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Title 31 — Money and FinanceRelease 119-73not60

§3720B Barring Delinquent Federal Debtors From Obtaining Federal Loans or Loan Insurance Guarantees

Title 31 › Subtitle SUBTITLE III— FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT › Chapter 37— CLAIMS › Subchapter II— CLAIMS OF THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT › § 3720B

Last updated Apr 5, 2026|Official source

Summary

People who owe money to a federal agency and are behind on payments cannot get federal loans, loan guarantees, or loan insurance unless the agency head allows it. This rule does not apply to debts under the Internal Revenue Code or to disaster loans and certain farm marketing loans or payments under subtitle C of the Agricultural Market Transition Act (7 U.S.C. 7231 et seq.). The unpaid debt must be cleared under standards set by the Secretary of the Treasury, who can also exempt a whole class of claims. An agency head can waive the ban and may give that power to the agency’s Chief Financial Officer, who can only pass it to the Deputy Chief Financial Officer.

Full Legal Text

Title 31, §3720B

Money and Finance — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Unless this subsection is waived by the head of a Federal agency, a person may not obtain any Federal financial assistance in the form of a loan (other than a disaster loan or a marketing assistance loan or loan deficiency payment under subtitle C of the Agricultural Market Transition Act (7 U.S.C. 7231 et seq.)) or loan insurance or guarantee administered by the agency if the person has an outstanding debt (other than a debt under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) with any Federal agency which is in a delinquent status, as determined under standards prescribed by the Secretary of the Treasury. Such a person may obtain additional loans or loan guarantees only after such delinquency is resolved in accordance with those standards. The Secretary of the Treasury may exempt, at the request of an agency, any class of claims.
(b)The head of a Federal agency may delegate the waiver authority under subsection (a) to the Chief Financial Officer of the agency. The waiver authority may be redelegated only to the Deputy Chief Financial Officer of the agency.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The Agricultural Market Transition Act, referred to in subsec. (a), is title I of Pub. L. 104–127, Apr. 4, 1996, 110 Stat. 896. Subtitle C of the Act is classified generally to subchapter III (§ 7231 et seq.) of chapter 100 of Title 7, Agriculture. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see

References in Text

note set out under section 7201 of Title 7 and Tables. The Internal Revenue Code of 1986, referred to in subsec. (a), is classified to Title 26, Internal Revenue Code.

Amendments

2000—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 106–387 inserted “or a marketing assistance loan or loan deficiency payment under subtitle C of the Agricultural Market Transition Act (7 U.S.C. 7231 et seq.)” after “disaster loan”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 2000 Amendment Pub. L. 106–387, § 1(a) [title VIII, § 845(c)], Oct. 28, 2000, 114 Stat. 1549, 1549A–65, provided that: “(1) In general.—The amendment made by subsection (a) [amending this section] takes effect on the date of enactment of this Act [Oct. 28, 2000]. “(2) Transition loan deficiency payments.—If the producers on a farm lost beneficial interest in a crop during the period beginning March 21, 2000, and ending on the day before the date of enactment of this Act and were ineligible for a marketing assistance loan under subtitle C of the Agricultural Market Transition Act (7 U.S.C. 7231 et seq.) because of section 3720B(a) of title 31, United States Code, as in effect before the amendment made by subsection (a), the producers shall be eligible for any loan deficiency payment under subtitle C of that Act that was available on the date on which the producers lost beneficial interest in the crop.” Payments Pub. L. 106–387, § 1(a) [title VIII, § 845(b)], Oct. 28, 2000, 114 Stat. 1549, 1549A–65, provided that: “Any payment made by the Commodity Credit Corporation to a producer as a result of the amendment made by section (a) [amending this section] shall be credited toward any delinquent debt owed by the producer to the Farm Service Agency.”

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

31 U.S.C. § 3720B

Title 31 — Money and Finance

Last Updated

Apr 5, 2026

Release point: 119-73not60