(a) The Secretary establishes the standards and procedures in this part that apply to the deductions through offset from disposable pay of a current or former employee of the Department of Education to recover overpayments of pay or allowances.(b) This part does not apply to-(1) Recovery through offset of an indebtedness to the United States by an employee of the Department under a program administered by the Secretary of Education covered under 34 CFR part 31 ;(2) The offset of an indebtedness to the United States by a Federal employee to satisfy a judgment obtained by the United States against that employee in a court of the United States;(3) The offset of any payment to an employee of the Department of Education which is expressly allowed under statutes other than 5 U.S.C. 5514 , except as to offsets of severance pay and/or lump sum annual leave payments as authorized under 31 U.S.C. 3716 ;(4) Offsets under 34 CFR part 30 ; or(5) An employee election of coverage or of a change of coverage under a Federal benefits program which requires periodic deductions from pay if the amount to be recovered was accumulated over four pay periods or less. Authority: 5 U.S.C. 5514 ; 31 U.S.C. 3716