NASA Procedures and Guidelines
This Document is Obsolete and Is No Longer Used. Check the NODIS Library to access the current version: http://nodis3.gsfc.nasa.gov
NPR 9610.1A Eff. Date: October 29, 2015 Cancellation Date:	Accounts Receivable, Billing, and Collection
| TOC | Preface | Chapter1 | Chapter2 | Chapter3 | Chapter4 | Chapter5 | Chapter6 | AppendixA | AppendixB | AppendixC | ALL |

Chapter 3 Billing

3.1 Summary of Overall Requirements for Billing and Collection

3.1.1 NASA will follow this sequence of events for the billing of public debts owed to NASA:

a. NASA sends a bill to the debtor at the end of the accounting period in which the debt is identified.

b. If the debtor does not respond, NSSC shall issue at least one written demand letter.

c. If the debtor does not respond within 120 days after the debt becomes delinquent and the debt cannot be collected by offset, the debt will be transferred to Treasury for collection under the Treasury cross-servicing program.

d. If the debt is not paid within 24 months of the time it became delinquent, the NSSC shall write-off the debt in NASA's core financial system. Treasury will continue to collect the debt for up to six years.

e. Per the updated TROR instructions, if a debt is collected after it is written-off, NASA shall reinstate the dollar amount of written-off debt into total receivables in order to account for collections received.

3.1.2 Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) for Billing and Collection. To the maximum extent possible NASA shall collect all funds by EFT when cost-effective, practicable, and consistent with current statutory authority, unless specifically waived by Treasury or statute. NASA will use the Treasury-approved electronic mechanisms for billing and collecting such as pre-authorized debits, credit cards, and electronic payments via the Internet. NASA will use other processes only when absolutely necessary due to system malfunction, or as required by statute or contractual or other legal agreements. When Treasury-approved EFT methods cannot be used, alternative collection mechanisms will be determined jointly with Treasury Bureau of the Fiscal Service (BFS). NASA may be required to provide a supporting cost benefit analysis when an alternative mechanism is used. Users should refer to the TFM, Volume I, Chapter 8000 for guidelines in which alternative collection mechanisms may be used.

3.1.3 Deferring Billing When Not Cost Effective . Unless specifically called for in a billing agreement, a regular interim billing can be deferred when the amount of a periodic billing would not be cost-effective to process and the Center expects that additional cost will be recorded. Generally, there is justification for deferring a billing if the amount of the bill is less than the incremental cost of processing the bill and the related collection and NASA expects to incur additional billing amounts. Consequently, incremental costs of processing billings and collections should be periodically analyzed. Agency collection procedures should provide for periodic comparison of costs incurred and amounts collected. An amount that remains unbilled (because an interim billing has been deferred) would be brought forward in the next billing cycle as a beginning unbilled balance. If a new total balance is then cost-effective to bill (i.e., cost-effectiveness based on where the amount billed is at least the cost of processing the bill and collection), a bill would be produced.

3.2 Billing - Other than NASA Employee Debt

3.2.1 NASA should initiate the billing process when they determine a debt exists. The NSSC will send a bill to the debtor containing a specific due date. The due date for a receivable is normally 30 days from the date of invoice or notice of payment due unless a specific due date is established by statute, contract provision, or notice of indebtedness.

3.2.2 Invoice preparation and mandatory letters of notification for non-federal organizations are automated in NASA's core financial system. Invoices will be printed and mailed promptly by NSSC to the debtor within five business days after the day that goods have been shipped or released, services have been rendered, or payment is otherwise determined to be due.

3.2.3 The initial billing notice for a public debt should include the following:

a. Amount of debt.

b. Basis of indebtedness.

c. Opportunities available to the debtor to dispute the debt, instructions for obtaining copies of documents related to the debt, and instructions for requesting a repayment agreement acceptable to NASA if the debtor is unable to pay the debt in full.

d. Date payment is due, usually 30 days after the date of billing.

e. Steps NASA will take to enforce collection, such as reporting debt to a credit bureau; referring the debt to Treasury for collection actions, including offset; referral to a Private Collection Agency (PCA); administrative wage garnishment; and litigation.

f. Request that the debtor provide his/her taxpayer identification number (TIN).

g. Name, phone number, and address of an individual to contact within NASA concerning the debt.

h. Instruction that payment will be made to "NASA" not a NASA official.

i. Notice that pursuant to 31 U.S.C. § 3717, additional charges will be assessed on payments received after the due date, including:

(1) Interest rate to be applied from the date the debt is owed.

(2) Administrative charges.

(3) Penalties, not to exceed 6 percent per year on any portion of the debt delinquent for more than 90 days, accrued from the date the debt became delinquent.

3.2.4 NASA shall maintain the following information related to public bills:

a. A uniform numbering system for all bills tendered.

b. A filing system to separately identify uncollected bills and collected bills.

c. A bill register for all bills issued. The bill register should include the date of the bill, the bill number, the name of the debtor, the amount of the bill, and a description. NASA's core financial system provides for automated mechanisms to do this.

3.2.5 NASA's core financial system's analytical capabilities will be used to assist in determining delinquent debts including; aging of accounts receivable, tracking of delinquent accounts, with printed and online reporting capability.

3.2.6 Late payment interest, other penalties, and administrative costs will be calculated by the NSSC and recorded in NASA's core financial system.

3.2.7 Manual Billing. When manual billing is required, billing will be posted in NASA's core financial system before mailing.

3.2.7.1 Optional Form 1114, Bill for Collection, should be used to bill debtors other than other Federal agencies. Letters and other supporting documents, when necessary, should be used to transmit and explain the billing.

3.2.7.2 Consolidated Billing. A consolidated monthly bill should be sent to each debtor in order to lessen the volume of paper and accounting work involved, unless the unpaid dollar amount is so small that preparing and issuing a bill would not be cost effective and there is ongoing work on the reimbursable agreement.

3.3 Billing - NASA Employee Debt

3.3.1 When a NASA employee owes a debt, NASA will send the employee a bill for collection or request for payment. If the employee does not pay the debt within 30 days, the NSSC shall issue a demand letter that will include notification that NASA will collect the debts via salary offset if the debt is not paid within 30 days. The notification and the demand letter will conform to the requirements in 31 CFR § 901.2. In certain cases, such as health insurance premiums for personnel on leave without pay, the debt does not become payable until a specific event occurs. In such cases the 30-day period begins when the repayment period begins and in some cases NASA may authorize repayment in installments.

3.3.2 Payroll Deduction. Bills need not be issued when collections are to be made by payroll deductions.

3.3.3 Jury Duty Fees. The collection of jury duty fees can normally be accomplished without formal billing. Employees serving on jury duty should be informed to refund jury duty fees received to compensate them for lost salary, if applicable, upon return to work. The pay records of employees serving on jury duty will be annotated so that proper follow-up actions can be taken to ensure the refund is received. However, any portion of jury fees received that represent reimbursement for expenses (rather than for their salary) may properly be retained by the juror. See 5 U.S.C. § 5515, a Government Accountability Office ruling, Glenell v. Hines, B-214558, July 23, 1984, and OPM guidance http://www.opm.gov/oca/leave/HTML/courtlv.HTM .

3.3.4 Travel Advances. Each Center's financial management office shall establish a system of review to ensure that travel advances are recovered.

3.4 Intragovernmental Receivables Billing

3.4.1 Bills resulting from transactions with other Federal agencies will be processed, where possible, through automated or regularly established, self-collection methods, such as the Treasury's Intragovernmental Payment and Collection (IPAC) system. Invoices and bills to Federal agencies are prepared in NASA's core financial system and electronically interfaced to the IPAC system for subsequent electronic transmission to Treasury and to the other agency. Remittance by check from Federal agencies will be used as a last resort, and is not allowed between NASA Centers. Invoices for amounts due under ongoing reimbursable agreements will be issued at the end of each month based on the cumulative unreimbursed costs incurred as of the end of the month.

3.4.2 Additional guidance concerning billing requirements for reimbursable work is included in NPR, 9090.1, Reimbursable Agreements.

3.4.3 Intragovernmental Business Rule. NASA Centers and the NSSC shall comply with the requirements in 1 TFM 2-4700 Appendix 10, Intragovernmental Transaction Guide (ITG), and NPR 9220.1, Journal Voucher preparation and Approval and Intragovernmental Transactions. Those requirements address the billing data and timeframes, as well as reconciliation requirements when one Federal entity provides goods or services to another Federal entity on a reimbursable basis. In addition, the ITG and NPR 9220.1 contain specific guidance and timeframes for dispute resolution.

3.4.4 Standard Form (SF) 1080, Voucher for Transfer between Appropriations and/or Funds, should be used to bill other Government agencies when the paying agency is not serviced by a Treasury financial center or the IPAC system cannot be used.

3.4.5 SF 1081, Voucher and Schedule of Withdrawals and Credits, should be used to bill other Government agencies when both the billing and the paying agency are serviced by a Treasury financial center. Before using a SF 1081, the agency will be contacted to ensure that it cannot accept IPAC charges.

DISTRIBUTION:
NODIS