31 U.S.C. § 3904
Section 3904 · Limitations on discount payments
Amended 2 times on record
Applied in 3 court decisions — leading case Environmental Safety Consultants, Inc. v. United States (2010)
Most recently applied in 114 Fed. Cl. 755 - Bay County, Florida v. United States (February 2014)
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.
The head of an agency offered a discount by a business concern from an amount due under a contract for property or service in exchange for payment within a specified time may pay the discounted amount only if payment is made within the specified time. For the purpose of the preceding sentence, the specified time shall be determined from the date of the invoice. The head of the agency shall pay an interest penalty on an amount remaining unpaid in violation of this section. The penalty accrues as provided under sections 3902 and 3903 of this title, except that the required payment date for the unpaid amount is the last day specified in the contract that the discounted amount may be paid.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
The word “otherwise” is omitted as surplus. The words “may pay the discounted amount” are substituted for “may make payment in an amount equal to the discounted price” to eliminate unnecessary words. The words “on such unpaid amount” and “the regulations prescribed pursuant to” are omitted as surplus. The words “specified in the contract that the discounted amount may be paid” are substituted for “of the specified period of time described in subsection (a)” for clarity.
Amendments
1988—Pub. L. 100–496 inserted after first sentence “For the purpose of the preceding sentence, the specified time shall be determined from the date of the invoice.”
Effective Date of 1988 Amendment
Amendment by Pub. L. 100–496 applicable to payments under contracts awarded, contracts renewed, and contract options exercised during or after the first fiscal quarter which begins more than 90 days after Oct. 17, 1988, see section 14(a) of Pub. L. 100–496, set out as a note under section 3902 of this title.