Administrative offset or offset means withholding funds payable by the United States (including funds payable by the United States on behalf of a state government) to, or held by the United States for, a person to satisfy a debt owed by the person. The term “administrative offset” can include, but is not limited to, the offset of Federal salary, vendor, retirement, and Social Security benefit payments. The terms “centralized administrative offset” and “centralized offset” refer to the process by which the Treasury Department's Financial Management Service offsets Federal payments through the Treasury Offset Program.

Administrative wage garnishment means the process by which a Federal agency orders a non-Federal employer to withhold amounts from a debtor's wages to satisfy a debt, as authorized by 31 U.S.C. 3720D, 31 CFR 285.11, and this part.

Agency or Federal agency means an executive department or agency; a military department; the United States Postal Service; the Postal Regulatory Commission; any nonappropriated fund instrumentality described in 5 U.S.C. 2105(c); the United States Senate; the United States House of Representatives; any court, court administrative office, or instrumentality in the judicial or legislative branches of the Government; or a Government corporation.

Creditor agency means any Federal agency that is owed a debt.

Debt means any amount of money, funds or property that has been determined by an appropriate official of the Federal Government to be owed to the United States government, including government-owned corporations, by a person. As used in this part, the term “debt” can include a debt owed to PBGC, but does not include debts arising under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 1 et seq.).

Debtor means a person who owes a debt to the United States.

Delinquent debt means a debt that has not been paid by the date specified in the agency's initial written demand for payment or applicable agreement or instrument (including a post-delinquency payment agreement) unless other satisfactory payment arrangements have been made.

Disposable pay has the same meaning as that term is defined in 5 CFR 550.1103.

Employee or Federal employee means a current employee of PBGC or other Federal agency, including a current member of the uniformed services, including the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Commissioned Corps of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Commissioned Corps of the Public Health Service, the National Guard, and the reserve forces of the uniformed services.

FCCS means the Federal Claims Collection Standards, 31 CFR parts 900-904.

Financial Management Service (FMS) means the Treasury Department bureau that is responsible for the centralized collection of delinquent debts through the offset of Federal payments and other means.

Payment agency or Federal payment agency means any Federal agency that transmits payment requests in the form of certified payment vouchers, or other similar forms, to a disbursing official for disbursement. The payment agency may be the agency that employs the debtor. In some cases, PBGC may be both the creditor agency and payment agency.

Salary offset means a type of administrative offset to collect a debt under Section 5514 of Title 5 of the United States Code and 5 CFR part 550, subpart K by deduction(s) at one or more officially established pay intervals from the current pay account of an employee with or without his or her consent.

Tax debt means a debt arising under the Code.

Tax refund offset means the reduction by the IRS of a tax overpayment payable to a taxpayer by the amount of past-due, legally enforceable debt owed by that taxpayer to a Federal agency pursuant to Treasury regulations.