41 U.S.C. § 8705: Administrative offsets

In this section, the term “contracting officer” has the meaning given that term in chapter 71 of this title. A contracting officer of a contracting agency may offset the amount of a kickback provided, accepted, or charged in violation of section 8702 of this title against amounts the Federal Government owes the prime contractor under the prime contract to which the kickback relates. be paid over to the contracting agency; or be retained by the prime contractor if the Federal Government has already offset the amount against the prime contractor. The prime contractor shall notify the contracting officer when an amount is withheld and retained under paragraph (1)(B). An offset under subsection (b) or a direction or order of a contracting officer under subsection (c) is a claim by the Federal Government for the purposes of chapter 71 of this title.