(a) To be eligible for benefits under this part, producers must be in compliance with the highly erodible land and wetlands provisions of part 12 of this title.

(b) The provisions of §718.11 of this title, providing for ineligibility for benefits for offenses involving controlled substances, apply.

(c) A person is ineligible to receive assistance under this part for the crop year plus two subsequent crop years if it is determined by the State or county committee or an official of FSA that such person has:

(1) Adopted any scheme or other device that tends to defeat the purpose of a program operated under this part;

(2) Made any fraudulent representation with respect to such program; or

(3) Misrepresented any fact affecting a program determination.

(d) All amounts paid by FSA to any such producer, applicable to the crop year in which a violation of this part occurs, must be refunded to FSA together with interest and other amounts as determined appropriate to the circumstances by FSA. FSA may assess liquidated damages of 10 percent of the projected or received NAP payment for the crop or commodity in violation. Liquidated damages are in addition to any refund of program benefits and are not considered a penalty.

(e) All persons with a financial interest in the operation receiving benefits under this part are jointly and severally liable for any refund, including related charges, which is determined to be due FSA for any reason under this part.

(f) In the event that any request for assistance or payments under this part was established as result of erroneous information or a miscalculation, the assistance or payment will be recalculated and any excess refunded with applicable interest.

(g) The liability of any person for any penalty under this part is in addition to any other liability under any civil or criminal fraud statute or any other provision of law.

(h) The appeal regulations at parts 11 and 780 of this title apply to decisions made according to this part.

(i) Any payment or portion thereof to any person will be made without regard to questions of title under State law and without regard to any claim or lien against the crop, or proceeds thereof.

(j) For the purposes of 28 U.S.C. 3201(e), the Secretary waives the ineligibility to receive benefits under this program but only for beneficiaries who as a condition of such waiver agree to apply the benefits to reduce the amount of the judgment lien.

(k) The provisions of parts 1400, 1403 and 1404 of this chapter apply to NAP.

(l) In the case of death, incompetence or disappearance of any person who is eligible to receive payments under this part, such payments will be disbursed in accordance with part 707 of this title.

(m) Any person or legal entity who has a debt from nonpayment of the premium for coverage levels specified in §1437.5(c) will be ineligible for assistance under any subsequent crop year NAP coverage on any crop from the crop year of nonpayment of premium until the debt is paid in full.

(1) If a person or legal entity is ineligible for NAP assistance due to the debt because of the nonpayment of premium, FSA will permit the person or legal entity to file an application for coverage together with payment of any service fees; however, that application and payment of service fees will not make the person or legal entity eligible for any assistance until the premium debt is paid in full.

(2) Service fees paid with applications for coverage that are filed by persons or legal entities who are ineligible for NAP assistance as specified in paragraph (m) of this section will not be credited to any unpaid premium debt nor are they refundable.

(n) A person or legal entity ineligible for NAP assistance under paragraph (m) of this section may become eligible for future NAP assistance if they remit all unpaid debt related to the nonpayment of premium before the application for payment filing deadline (see §1437.11(g)).

(o) Any NAP payment that was not issued for a prior NAP crop year due to an outstanding debt as specified in paragraph (m) of this section will not be issued.

(p) Unpaid debt related to the failure to pay any premium satisfied by administrative offset will reinstate the eligibility of a person or legal entity from the date the offset satisfies all the unpaid premium debt with interest.

[67 FR 12448, Mar. 19, 2002. Redesignated and amended at 79 FR 74574, 74579, 74583, Dec. 15, 2014; 85 FR 12220, Mar. 2, 2020]