42 U.S.C. § 1320a–6a — Interagency coordination to improve program administration

(a) Coordination agreement. Despite other law, including section 407, the Commissioner of Social Security and the Director^* of the Office of Personnel Management must enter an agreement establishing this process: (1) the Director tells the Commissioner when a person^* is found entitled to a monthly disability annuity under the specified title 5 subchapter and certifies that the person gave the authorization in subsection (f); (2) if the Commissioner finds that person also entitled to past-due benefits under section 423, the Commissioner tells the Director; (3) within 30 days after receiving that notice, the Director gives the Commissioner the total disability-annuity overpayment made to the person and any other information the Commissioner requires; (4) if the Director gives the information on time, the Commissioner may withhold the person’s past-due section 423 benefits and pay the paragraph (3) amount to the Office of Personnel Management for the overpayment; and (5) the Director must credit that payment against the person’s annuity overpayment.

(b) Limits. (1) Benefits may be withheld under this section only after every other reduction under this chapter, including sections 406(a)(4), 424a, and 1320a–6. (2) The Commissioner may not withhold benefits if the Director did not give the subsection (a)(3) notice on time.

(c) Delayed payment. If the Commissioner must give the subsection (a)(2) notice, the Commissioner may not pay the person’s past-due section 423 benefits until after the subsection (a)(3) period ends.

(d) Review. Despite section 405 and other law, a decision to withhold past-due benefits under this section may be adjudicated and reviewed only by the Director under section 8461 of title 5.

(e) “Disability annuity overpayment.” This means the reduction under section 8452(a)(2) of title 5 that applies to a monthly annuity payment because, during that month, the person was also entitled to a disability-insurance benefit under section 423.

(f) Authorization. The authorization is the person’s written authorization to the Director allowing the Commissioner to withhold past-due section 423 benefits and pay the withheld amount to the Office of Personnel Management for disability overpayments.

(g) Expenses. Each calendar quarter, the Director must pay the Social Security Administration^* the amount the Commissioner estimates is the Administration’s total cost of carrying out this section.