§527. Establishment of working capital fund

There is hereby authorized to be established a working capital fund for the Department of Justice, which shall be available, without fiscal year limitation, for expenses and equipment necessary for maintenance and operations of such administrative services as the Attorney General, with the approval of the Office of Management and Budget, determines may be performed more advantageously as central services. The capital of the fund shall consist of the amount of the fair and reasonable value of such inventories, equipment, and other assets and inventories on order pertaining to the services to be carried on by the fund as the Attorney General may transfer to the fund less related liabilities and unpaid obligations together with any appropriations made for the purpose of providing capital. The fund shall be reimbursed or credited with advance payments from applicable appropriations and funds of: (1) the Department of Justice, other Federal agencies, and other sources authorized by law for supplies, materials, and services; and (2) federally recognized tribes for supplies, materials, and services related to access to Federal law enforcement databases; at rates which will recover the expenses of operations including accrual of annual leave and depreciation of plant and equipment of the fund. The fund shall also be credited with other receipts from sale or exchange of property or in payment for loss or damage to property held by the fund. There shall be transferred into the Treasury as miscellaneous receipts, as of the close of each fiscal year, any net income after making provisions for prior year losses, if any.

(Added Pub. L. 93–613, §1(1), Jan. 2, 1975, 88 Stat. 1975 ; amended Pub. L. 116–260, div. B, title II, §219, Dec. 27, 2020, 134 Stat. 1265 .)

Editorial Notes

Amendments

2020-Pub. L. 116–260, in third sentence, inserted ": (1)" before "the Department" and "; and (2) federally recognized tribes for supplies, materials, and services related to access to Federal law enfor cement databases;" after "and services".

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Debt Collection Improvement

Pub. L. 116–93, div. B, title II, §218, Dec. 20, 2019, 133 Stat. 2415 , provided that: "In this fiscal year and each fiscal year thereafter, amounts credited to and made available in the Department of Justice Working Capital Fund as an offsetting collection pursuant to section 11013 of Public Law 107–273 [set out below] shall be so credited and available only to the extent and in such amounts as provided in advance in appropriations Acts: Provided, That notwithstanding 31 U.S.C. 3302 or any other statute affecting the crediting of collections, the Attorney General may credit, as a discretionary offsetting collection, to the Department of Justice Working Capital Fund, for fiscal year 2020 and thereafter, up to three percent of all amounts collected pursuant to civil debt collection litigation activities of the Department of Justice; and such amounts so credited in fiscal year 2020 and thereafter shall remain available until expended, and shall be subject to the terms and conditions of that fund: Provided further, That any such amounts from the fund that the Attorney General determines are necessary to pay, first, for the costs of processing and tracking civil and criminal debt collection litigation activities, and thereafter for financial systems and for debt-collection-related personnel, administrative, and litigation expenses, in fiscal year 2020 and thereafter, shall be transferred to other appropriations accounts in the Department of Justice for paying the costs of such activities, and shall be in addition to any amounts otherwise made available for such purposes in those appropriations accounts: Provided further, That such transfer authority is in addition to any other transfer authority provided by law: Provided further, That any transfer of funds pursuant to this section shall be treated as a reprogramming of funds under section 505 of this Act [div. B of Pub. L. 116–93, 133 Stat. 2424 ] and shall not be available for obligation except in compliance with the procedures set forth in that section."

Pub. L. 107–273, div. C, title I, §11013(a), Nov. 2, 2002, 116 Stat. 1823 , provided that: "Notwithstanding section 3302 of title 31, United States Code, or any other statute affecting the crediting of collections, the Attorney General may credit, as an offsetting collection, to the Department of Justice Working Capital Fund up to 3 percent of all amounts collected pursuant to civil debt collection litigation activities of the Department of Justice. Such amounts in the Working Capital Fund shall remain available until expended and shall be subject to the terms and conditions of that fund, and shall be used first, for paying the costs of processing and tracking civil and criminal debt-collection litigation, and, thereafter, for financial systems and for debt-collection-related personnel, administrative, and litigation expenses."

Crediting to Working Capital Fund of Amounts Collected Pursuant to Civil Debt Collection Litigation Activities

Pub. L. 103–121, title I, §108, Oct. 27, 1993, 107 Stat. 1164 , as amended by Pub. L. 107–273, div. A, title II, §204(g), Nov. 2, 2002, 116 Stat. 1776 , which authorized Attorney General to credit, as an offsetting collection, to Department of Justice Working Capital Fund, for fiscal year 1994 and thereafter, up to six percent of all amounts collected pursuant to civil debt collection litigation activities of Department of Justice, and provided that such amounts would remain available until expended, be subject to the terms and conditions of that fund, and be used, first, for paying costs of processing and tracking such litigation, and, thereafter, for financial systems, and other personnel, administrative, and litigation expenses of debt collection activities, was repealed by Pub. L. 107–273, div. C, title I, §11013(b), Nov. 2, 2002, 116 Stat. 1823 .

Capital Equipment Acquisition, Etc., by Income Retained From or Transferred to Working Capital Fund; Amounts and Limitations

Pub. L. 102–140, title I, Oct. 28, 1991, 105 Stat. 784 , provided that:

"Of the total income of the Working Capital Fund in fiscal year 1992 and each fiscal year thereafter, not to exceed 4 percent of the total income may be retained, to remain available until expended, for the acquisition of capital equipment and for the improvement and implementation of the Department's financial management and payroll/personnel systems: Provided, That in fiscal year 1992, not to exceed $4,000,000 of the total income retained shall be used for improvements to the Department's data processing operation: Provided further, That any proposed use of the retained income in fiscal year 1992 and thereafter, except for the $4,000,000 specified above, shall only be made after notification to the Committees on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Senate in accordance with section 606 of this Act [105 Stat. 824].

"In addition, for fiscal year 1992 and thereafter, at no later than the end of the fifth fiscal year after the fiscal year for which funds are appropriated or otherwise made available, unobligated balances of appropriations available to the Department of Justice during such fiscal year may be transferred into the capital account of the Working Capital Fund to be available for the departmentwide acquisition of capital equipment, development and implementation of law enforcement or litigation related automated data processing systems, and for the improvement and implementation of the Department's financial management and payroll/personnel systems: Provided, That any proposed use of these transferred funds in fiscal year 1992 and thereafter shall only be made after notification to the Committees on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Senate in accordance with section 606 of this Act."