Justice Management Division...Serving Justice - Securing Results
Assets Forfeiture Fund
Overview
The
Fund. The Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund (hereafter referred
to as the "Fund" or the "AFF") is a special fund established
in the Treasury to receive the proceeds of forfeitures pursuant to any law enforced
or administered by the Department of Justice, as defined in 28 U.S.C. 524(c),
as well as the federal share of forfeitures under state, local and foreign law,
and the proceeds of investments of Fund balances. All funds deposited to the AFF
are considered "public" monies, i.e., funds belonging to the U.S. government.
The monies deposited into the AFF are available to cover all expenditures in support
of the asset forfeiture program that are allowable under the Fund statute. The
Fund was created by the Comprehensive Crime Control Act of 1984 (P.L. 98-473,
dated October 12, 1984) at title 28, United States Code, Section 524(c).
Purpose.
The Fund exists to eliminate economic disincentives to operation of an extensive
national asset forfeiture program by providing a stable source of funds to pay
costs, not otherwise funded under agency appropriations, to execute forfeiture
functions. This is made possible by depositing the proceeds of all forfeitures
under any laws enforced or administered by the Department of Justice into the
Fund, and using those receipts to finance expenses associated with asset forfeiture
functions. Prior to creation of the Fund, costs associated with execution of asset
forfeiture functions had to be absorbed against agency operating funds. In the
absence of agency appropriations for these purposes, this created an economic
disincentive to pursue asset forfeiture as a significant law enforcement sanction.
Scope. In
general, property is forfeited "pursuant to any law enforced or administered
by the Department" if (1) it is administratively forfeited by a Justice agency,
or (2) it is judicially forfeited and, either the underlying seizure was made
by a law enforcement agency participating in the Fund or the property was maintained
by the U.S. Marshals Service.
Forfeiture Related
Expenses. Consistent with the purpose of the AFF, Congress provides broad
authority to the Attorney General to use the Fund to finance costs directly related
to execution of forfeiture functions, including costs of:
- Contract services
to identify and locate forfeitable property;
- Pre-seizure and
post-seizure assessment of property to determine if forfeiture of the property
should be pursued;
- Seizure of property
subject to forfeiture;
- Detention, storage,
management, protection, and maintenance of Fund related property;
- Notification,
advertisement, transcripts, travel and other activities associated with accomplishing
the legal forfeiture of the property;
- Compromise and
satisfaction of valid liens, mortgages and other claims of innocent third parties
as necessary to clear title to such property, once forfeited;
- Disposition of
the property;
- Distribution
of part of the net proceeds from the forfeiture to private parties (through awards
based on the forfeiture) and to state and local law enforcement agencies (through
equitable sharing) who directly contributed to the seizure or forfeiture of the
property; and
- Administration
of a national asset forfeiture program including the costs of training, printing,
data processing, accounting, audits, management, and other administrative matters.
These forfeiture
related expenses constitute a substantial majority of all costs paid from the
Fund.
General Law
Enforcement Expenses. In recognition that competent performance of these asset
forfeiture functions is likely to produce revenues that exceed forfeiture related
costs, Congress has provided the Attorney General authority to use Fund receipts
for general law enforcement needs, subject to specific limitations. The Attorney
General may use current year Fund receipts to finance (a) certain costs of state
and local officers participating in joint investigations with an investigative
agency participating in the Fund, (b) the storage, protection and destruction
of controlled substances, and (c) subject to an annual statutory limitation, costs
of awards to informants, purchase of evidence under certain statutes, and equipping
of conveyances for law enforcement use. These discretionary uses are not central
to the purpose for the Fund, and the level of funding available for these uses
varies from year to year depending on program performance.
Surplus Balances.
After a fiscal year closes, once all forfeiture related expenses have been covered,
and any reserve necessary to support ongoing operations for the next fiscal year
has been established, the Attorney General may use (subject to concurrence by
the Congress) any excess unobligated balance remaining from the prior year's operations
for any federal law enforcement, litigative/prosecutive, and correctional activity,
or any other authorized purpose of the Department of Justice. Excess unobligated
balances may not be available every year. Once declared, this surplus balance
is available to the Attorney General until expended.
Related Holding
Account. The Seized Asset Deposit Fund (SADF) is a holding account established
administratively by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to receive seized cash, proceeds
of sale from seized property, and receipts from income producing assets seized
for forfeiture, pursuant to any law enforced or administered by the Department
of Justice. In general, title to funds on deposit in the SADF are still in dispute.
Thus, these funds are considered "non-public" monies and are not available
for governmental purposes. The Department invests idle balances in the SADF.
Fund Related
Property. The following represent Fund related property.
- Any property forfeited
pursuant to any law enforced or administered by the Department of Justice, as
defined in 28 U.S.C. 524(c), becomes property of the AFF upon forfeiture and is
accounted for on the financial statements of the AFF, until final disposition.
Such dispositions must be authorized by statute and be consistent with Departmental
policy.
- Any property
seized for forfeiture, or satisfaction of an open forfeiture judgment, under any
law enforced or administered by the Department of Justice is considered property
related to the Fund and is accounted for as seized property on the financial statements
of the AFF until the property is forfeited or released, or the property is no
longer being pursued for forfeiture.
Limitations
on Use of AFF. Items not payable from the Fund by law or policy include:
- Expenses that
are expressly limited by statute. Federal law prohibits the use of appropriations
for certain activities unless expressly authorized in agency appropriations acts
(e.g., construction, acquisition of aircraft, acquisition of motor vehicles, etc.);
- Personnel expenses
(e.g., salaries, overtime and benefits) for employees of the United States, except
as expressly approved by the Attorney General;
- Purchase of real
property or any interests therein, except to acquire full title to or to satisfy
liens or mortgages on forfeited property;
- Expenses in connection
with the seizure, detention and disposition of property where the seizure was
effected for debt collection, preservation of evidence of a crime, protection
of the property, judgment enforcement, restitution, or other non-forfeiture purpose;
unless the property also qualifies as Fund related property;
- Payments to compensate
law enforcement agencies for a reduction in equitable sharing payments based on
the value of property placed into official use by an agency participating in the
Fund; and
- Absent express
statutory authority to pay damages or costs, including attorneys fees, the AFF
is not available to satisfy adverse judgments in asset forfeiture cases above
the amount deposited to the AFF, less payments already made of eligible third
party claims. The difference between this net deposit and the judgment amount
is to be paid from other available appropriations, such as the Judgment Fund.
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