
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
[wais.access.gpo.gov]
[Laws in effect as of January 2, 2001]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 2, 2001 and January 28, 2002]
[CITE: 10USC2775]

 
                         TITLE 10--ARMED FORCES
 
                    Subtitle A--General Military Law
 
                PART IV--SERVICE, SUPPLY, AND PROCUREMENT
 
             CHAPTER 165--ACCOUNTABILITY AND RESPONSIBILITY
 
Sec. 2775. Liability of members assigned to military housing

    (a)(1) A member of the armed forces shall be liable to the United 
States for damage to any family housing unit or unaccompanied personnel 
housing unit, or damage to or loss of any equipment or furnishings of 
any family housing unit or unaccompanied personnel housing unit, 
assigned to or provided such member if (as determined under regulations 
prescribed by the Secretary of Defense or the Secretary of 
Transportation with respect to the Coast Guard when it is not operating 
as a service in the Navy) the damage or loss was caused by the abuse or 
negligence of the member (or a dependent of the member) or of a guest of 
the member (or a dependent of the member).
    (2) A member of the armed forces--
        (A) who is assigned or provided a family housing unit; and
        (B) who fails to clean satisfactorily that housing unit (as 
    determined under regulations prescribed by the Secretary of Defense 
    or the Secretary of Transportation with respect to the Coast Guard 
    when it is not operating as a service in the Navy) upon termination 
    of the assignment or provision of that housing unit,

shall be liable to the United States for the cost of cleaning made 
necessary as a result of that failure.
    (b) The Secretary of Defense, and the Secretary of Transportation 
with respect to the Coast Guard when it is not operating as a service in 
the Navy, may establish limitations on liability under this section, 
including (in the case of liability under subsection (a)(1)) different 
limitations based upon the degree of abuse or negligence involved, and 
may compromise or waive a claim of the United States under this section.
    (c)(1) The Secretary concerned may deduct from a member's pay an 
amount sufficient to pay for the cost of any repair or replacement made 
necessary as the result of any abuse or negligence referred to in 
subsection (a)(1), or the cost of any cleaning made necessary by a 
failure to clean satisfactorily a family housing unit referred to in 
subsection (a)(2), for which the member is liable. Regulations 
implementing this section may also provide for the collection of amounts 
owed under this section by any other authorized means.
    (2) The final determination of an amount to be deducted from the pay 
of an officer of an armed force in accordance with regulations 
prescribed under this section shall be deemed to be a special order 
authorizing such deduction for the purposes of section 1007 of title 37.
    (d) Amounts received under this section shall be credited to the 
family housing operations and maintenance account, in the case of damage 
to a family housing unit (or the equipment or furnishings of a family 
housing unit) or failure to clean satisfactorily a family housing unit, 
or to the operations and maintenance account, in the case of damage to 
an unaccompanied personnel housing unit (or the equipment or furnishings 
of an unaccompanied personnel housing unit), of the military department 
or defense agency concerned, or the operating expenses account of the 
Coast Guard, as appropriate. Amounts so credited shall be available for 
use for the same purposes and under the same circumstances as other 
funds in those accounts.
    (e) The Secretary of Defense, and the Secretary of Transportation 
with respect to the Coast Guard when it is not operating as a service in 
the Navy, shall prescribe regulations to carry out this section. Such 
regulations shall include--
        (1) regulations for determining the cost of repairs and 
    replacements made necessary as the result of abuse or negligence for 
    which a member is liable under subsection (a)(1);
        (2) regulations for determining the cost of cleaning made 
    necessary as a result of the failure to clean satisfactorily for 
    which a member is liable under subsection (a)(2); and
        (3) provisions for limitations of liability, the compromise or 
    waiver of claims, and the collection of amounts owed under this 
    section.

(Added Pub. L. 96-418, title V, Sec. 506(a), Oct. 10, 1980, 94 Stat. 
1765; amended Pub. L. 97-214, Sec. 10(a)(6), July 12, 1982, 96 Stat. 
175; Pub. L. 98-407, title VIII, Sec. 801(a)(1), Aug. 28, 1984, 98 Stat. 
1517; Pub. L. 99-167, title VIII, Sec. 802(a)-(d)(1), Dec. 3, 1985, 99 
Stat. 986; Pub. L. 99-661, div. A, title XIII, Sec. 1343(a)(19), Nov. 
14, 1986, 100 Stat. 3993.)


                               Amendments

    1986--Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 99-661, Sec. 1343(a)(19)(A), 
substituted ``(as determined under regulations prescribed by the 
Secretary of Defense or the Secretary of Transportation with respect to 
the Coast Guard when it is not operating as a service in the Navy) the'' 
for ``it is determined, under regulations prescribed by the Secretary of 
Defense and the Secretary of Transportation when the Coast Guard is not 
operating as a service in the Navy, that the''.
    Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 99-661, Sec. 1343(a)(19)(B), inserted a comma 
after ``Secretary of Defense'', substituted ``with respect to the Coast 
Guard when it'' for ``when the Coast Guard'', and inserted a comma after 
``Navy''.
    Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 99-661, Sec. 1343(a)(19)(C), substituted ``with 
respect to the Coast Guard when it'' for ``when the Coast Guard''.
    1985--Pub. L. 99-167, Sec. 802(d)(1), substituted ``assigned to 
military housing'' for ``for damage to housing and related equipment and 
furnishings'' in section catchline.
    Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 99-167, Sec. 802(a), (b)(1), designated 
existing provisions as par. (1), and in par. (1) as so designated, 
inserted ``and the Secretary of Transportation when the Coast Guard is 
not operating as a service in the Navy'', and added par. (2).
    Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 99-167, Sec. 802(b)(1), (c)(1), inserted ``and 
the Secretary of Transportation when the Coast Guard is not operating as 
a service in the Navy'' and ``(in the case of liability under subsection 
(a)(1))''.
    Subsec. (c)(1). Pub. L. 99-167, Sec. 802(c)(2), substituted 
``subsection (a)(1), or the cost of any cleaning made necessary by a 
failure to clean satisfactorily a family housing unit referred to in 
subsection (a)(2),'' for ``subsection (a)''.
    Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 99-167, Sec. 802(b)(2), (c)(3), inserted ``or 
failure to clean satisfactorily a family housing unit'' and ``, or the 
operating expenses account of the Coast Guard, as appropriate''.
    Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 99-167, Sec. 802(c)(4), amended subsec. (e) 
generally. Prior to amendment, subsec. (e) read as follows: ``The 
Secretary of Defense shall prescribe regulations to carry out the 
provisions of this section, including (1) regulations for determining 
the cost of repairs and replacements made necessary as the result of 
abuse or negligence referred to in subsection (a), and (2) regulations 
providing for limitations of liability, the compromise or waiver of 
claims, and the collection of amounts owed under this section.''
    1984--Pub. L. 98-407 substituted ``Liability of members for damage 
to housing and related equipment and furnishings'' for ``Liability of 
member for damages to family housing, equipment, and furnishings'' in 
section catchline.
    Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 98-407 amended subsec. (a) generally, inserting 
references to unaccompanied personnel housing units, and expanding 
liability of members of the Armed Forces to include damages caused by 
the abuse or negligence of a guest of the member or of a dependent of 
the member.
    Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 98-407 added subsec. (b). Former subsec. (b) 
redesignated (c).
    Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 98-407 redesignated former subsec. (b) as (c), 
in subsec. (c)(1) as so redesignated substituted reference to any abuse 
or negligence for which the member is liable for reference to any abuse 
or negligence on the part of such member or any dependent of such 
member, inserted provision that regulations implementing this section 
may also provide for the collection of amounts owed under this section 
by any other authorized means, and in subsec. (c)(2), as so 
redesignated, substituted reference to regulations prescribed under this 
section for reference to regulations issued under this section. Former 
subsec. (c) redesignated (d).
    Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 98-407 redesignated former subsec. (c) as (d) 
and substituted provisions requiring that amounts received under this 
section be credited either to the family housing operations and 
maintenance account of the department or agency concerned, (in the case 
of damage to family housing or equipment or furnishings therein) or the 
operations and maintenance account of the department or agency concerned 
(in the case of damage to an unaccompanied personnel housing unit or 
equipment or furnishings therein) for provisions that amounts deducted 
from members' pay under this section had to be credited to the 
Department of Defense Military Family Housing Management Account 
provided for in section 2831 of this title. Former subsec. (d) 
redesignated (e).
    Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 98-407 redesignated former subsec. (d) as 
(e)(1), substituted reference to abuse or negligence referred to in 
subsec. (a) for reference to abuse or negligence on the part of a member 
or dependent of a member, and added par. (2).
    1982--Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 97-214, Sec. 10(a)(6), substituted 
``Military Family Housing Management Account provided for in section 
2831 of this title'' for ``family housing management account established 
under section 501 of Public Law 87-554 (76 Stat. 236; 42 U.S.C. 1594a-
1)''.


                    Effective Date of 1982 Amendment

    Amendment by Pub. L. 97-214 effective Oct. 1, 1982, and applicable 
to military construction projects, and to construction and acquisition 
of military family housing authorized before, on, or after such date, 
see section 12(a) of Pub. L. 97-214, set out as an Effective Date note 
under section 2801 of this title.


                             Effective Date

    Section effective Oct. 1, 1980, see section 608 of title VI of Pub. 
L. 96-418, set out as an Effective Date of 1980 Amendment note under 
section 2675 of this title.


    Promulgation of Regulations and Applicability of 1984 Amendments

    Section 801(b) of Pub. L. 98-407 provided that:
    ``(1) Regulations shall be prescribed under subsection (e) of 
section 2775 of title 10, United States Code, as amended by subsection 
(a), not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act 
[Aug. 28, 1984]. That section shall apply with respect to the liability 
of a member under such section for damage or loss to an unaccompanied 
personnel housing unit (or the equipment or furnishings of an 
unaccompanied personnel housing unit) or for damage or loss caused by a 
guest of the member or of a dependent of the member to a family housing 
unit (or the equipment or furnishings of a family housing unit) only in 
the case of damage or loss caused on or after the date that such 
regulations take effect.
    ``(2) The authority of the Secretary of Defense under subsection (b) 
of such section is applicable to any claim of the United States under 
such section, whether such claim arose before, on, or after the date of 
the enactment of this Act [Aug. 28, 1984].''

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in section 2782 of this title.
