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An appropriation account expires “[a]t midnight on the last day of an appropriation’s period of availability” and is “no longer available for incurring new obligations.” [4]

Within the context of federal financial assistance awards, an appropriation is properly spent—and, thus, will not expire—at the time of the award's obligation:

Funds must be obligated by the grantor agency within their period of availability. The period of availability of appropriated funds is the period of time provided by law in which the administering agency has to obligate the funds. The statutory requirement for recording obligations extends to all actions necessary to constitute a valid obligation, and includes, of course, grant obligations (31 U.S.C. § 150l(a)(5)). [5]

Appropriated Those funds which remain unobligated following their period of availability are considered expired. Deobligated funds after their period of availability are also considered expired. In each case, those expired funds are no longer available for use by the program office. The only expired funds that are "protected" are those which have been obligated to FA awards within their period of availability. These funds remain available to the recipient for drawdown ("liquidation") for eligible expenses.

In practical terms, this means that FY2017 appropriated Resource Management funds are available for obligation on financial assistance awards until September 30, 2018. Any funds not obligated by this date expire. Also, or any portion of those obligated funds that are deobligated after midnight on September 30, 2018 expire. In both cases, expired unobligated Resource Management funds are lost to the program.

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