Appropriations Law Training

OVERVIEW | GAO’S COURSE | REGISTRATION | PAYMENT | COURSE DATES | COURSE OUTLINE

Overview

GAO’s Course

Principles of Appropriations Law (PAL) is taught by experienced GAO attorneys. Beginning in January 2027, GAO is offering several courses through virtual training and several courses exclusively through live, in-person training at a requesting agency’s training site.

Virtual Courses: The virtual course is 5 ½ hours, including breaks. It begins at 9:30 AM EST and ends at approximately 3:00 PM. The course generally qualifies for 5 continuing professional education (CPE) credits. See below for a complete course outline.

In-Person Courses: The in-person course is 2 ½ days long. It begins at 8:30 AM each day and ends at approximately 3:45 PM on Days 1 and 2 and 11:30 AM on Day 3. The course generally qualifies for 17 CPE credits. See below for a complete course outline.

Registration

OIG PAL Course (Individual Registration)

GAO will offer a hybrid PAL course for individuals from Offices of Inspectors General (OIGs) for a fee of $300 per seat for virtual attendance and $500 per seat for in-person attendance. The course will take place at the GAO HQ building in Washington, D.C. on July 13–15, 2027. Individuals from OIG offices who wish to take the PAL course should register for this course, not the open enrollment course.

GAO will begin accepting enrollment requests immediately. All requests are on a first come, first served basis. Participants should send an email to PALCourse@GAO.GOV to register for the course. In the subject line of the email, you must include (OIG PAL Course). 

Note: Individual participants may not register for any of the group course dates below. Please read the Payment section below to ensure you can register for the course.

Open Enrollment Course (Individual Registration – non-OIGs)

Each fiscal year, GAO offers a PAL course on an “open enrollment” basis, meaning that GAO enrolls individual federal employees for a fee of $300 per seat for virtual attendance and $500 per seat for in-person attendance. GAO will begin accepting open enrollment requests immediately. All requests are on a first come, first served basis. Participants should send an email to PALCourse@GAO.GOV to register for the course. In the subject line of the email, you must include (Open Enrollment Course). Please note that individuals from an OIG office should register for the OIG PAL course, not the open enrollment course.

There are two open enrollment courses this year:

• The FY 2027 virtual open enrollment course will be taught on August 5, 2027. 
• The FY 2027 in-person open enrollment course will be taught at the GAO HQ building in Washington, D.C. on August 17–19, 2027.

Note: Individual participants may not register for any of the group course dates below. Please read the Payment section below to ensure you can register for the course.

Group Courses (Agency Registration)

In the past year, GAO has taught group courses for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Department of the Air Force, U.S. Department of the Army, U.S. Department of Labor, U.S. Department of the Navy, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, and the General Services Administration, among others. 

• Virtual group courses can accommodate up to 35 agency employees for a fee of $3,500.
• In-person group courses are taught at various federal agencies and can accommodate up to 35 agency employees for a fee of $6,700 (plus additional costs for instructor travel expenses for group courses held outside the Washington, D.C. local travel area). 

GAO will begin accepting group course requests immediately. All requests are on a first come, first served basis. Agencies should send an email to PALCourse@GAO.GOV to register for a course. In the subject line of the email, you must include (Group Course/Date). All registrations must be received by COB Friday, November 6, 2026. 

Only one POC from each agency can register their group. Confirmed registrations will only be sent to the agency POC. If your circumstances change after GAO has confirmed your attendance, please email PALCourse@GAO.GOV to decline the offer and free it up for someone else. 

Note: Individual participants may not register for group courses. Group courses are only available for agencies registering up to 35 of their employees for the course. Please read the Payment section below to ensure your agency can register for a course.

Payment (Interagency Agreement)

If GAO has offered you a seat in the OIG PAL course or the open enrollment course, or has offered your agency a group course date, you must finalize your registration by having a signed interagency agreement (IAA) in G‑Invoicing. If your agency is not ready for G-Invoicing, we will accept a PDF 7600A and 7600B. We will not accept hybrid IAAs such as a GT&C in G‑Invoicing and a PDF 7600B. A MIPR can be signed, if necessary, but only after we receive a fully executed GT&C and Order or a PDF 7600A and 7600B. Please note that the Government Employees Training Act, 5 U.S.C. § 4104 (GETA), not the Economy Act, is the specific Statutory Authority for this agreement.

Agencies will be responsible for the actual travel costs, not the estimated travel costs, for two GAO instructors traveling outside the Washington, D.C. local travel area to teach the in-person group courses. If the estimated travel cost that is entered on the GT&C/7600A and Order/7600B is lower than the actual travel costs, the agency will be notified and asked to expeditiously modify the GT&C/7600A and Order/7600B to increase the funding. For any course that requires travel outside the Washington, D.C. local travel area, please add a second line to the Order. 

If your agency cannot complete an IAA in G-Invoicing or in PDF format, you will not be able to register for a course. Once the IAA is in place, an IPAC will be initiated to collect payment upon completion of the course. Please note that GAO cannot accept government purchase cards for payment.

Failure to complete this process (or request an extension) within 6 weeks of the course may result in the loss of your registration. In addition, if your circumstances change after GAO offers your agency a group course date, please email PALCourse@GAO.GOV to decline your spot as soon as possible so your space can be made available to another agency.

FY 2027 PAL Group Course Dates

Course Outline

Virtual Course

1. Introduction
   1. Constitution
   2. Major Statutes
   3. Key Concepts
   4. Appropriations Law Framework
2. Availability of Appropriations: Purpose
   1. The Purpose Statute
   2. Purpose Three-Step Analysis
3. Availability of Appropriations: Time
   1. Time Limitations
   2. Duration of Appropriation Availability
   3. The Bona Fide Needs Rule
   4. Account Closing Law
4. Availability of Appropriations: Amount
   1. Antideficiency Act
   2. Impoundment Control Act
   3. Miscellaneous Receipts Statute
5. Recording Obligations and Inter- and Intra-agency Transactions
6. Resources

In-Person Course**

1. Introduction to Appropriations Law
   1. Constitution and Major Statutes
   2. Annual Budget and Appropriations Process
   3. Budget Execution and Control
   4. Apportionment and Allotment
   5. Obligating and Disbursing Funds
   6. Impoundment
2. Terminology and Classification
3. Statutory Construction
4. Availability of Appropriations: Purpose
   1. Purpose Three-Step Analysis
   2. Necessary Expense Rule
   3. Statutory Purpose Restrictions
   4. Other Available Appropriations
5. Availability of Appropriations: Amount
   1. Antideficiency Act: Provisions, Exceptions, Sanctions and Applications
   2. Rules Against Augmentation, and the Miscellaneous Receipts Act
6. Availability of Appropriations: Time
   1. General Rule
   2. Bona Fide Needs Rule
   3. Prohibition on Advanced Payments
   4. Account Closing Law
7. Obligation of Appropriations
8. Interagency Transactions

**Please note that the outline for the In-Person course may change.