Final answer:
Obligations or adjustments to obligations after an appropriation is canceled can be paid from an expired account, which remains open for an additional period to allow the settling of pre-existing obligations.
Step-by-step explanation:
After an appropriation is canceled, any obligations or adjustment to obligations that would have been properly chargeable to that appropriation may be paid from an expired account.
The correct answer to the question is option (a) expired account. An expired account is one that has completed its originally available period for incurring new obligations but remains open for an additional period, usually five years, to allow the payment of pre-existing obligations or for adjustments to those obligations.
An expired account is different from a canceled account, which has passed through both the period of availability for new obligations and the subsequent period for paying obligations. Once an appropriation reaches the canceled status, the funds are no longer available, and any remaining obligations or adjustments must be paid from other sources, such as a current account from the same agency.