5 U.S.C. § 8466 — Application for benefits

Page 1186 TITLE 5—GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATION AND EMPLOYEES § 8465 beyond the date payment of the annuity com- mences, as determined by the Department of Labor, shall be refunded to that Department for credit to the Employees’ Compensation Fund. Before the individual may receive the annuity, the individual shall— (1) refund to the Department of Labor the amount representing the commuted compensa- tion payments for the extended period; or (2) authorize the deduction of the amount from the annuity. Deductions from the annuity may be made from accrued or accruing payments. The amounts de- ducted and withheld from the annuity shall be transmitted to the Department of Labor for re- imbursement to the Employees’ Compensation Fund. When the Department of Labor finds that the financial circumstances of an individual en- titled to an annuity under subchapter II, IV, or V warrant deferred refunding, deductions from the annuity may be prorated against and paid from accruing payments in such manner as the Department determines appropriate. (Added Pub. L. 100–238, title I, § 124(a)(1)(B), Jan. 8, 1988, 101 Stat. 1755.) Editorial Notes PRIOR PROVISIONS Provisions similar to this section were contained in section 8456 of this title prior to repeal by Pub. L. 100–238. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE Section effective Jan. 1, 1987, and applicable with re- spect to benefits payable based on a death or disability occurring on or after that date, see section 124(c) of Pub. L. 100–238 set out as an Effective Date of 1988 Amendment note under section 8337 of this title. § 8465. Waiver, allotment, and assignment of ben- efits (a) An individual entitled to an annuity pay- able from the Fund may decline to accept all or any part of the amount of the annuity by a waiver signed and filed with the Office. The waiver may be revoked in writing at any time. Payment of the annuity waived may not be made for the period during which the waiver is in effect. (b) An individual entitled to an annuity pay- able from the Fund may make allotments or as- signments of amounts from the annuity for such purposes as the Office considers appropriate. (Added Pub. L. 99–335, title I, § 101(a), June 6, 1986, 100 Stat. 575.) § 8466. Application for benefits (a) No payment of benefits based on the serv- ice of an employee or Member shall be made from the Fund unless an application for pay- ment of the benefits is received by the Office be- fore the one hundred and fifteenth anniversary of the birth of the employee or Member. (b) Notwithstanding subsection (a), after the death of an employee, Member, or annuitant, or former employee or Member, a benefit based on the service of such employee, Member, or annu- itant, or former employee or Member, shall not be paid under subchapter II or IV of this chapter unless an application therefor is received by the Office within 30 years after the death or other event which establishes the entitlement to the benefit. (c)(1) Payment due a minor, or an individual mentally incompetent or under other legal dis- ability, may be made to the person (including an organization) who is constituted guardian or other fiduciary by the law of the State of resi- dence of the claimant or is otherwise legally vested with the care of the claimant or his es- tate. If a guardian or other fiduciary of the indi- vidual under legal disability has not been ap- pointed under the law of the State of residence of the claimant, payment may be made to any person (including an organization) who, in the judgment of the Office, is responsible for the care of the claimant and may appropriately re- ceive such payments on behalf of the claimant, and the payment bars recovery by any other per- son. (2) If the Office determines that direct pay- ment of a benefit to an individual mentally in- competent or under other legal disability would cause substantial harm to the individual, the Of- fice may defer or suspend direct payment of the benefit until such time as the appointment of a representative payee is made. The Office shall resume payment as soon as practicable, includ- ing all amounts due. (d) The Office may not authorize a person to receive payments on behalf of a minor or indi- vidual of legal disability under subsection (c) if that person has been convicted of a violation of— (1) section 8345a or 8466a; (2) section 208 or 1632 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 408, 1383a); or (3) section 6101 of title 38. (Added Pub. L. 99–335, title I, § 101(a), June 6, 1986, 100 Stat. 575; amended Pub. L. 116–126, § 2(c)(2), (d)(2), Mar. 18, 2020, 134 Stat. 176.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2020—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 116–126, § 2(c)(2), designated existing provisions as par. (1), inserted ‘‘(including an organization)’’ after ‘‘to the person’’ and after ‘‘to any person’’, inserted ‘‘and may appropriately receive such payments on behalf of the claimant’’ after ‘‘care of the claimant’’, and added par. (2). Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 116–126, § 2(d)(2), added subsec. (d). Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2020 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 116–126 effective on Mar. 18, 2020, and applicable on and after the effective date of regulations promulgated under section 3(b)(1) of Pub. L. 116–126, see sections 4 and 3(b) of Pub. L. 116–126, set out respectively as an Effective Date of 2020 Amendment note and a Regulations note under section 8331 of this title. REGULATIONS Regulations to carry out amendment by Pub. L. 116–126 to be promulgated by Office of Personnel Man- agement no later than 1 year after Mar. 18, 2020, with allowance for additional regulations relating to admin- istration of representative payee program, see section Page 1187 TITLE 5—GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATION AND EMPLOYEES § 8468 3(b) of Pub. L. 116–126, set out as a note under section 8331 of this title. § 8466a. Embezzlement or conversion of pay- ments (a) EMBEZZLING AND CONVERSION GENERALLY.— (1) IN GENERAL.—It shall be unlawful for a representative payee to embezzle or in any manner convert all or any part of the amounts received from payments received as a rep- resentative payee to a use other than for the use and benefit of the minor or individual on whose behalf such payments were received. (2) REVOCATION.—If the Office determines that a representative payee has embezzled or converted payments as described in paragraph (1), the Office shall promptly— (A) revoke the certification for payment of benefits to the representative payee; and (B) certify payment— (i) to another representative payee; or (ii) if the interest of the individual under this title would be served thereby, to the individual. (b) PENALTY.—Any person who violates sub- section (a)(1) shall be fined under title 18, im- prisoned for not more than 5 years, or both. (Added Pub. L. 116–126, § 2(b)(2), Mar. 18, 2020, 134 Stat. 175.) Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE Section effective on Mar. 18, 2020, and applicable on and after the effective date of regulations promulgated under section 3(b)(1) of Pub. L. 116–126, see sections 4 and 3(b) of Pub. L. 116–126, set out respectively as an Ef- fective Date of 2020 Amendment note and a Regulations note under section 8331 of this title. REGULATIONS Regulations to carry out this section to be promul- gated by Office of Personnel Management no later than 1 year after Mar. 18, 2020, with allowance for additional regulations relating to administration of representa- tive payee program, see section 3(b) of Pub. L. 116–126, set out as a note under section 8331 of this title. § 8467. Court orders (a) Payments under this chapter which would otherwise be made to an employee, Member, or annuitant (including an employee, Member, or annuitant as defined in section 8331) based on service of that individual shall be paid (in whole or in part) by the Office or the Executive Direc- tor, as the case may be, to another person if and to the extent expressly provided for in the terms of— (1) any court decree of divorce, annulment, or legal separation, or the terms of any court order or court-approved property settlement agreement incident to any court decree of di- vorce, annulment, or legal separation; or (2) any court order or other similar process in the nature of garnishment for the enforce- ment of a judgment rendered against such em- ployee, Member, or annuitant, for physically, sexually, or emotionally abusing a child. In the event that the Office or the Executive Di- rector, as the case may be, is served with more than 1 decree, order, or other legal process with respect to the same moneys due or payable to any individual, such moneys shall be available to satisfy such processes on a first-come, first- served basis, with any such process being satis- fied out of such moneys as remain after the sat- isfaction of all such processes which have been previously served. (b) Subsection (a) shall apply only to pay- ments made by the Office or the Executive Di- rector under this chapter after the date on which the Office or the Executive Director (as the case may be) receives written notice of such decree, order, other legal process, or agreement, and such additional information and documenta- tion as the Office or the Executive Director may require. (c) For the purpose of this section— (1) the term ‘‘judgment rendered for phys- ically, sexually, or emotionally abusing a child’’ means any legal claim perfected through a final enforceable judgment, which claim is based in whole or in part upon the physical, sexual, or emotional abuse of a child, whether or not that abuse is accompanied by other actionable wrongdoing, such as sexual exploitation or gross negligence; and (2) the term ‘‘child’’ means an individual under 18 years of age. (Added Pub. L. 99–335, title I, § 101(a), June 6, 1986, 100 Stat. 575; amended Pub. L. 103–358, § 2(b)(1)–(3), Oct. 14, 1994, 108 Stat. 3421.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 1994—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 103–358, § 2(b)(1), amended subsec. (a) generally. Prior to amendment, subsec. (a) read as follows: ‘‘Payments under this chapter which would otherwise be made to an employee, Member, or annuitant (including an employee, Member, or annu- itant as defined under section 8331) based on the service of that individual shall be paid (in whole or in part) by the Office or the Executive Director (as the case may be), to another person if and to the extent that the terms of any court decree of divorce, annulment, or legal separation, or the terms of any court order or court-approved property settlement agreement inci- dent to any court decree of divorce, annulment, or legal separation expressly provide. Any payment under this subsection to a person bars recovery by any other per- son.’’ Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 103–358, § 2(b)(2), inserted ‘‘other legal process,’’ after ‘‘order,’’. Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 103–358, § 2(b)(3), added subsec. (c). Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1994 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 103–358 effective Oct. 14, 1994, and applicable with respect to any decree, order, or other legal process, or notice of agreement received by Office of Personnel Management or Executive Director of Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board on or after Oct. 14, 1994, see section 3 of Pub. L. 103–358, set out as a note under section 8345 of this title. § 8468. Annuities and pay on reemployment (a) If an annuitant, except a disability annu- itant whose annuity is terminated because of the annuitant’s recovery or restoration of earn- ing capacity, becomes employed in an appoint- ive or elective position, an amount equal to the annuity allocable to the period of actual em-