Carol D. Jones, ASBCA No. 61080

Carol D. Jones leased a single-family house to the U.S. government under Lease No. DACA-31-5-13-0103 (term began Dec. 14, 2012). Lease limited government liability to damages beyond normal wear and tear and included a clause excluding paint restoration if the government possessed the premises for three or more years.
Parties performed an initial inspection and a joint exit inspection (both signed). Exit survey noted appliance failures (garbage disposal, microwave) and downgraded some paint conditions.
The Joneses signed a general release at lease termination stating there were no restoration costs beyond ordinary wear and tear. The contracting officer (CO) nonetheless considered and adjudicated Ms. Jones’ December 26, 2016 claim for restoration costs.
The CO awarded $1,346.65 for cleaning and miscellaneous items but denied painting and most appliance claims. Jones appealed to the ASBCA under the Board’s expedited procedure and waived a hearing.
Photographs and submissions showed: repainting and sticker removal needs; dog-caused damage to french doors (not raised in the CO claim); garbage disposal jammed by a hard object; gritty residue in the washing machine; and an allegedly inoperative microwave.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Jurisdiction over french-door claim	Jones seeks recovery for dog damage to french doors	Government says claim wasn’t presented to CO so Board lacks jurisdiction	Board dismissed french-door claim for lack of jurisdiction (not presented to CO)
Effect of signed general release	Jones contended release should not bar her claim	Government relied on release to bar further recovery	Release did not bar claim because CO continued to consider the claim after signing, showing the parties ignored the release
Recoverability of appliance restoration costs	Jones sought repair/replacement costs for disposal, washing machine, microwave	Government argued appliance issues were normal wear or not shown to be tenant-caused	Awarded $836.70 for disposal ($339.00) and washing machine ($497.70); microwave denied for lack of proof of tenant causation
Recoverability of painting and wall-sticker restoration	Jones sought $3,900 for painting and $400 for sticker-related wall repair	Government relied on lease clause excluding paint restoration after three+ years of possession	Painting and sticker-related painting denied because lease precludes paint restoration after three-year possession by government

JG. Watts Constr. Co. v. United States, 161 Ct. Cl. 801 (discussing effect of general releases on later claims)
Winn-Senter Constr. Co. v. United States, 110 Ct. Cl. 34 (general release may not bar claims where parties’ post-release conduct shows they did not treat it as abandonment)
Community Heating & Plumbing Co. v. Kelso, 987 F.2d 1575 (Fed. Cir. 1993) (administrative treatment of a claim can affect whether a release bars later recovery)