31 U.S.C. § 1502
Section 1502 · Balances available
Amended 1 time on record
Applied in 22 court decisions — leading case Population Institute, Population Council v. M. Peter McPherson Administrator Population Institute, William S. Green v. M. Peter McPherson Administrator (1986)
Most recently applied in Maxwell Goodluck v. Joseph Biden, Jr. (June 2024)
How often courts cite this section
Court decisions citing this, by year.Markers show enactment, consequential amendments, and circuit splits over this section — watch for a citation surge after a change or a disagreement. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.
(a) The balance of an appropriation or fund limited for obligation to a definite period is available only for payment of expenses properly incurred during the period of availability or to complete contracts properly made within that period of availability and obligated consistent with section 1501 of this title. However, the appropriation or fund is not available for expenditure for a period beyond the period otherwise authorized by law.
(b) A provision of law requiring that the balance of an appropriation or fund be returned to the general fund of the Treasury at the end of a definite period does not affect the status of lawsuits or rights of action involving the right to an amount payable from the balance.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
Subsection (a) restates the source provisions to eliminate unnecessary words and for consistency.
In subsection (b), the words “balance of an appropriation or fund” are substituted for “unexpended funds” for clarity and consistency in the revised chapter.
Availability of Energy and Water Development Appropriations Limited to Fiscal Year In Which Appropriated
Pub. L. 102–377, title V, §501, Oct. 2, 1992, 106 Stat. 1342, provided that: “No part of any appropriation contained in this Act or subsequent Energy and Water Development Appropriations Acts shall remain available for obligation beyond the fiscal year specified in such Acts therein unless expressly so provided therein.”