article: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Debt Collection Act Amendments of 1993''. SEC. 2. IMPROVED DEBT COLLECTION PRACTICES. (a) Use of Collection Agencies.--Section 3718(a) of title 31, United States Code, is amended by striking ``Under conditions'' and all that follows through ``make'' and inserting ``The head of an executive or legislative agency shall make''. (b) Salary Offset.--Subsection (a)(1) of section 5514 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by striking ``may be collected'' and inserting ``shall be collected''. (c) Disclosure to Consumer Reporting Agencies.--Subsection (f)(1) of section 3711 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by striking ``may disclose'' and inserting ``shall disclose''. (d) Administrative Offsets.--Subsection (a) of section 3716 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by striking ``may'' the first place it appears and inserting ``shall''. (e) Report to the Internal Revenue Service of Debts Paid in Full.-- Subchapter II of chapter 37 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new section: ``Sec. 3720B. Report to the Internal Revenue Service of Debts Paid in Full ``The head of a Federal agency shall report any debt that has been paid in full to the Internal Revenue Service promptly after the agency has determined that the debt has been paid in full.''. (f) Disclosure by Internal Revenue Service of Address Information.--Section 6103(m)(2)(A) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by inserting before the period ``, or any other law granting a Federal agency the authority to collect or compromise a Federal claim against the taxpayer.''. (g) Audits and Report of Audit.-- (1) Audits of federal agencies.--The Comptroller General of the United States shall annually conduct audits of each Federal agency to determine-- (A) the amount of debt owed to the agency; (B) the amount of debt owed to the agency that is delinquent; and (C) any action taken by the agency to recover the delinquent debt. (2) Reports to congress.--The Comptroller General shall submit annually to the Congress a report containing the information obtained through the audits prepared pursuant to paragraph (1). (h) Extension of Pilot Debt Collection Project.-- (1) Extension of pilot project.--Section 5 of Public Law 99-578 (31 U.S.C. 3718 note) is repealed. (2) Additional reporting requirements.--Section 3718(c) of title 31, United States Code, is amended-- (A) in paragraph (2), by striking ``and'' at the end thereof; and (B) in paragraph (3)-- (i) in subparagraph (C), by striking the period and adding at the end ``; and''; and (ii) by adding after subparagraph (C) the following new subparagraph: ``(D) the total cost of the pilot program established by Public Law 99-578 (100 Stat. 3305) as well as the total amount of debt recovered under that pilot program.''. (3) Use of recovered funds to reduce budget deficit.-- Section 3718 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: ``(g) Except as provided by subsection (d), any amount recovered through a contract entered into under subsection (b) shall be used to reduce the budget deficit of the United States.''. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, a percentage (which is hereafter specified by law) of the amount recovered through such a contract shall be paid to the agency on whose behalf such amount was recovered for use by such agency in collecting indebtedness owed to such agency. SEC. 3. IMPROVED LOAN ORIGINATION PROCEDURES. (a) Improved Prescreening Procedures.-- (1) Chapter 97 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new section: ``Sec. 9704. Improved prescreening procedures ``The head of a Federal agency may not make a loan to a loan applicant until the applicant has been prescreened to determine if the applicant is creditworthy. The determination of creditworthiness shall include an evaluation of the ability and willingness of the applicant to repay the debt, the agency's level of acceptable risk, other agency or Federal Government obligations that could jeopardize or be jeopardized by the loan under consideration, and the existence of other debts owed by the loan applicant to the Federal Government, including a tax delinquent account with the Internal Revenue Service.''. (2) Section 6103(m)(2)(A) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by striking ``the Secretary may'' and inserting ``the Secretary shall''. (b) Denial of Credit to Applicants With Delinquent Debts.--Chapter 97 of title 31, United States Code, as amended by subsection (a), is further amended by adding at the end the following new section: ``Sec. 9705. Denial of credit to applicants with delinquent debts ``The head of a Federal agency may not make a loan to a loan applicant who owes a delinquent debt to the Federal Government, including the Internal Revenue Service.''. SEC. 4. USE OF ADMINISTRATIVE CHARGES TO IMPROVE CREDIT MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES. Section 3717 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: ``(i) The Secretary shall deposit in a special fund any amounts received by a Federal agency to cover the cost of processing and handling delinquent claims under subsection (e). The Secretary shall, without further appropriation and upon request by the agency, disburse money from such fund to the agency solely for the use of improving credit management techniques, except that the access of each agency to funds in the special account shall be limited to the amount that the agency received to cover the cost of processing and handling delinquent claims under subsection (e).''. SEC. 5. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS. (a) Chapter 37 Amendments.--The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 37 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 3720A the following new item: ``3720B. Report to the Internal Revenue Service of debts paid in full.''. (b) Chapter 97 Amendments.--The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 97 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new items: ``9704. Improved prescreening procedures. ``9705. Denial of credit to applicants with delinquent debts.''.
summary: Debt Collection Act Amendments of 1993 - Amends Federal law to require the head of an executive or legislative agency (who, currently, is merely authorized) to: (1) contract with a collection service to recover indebtedness owed to the United States; (2) collect such indebtedness from Federal employees in installment deductions; (3) disclose certain information to a consumer reporting agency when trying to collect a claim; and (4) collect such a claim by administrative offset. Requires the head of a Federal agency to report promptly to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) any debt that has been paid in full. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow the IRS to disclose address information in accordance with any law granting a Federal claim against a taxpayer. Directs the Comptroller General to report to the Congress after annual audits of each Federal agency on: (1) the amount of debt owed to the agency; (2) the amount that is delinquent; and (3) action taken by the agency to recover such debt. Repeals the termination date of the pilot debt collection project of the Department of Justice. Requires the Attorney General to include in the annual report to the Congress on activities to recover indebtedness the total cost of the pilot project and the total amount of debt recovered under it. Requires that recovered funds be used to reduce the Federal deficit. Requires a percentage of recovered funds to be used by the agency in collecting indebtedness. Prohibits the head of a Federal agency from making a loan until the loan applicant has been prescreened to determine creditworthiness. Requires the IRS to disclose address information to a Federal agency for use in collecting a claim. Prohibits the head of a Federal agency from making a loan to a loan applicant who owes a delinquent debt to the Federal Government, including the IRS. Allows the use of administrative charges by the Secretary of the Treasury for improving credit management techniques.