Brumley v. United States

55 Fed. Cl. 431, 2003 U.S. Claims LEXIS 49, 2003 WL 1135638
CourtUnited States Court of Federal Claims
DecidedMarch 6, 2003
DocketNo. 02-11C
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 55 Fed. Cl. 431 (Brumley v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Court of Federal Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Brumley v. United States, 55 Fed. Cl. 431, 2003 U.S. Claims LEXIS 49, 2003 WL 1135638 (uscfc 2003).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

HODGES, Judge.

The Government paid plaintiff disability benefits to which he was not entitled. The error occurred because plaintiff misstated his outside income on forms required for benefits under the Federal Employees Compensation Act. Defendant recouped the overpayment years later, from plaintiffs benefits under the same program.

Plaintiff filed a motion for summary judgment, contending that defendant’s offset against his government benefits violated the applicable ten-year statute of limitations. [432]*432Defendant filed a cross-motion for summary-judgment and a motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction. We deny defendant’s motion to dismiss and plaintiffs motion for summary judgement; defendant’s motion for summary judgment is granted.

BACKGROUND

Plaintiff was a forty-one year-old Program Analyst for the Federal Aviation Administration when he filed notice of an occupational disease in July 1974. He alleged that a five-year dispute with his co-workers concerning his pay grade resulted in acute depression-anxiety. The Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs accepted plaintiffs claim that he was totally disabled and began making payments in February 1975 pursuant to the Federal Employees Compensation Act. 5 U.S.C. §§ 8101-8152.

The OWCP requires an employee in such circumstances to report outside employment on Form CA-1032. Plaintiff reported “None” in the space on that form for listing such employment. He completed the same form in the same way in November 1979. A psychiatrist who examined plaintiff in 1979 reported that Mr. Brumley

stated that he was actively involved in carpentry work and was doing the purchasing of real estate and the management of it. He seemed to be doing fairly well with this type of activity and seemed to have numerous other activities that were economically productive for him. He did not elaborate upon these.

Plaintiff completed Form CA-1032 in May 1981 and May 1982, again certifying that he had no income from employment, including self-employment.

An investigator for the Labor Department observed plaintiff performing carpentry work in his backyard in June 1982. Further investigation established that plaintiff helped manage a Baskin-Robbins Ice Cream Parlor, operated a business called B-Crest Builders, and was “frequently seen driving a truck with the word ‘Aerolite’ on the door.” He did landscaping work, received training in auctioneering, and worked as an Amway distributor. Mr. Brumley conducted auctions on a regular basis and built at least two houses in his neighborhood.

The Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs sent Mr. Brumley a letter in February 1983 making a preliminary finding that plaintiff had violated the conditions of his disability benefits because of the unreported outside income. The letter from OWCP stated that the decision was not final and that plaintiff could argue that adjustment of his benefits would “defeat the purpose of [the Federal Employees Compensation Act] or would be against equity and good conscience.” See 5 U.S.C. § 8129. The Office also issued an order terminating plaintiffs future benefits.

Plaintiff obtained an injunction from federal district court in February 1983, staying administrative efforts by the Department of Labor to recover benefits until criminal proceedings involving the same issue were complete. The court lifted the stay in November 1983, and the administrative process resumed.

A hearing representative for the Department of Labor remanded the case to OWCP in March 1984 “for further development.” He noted that the Agency must show that plaintiffs injury-related condition had ceased before it could terminate future benefits. Plaintiff produced a doctor who reported that Mr. Brumley’s emotional condition continued.

The OWCP notified plaintiff by letter in December 1987 that it had again made a preliminary determination that Mr. Brumley must reimburse the Government benefits that he was paid while receiving outside income. The letter stated that the decision was not final and that plaintiff had the right to a pre-recoupment hearing. He could submit evidence or arguments if he disagreed. After considering plaintiffs arguments, OWCP issued an order terminating Mr. Brumley’s benefits. A letter dated January 27, 1998 was OWCP’s first formal notification that plaintiff must repay the approximately $150,000 that he was overpaid because of his failure to report outside income. Interest began to accrue on this date.

Plaintiff filed contempt charges against the Labor Department and sought an injunction in district court to prevent the Government [433]*433from recovering the benefits that were paid improperly to him. The court rejected plaintiffs motion for contempt and dismissed his case for lack of jurisdiction. Mr. Brumley appealed to the Employees’ Compensation Appeals Board, which reviewed the case in October 1990. The Board noted that the case had been “dormant with respect to forfeiture and overpayment issues” because of the lawsuits and appeals that plaintiff had filed. The Board reduced the amount that Mr. Brumley owed to approximately $149,661.

The Department of Labor notified Mr. Brumley formally of these findings in February 1991 and advised him of his appeal rights under the Federal Employees Compensation Act. Soon thereafter, the Department advised Mr. Brumley that he could elect benefits under the Federal Employees Retirement Act for the periods of forfeiture under the Federal Employees Compensation Act.1 If he made such an election, OPM would “calculate your entitlement and your overpayment will be offset by the amount to which you are entitled. Not only will this reduce the amount of your overpayment, but it will greatly reduce the amount of interest which will accrue on the unpaid balance.”

Plaintiff agreed to the retroactive election about two weeks later, and agreed that defendant could “have the OPM apply the annuity as a set-off against the alleged overpayment ....” This process resulted in payment of approximately $75,000 of plaintiffs obligation in April 1991.

Plaintiff went back into federal court in August 1991 and asked that the Government be enjoined from making any efforts to recoup its debt. He also sought a ruling that his election of benefits was improper. The district court issued the injunction and granted plaintiffs motions for relief in December 1992. The court reconsidered in August 1993, and dismissed plaintiffs case for lack of jurisdiction pursuant to 5 U.S.C. § 8128(b).2

At the direction of the Labor Department, the Office of Personnel Management began collecting the balance of Mr. Brumley’s debt in installments, after the court dismissed plaintiffs case in August 1993.3 Mr. Brumley complained to OPM that he could not afford the monthly withholding. OPM determined in July 1994 that a certification required by regulations issued pursuant to the Debt Collection Act was “not acceptable.”4 OPM terminated withholding from plaintiffs account and advised Labor to refund the deductions that had been made to date. The Department of Labor returned $1500 to Mr.

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76 Fed. Cl. 593 (Federal Claims, 2007)

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Bluebook (online)
55 Fed. Cl. 431, 2003 U.S. Claims LEXIS 49, 2003 WL 1135638, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/brumley-v-united-states-uscfc-2003.