Leaving DOJ Prior to Completing Service Obligation & Waivers of Indebtedness

Accepting ASLRP funding triggers a three-year service obligation to the Department, regardless of the amount of student loan repayment benefits authorized.  (See Frequently Asked Questions / Service Agreements for more information). When an attorney leaves DOJ prior to completing the service obligation, unreimbursed ASLRP funds issued on the attorney’s behalf generally constitute a debt owed to the Department. 

ASLRP recipients who voluntarily leave DOJ prior to the end of their service obligation or who are involuntarily separated for misconduct or unacceptable performance must:

• Notify OARM (in writing) and their servicing HR office of the pending departure and a permanent address for receipt of correspondence; and,

• Voluntarily repay the gross, pre-tax amount of total ASLRP funds received prior to departure; or

• Make appropriate arrangements to repay the gross, pre-tax amount of total ALSRP funds received.

The Department may waive, in whole or in part, recovery of the loan repayment amount if it is determined to be against equity and good conscience or contrary to the public interest. The Department is responsible for making its own determination regarding what these terms mean. The Program Administration Panel will consider consistency, fairness, and the cost to taxpayers of recovering monies owed to the Government when making recommendations as to disposition.

Requesting a Waiver of Indebtedness Based on Failure to Complete a Service Obligation (Step-by-Step)

Step 1:   The departing attorney notifies his or her servicing Human Resources (HR) Office and OARM of the pending departure prior to the completion of the service obligation and provides an address for receipt of mail post-departure.

Step 2:  The HR Office initiates a bill for the full pre-tax amount of all ASLRP payments and sends it to the National Finance Center (NFC).

Step 3:  The NFC sends the bill and other administrative materials to the attorney’s residence (the address provided in the original notification or, if none, the last known address).

Step 4:  Upon receipt of the NFC bill, the attorney decides whether to request a waiver of indebtedness or enter into a repayment plan with the NFC.  A waiver of indebtedness is only warranted when collection is against equity and good conscience or contrary to the public interest.  To request a waiver of indebtedness, the attorney must:

• Prepare a waiver packet stating the basis for the early departure, the basis for the proposed waiver (attaching appropriate supporting documents, e.g., affidavits from medical professionals, certified income and expense documents, etc.), a statement explaining why collection would be against equity and good conscience or contrary to public interest, the NFC bill, a copy of the ASLRP Service Agreement, DOJ Form 127, and an Investigation Report.

• DOJ Form 127 and the Investigation Report are also available from the servicing HR office. The attorney requesting waiver must work with his or her original HR office to complete the Investigation Report.

Send the waiver packet to the Office of Attorney Recruitment and Management (OARM), Attn: Deana Willis, Assistant Director.

Step 5:  Upon receipt of the complete waiver packet, OARM will staff the request through the ASLRP Panel for recommendations, then forward the packet to the original servicing HR office for further action.

Step 6:  The Servicing HR office:

• Notifies the NFC to suspend collection (up to 5 pay period maximum) while the waiver request is considered; and

• Prepares a cover letter and forwards the waiver request packet to JMD Finance for action.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM), which oversees the 5 CFR part 537 SLRP authority, has determined that payments made by agencies under SLRP authority for an employee’s student loan debt that were subsequently refunded to the employee constitute SLRP overpayments. 

Under 5 U.S.C. 5584, heads of agencies may waive recovery of overpayments resulting from erroneous “pay or allowances” to an employee, such as SLRP payments that are later refunded to the employee. An employee’s overpayment debt may be waived in whole or in part. A waiver decision must be based on a finding that collection “would be against equity and good conscience and not in the best interests of the United States.” 5 U.S.C. 5584(a). There must be no indication of fault, misrepresentation, fraud, or lack of good faith by the employee in connection with the claim. 5 U.S.C. 5584(b)(1).

Current or former federal employees must submit an application for any Section 5584 waiver, and that application must be submitted within 3 years of the date on which the erroneous payment was discovered. 5 U.S.C. § 5584(b)(2). In processing requests from employees for waivers of recovery of overpayment by the agency under Section 5584, agency heads must make waiver determinations consistent with legal requirements and the agency head’s prescribed standards, as required by Section 5584(a)(2)(B). Section 5584 is intended to protect employees who reasonably rely on the accuracy of a payment. In general, detrimental reliance is unlikely under the circumstances here.

Further, when considering waivers regarding the overpayments described here, rather than issuing broad or blanket waivers, agency heads are encouraged to consider waiver requests on an individual, case-by-case basis, granting such requests only for extraordinary individual circumstances and when waiver is consistent with the purpose of the statute and the agency’s standards. Absent such extraordinary individual circumstances, agencies must collect such overpayments consistent with the statutory and regulatory authorities governing claims collection identified above, which will advance equity in these circumstances. In this regard, agency heads should consider the Administration’s commitment to accountability to the public and stewardship of taxpayer funds, as well as the potential benefits of maximizing the use of agency funds available for such student loan repayment programs.

Requesting a Waiver of Indebtedness Based on a PSLF Refund (Step-by-Step)

Notify OARM and your component ASLRP Point of Contact if you receive a refund associated with the PSLF (or similar) debt forgiveness. The chart below illustrates the action required based on the amount of the refund.  

To repay PSLF refunds attributable to Department SLRP funds, employees should return either the check received from the Department of Education or a personal check for the appropriate amount via U.S. Mail to the National Finance Center (NFC) at the following address:

USDA-NFC

PO Box 60963

New Orleans LA 70160-0963

It can take a significant amount of time for the NFC to process a personal check. Employees must ensure funds remain available and may not execute a stop payment action while the process is pending.

To ensure the repayment is tracked, properly applied, and credited to the appropriate DOJ account, employees must:

1. Include their full name (as it appears on their W2) and the last 4 digits of their social security number in the submission. Note: Please include the requested information on a separate sheet of paper, not the check. If the employee’s name, as listed on the check or student loan account, differs from the name listed on the W2, please include both names.
   1. If the PSLF refund is greater than DOJ’s contribution (i.e., the employee is repaying only that portion of the refund equal to DOJ’s contribution), include documentation establishing the total PSLF refund amount (e.g., a copy of the original refund check, communications from the PSLF/Education Department, etc.).
2. Email the Justice Management Division’s Finance Staff, Financial Systems Payroll Systems Group (FSPAY) at FSPay-HELP@usdoj.gov, using Subject Line: PSLF Refund, Employee’s Name.  The body of the email should include the date the repayment was mailed to the NFC, the amount being returned, and the last 4 numbers of the employee’s social security number.
3. Keep a personal copy of their submission.

Please contact the FSPAY Team at the email provided above if you have any questions.