “and issue” are omitted as surplus. The words “to carry out subsection (a) of this section” are substituted for “The restorations and adjustments provided for by subsection (a) of this section shall be made in accordance with” to eliminate unnecessary words. In subsection (d), the word “settlement” is omitted as surplus. The words “the Secretary of the department concerned or . . . or independent establishment concerned” are omitted as unnecessary because of the restatement. The word “occurring” is omitted as surplus. The word “accounts” is substituted for “amount” before “was payable” for clarity. The word “succeeding” is omitted as surplus.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

31 U.S.C. § 3530

Title 31, Money and Finance

Last Updated

Aug 21, 2026

Release point: 119-102