{"data":{"id":"us/45-cfr-32.3","jurisdiction":"us","citation":"45 CFR 32.3","heading":"General rule.","body":"(a) Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, whenever a delinquent debt is owed by an individual, the Secretary, or another federal agency collecting a debt on the Department's behalf (See 45 CFR part 30), may initiate proceedings administratively to garnish the wages of the delinquent debtor.\n(b) The Secretary may not garnish the wages of a debtor who the Secretary knows has been involuntarily separated from employment until the debtor has been re-employed continuously for at least 12 months. The debtor has the burden of informing the Secretary of the circumstances surrounding an involuntary separation from employment.","path":["Title 45—Public Welfare","SUBTITLE A—Department of Health and Human Services","SUBCHAPTER A—GENERAL ADMINISTRATION","PART 32—ADMINISTRATIVE WAGE GARNISHMENT"],"source_url":"https://www.ecfr.gov/api/versioner/v1/full/2026-08-25/title-45.xml","current_through":"2026-08-25","vintage":"","retrieved_at":"2026-08-27T02:26:21Z","sha256":"9e21feda9ad1ecf27d4342b157ba8cf44d3d2e4b28fd13cb257ed1be063347bf","source_id":"us-cfr","stale":true,"prev":"us/45-cfr-32.2","next":"us/45-cfr-32.4"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}