BASIC (08-06)

A. Policy

1. Authority for the Treasury Offset Program

The Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996 (DCIA, P.L. 104-134) provided for the establishment of the Treasury Offset Program (TOP).

2. Authority for Tax Refund Offset

Section 3720A of 31 U.S.C. and Section 1008 of 42 U.S.C. permit SSA to recover delinquent SVB overpayments from former recipients by offsetting their Federal income tax refunds (TRO).

B. Process

For a detailed description of the TOP process, see GN 02201.029.

NOTE: Inputs to the MSSICS Overpayment Screens will be passed along to the TOP system.

For instructions and a detailed description of the TRO process, see SI 02220.012.