[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 196 (Wednesday, October 11, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52948-52949]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-25174]



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SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION


Privacy Act of 1974; Report of New Routine Use

AGENCY: Social Security Administration (SSA).

ACTION: New routine use.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 
552a(e)(4) and (11)), we are notifying the public of our intent to add 
a routine use statement to the systems notices for the following 
systems of records:
     Black Lung Payment System, 09-60-0045;
     Master Files of Social Security Number (SSN) Holders and 
SSN Applications, 09-60-0058;
     Earnings Recording and Self-Employment Income System, 09-
60-0059;
     Master Beneficiary Record, 09-60-0090;
     Supplemental Security Income Record, 09-60-0103.
    We last published a notice in the Federal Register pertaining to 
system 09-60-0045 at 59 FR 46439, September 8, 1994; pertaining to 09-
60-0058 at 60 FR 16155, March 29, 1995; pertaining to 09-60-0059 at 59 
FR 66551, December 27, 1994; pertaining to 09-60-0090 and 09-60-0103 at 
60 FR 2144, January 6, 1995.
    The proposed routine use will permit SSA to disclose information 
about individuals without their consent to parties conducting 
epidemiological and similar research when those disclosures are 
required by section 1106(d) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
1306(d)), which was added by section 311 of the Social Security 
Independence and Program Improvements Act of 1994, Pub. L. No. 103-296 
(SSIPIA), and amended by section 108(b) of the SSIPIA.
    We invite public comments on this publication.

DATES: We filed a report of an altered system of records with the 
Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs, the House Committee on 
Government Reform and Oversight, and the Office of Management and 
Budget, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, on September 29, 
1995. The proposed routine use will become effective as proposed, 
without further notice, on November 20, 1995, unless we receive 
comments on or before that date which would warrant our preventing the 
alteration from taking effect.

ADDRESSES: Interested individuals may comment on this proposal by 
writing to the SSA Privacy Officer. The mailing address is 3-A-6 
Operations Building, 6401 Security Boulevard, Baltimore, Maryland 
21235; telephone 410-965-1736. Comments may be faxed to 410-966-0869. 
All comments received will be available for public inspection at the 
above address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Peter J. Benson, Office of 
Disclosure Policy, 6401 Security Boulevard, Baltimore, Maryland 21235; 
telephone 410-965-1736.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

A. Background of the Proposed Routine Use

    SSA previously disclosed information about vital status and 
verified SSNs for epidemiological and similar research, under the 
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA, 5 U.S.C. 552). We applied a balancing 
test to determine whether such information was exempt from disclosure 
under 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(6), under which we weighed the public interest in 
disclosure against individual privacy interests. Using this test, we 
determined that disclosures for epidemiological research were required 
under the FOIA.
    However, the Supreme Court, in United States Department of Justice 
v. Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, 489 U.S. 749 (1989), 
determined that the only public interest in disclosure that could be 
considered under the balancing test of exemption (b)(6) of the FOIA was 
whether the disclosure would inform the public of how the Federal 
government carries out its statutory obligations. As a result of this 
ruling, we discontinued making disclosures for epidemiological research 
under the FOIA, because those disclosures do not serve the public 
interest identified in the Reporters Committee ruling.
    Section 311 of the SSIPIA, enacted in 1994, added a new subsection 
(d) to section 1106 of the Social Security Act. The new section 
1106(d), as further amended by section 108(b) of the SSIPIA, requires 
SSA to disclose upon request ``information regarding whether an 
individual is shown on the records of [SSA] as being alive or deceased 
* * * for purposes of epidemiological or similar research * * *'' when 
certain conditions are met:
     SSA, in consultation with the Department of Health and 
Human Services, finds that the research involved ``may reasonably be 
expected to contribute to a national health interest;''
     The requesting party agrees to reimburse SSA for the cost 
of providing the information; and
     The requesting party agrees to comply with safeguards and 
limitations specified by SSA on rerelease and redisclosure of such 
information.
    SSA may not disclose under section 1106(d) of the Social Security 
Act (42 U.S.C. 1306(d)) information concerning an individual's death if 
such disclosure would violate a contract between SSA and the State 
which furnished such information under section 205(r) of the Social 
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 405(r)).
    Hence, SSA now proposes to resume disclosing, for epidemiological 
and similar research, information as to whether SSA's records indicate 
that a person is alive or dead. SSA will not release death information 
in violation of any contract entered into pursuant to section 205(r) of 
the Social Security Act.
    When a person is not a beneficiary and SSA has no record of death 
or of recent earnings, the requester will be informed that SSA has no 
information about the person's vital status.
    Specifically, we propose to add the following routine use to the 
above listed systems:
    ``Information as to whether an individual is alive or deceased may 
be disclosed pursuant to section 1106(d) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 1306(d)), upon request, for purposes of an epidemiological or 
similar research project, provided that:
    (a) SSA determines, in consultation with the Department of Health 
and Human Services, that the research may reasonably be expected to 
contribute to a national health interest;
    (b) The requester agrees to reimburse SSA for the costs of 
providing the information; and
    (c) The requester agrees to comply with any safeguards and 
limitations specified by SSA regarding rerelease or redisclosure of the 
information.''

B. Compatibility of the Proposed Routine Use

    The Privacy Act and SSA's disclosure regulation (20 CFR 401.310) 
permit us to disclose information about individuals without their 
consent for a routine use, i.e., a use that serves a purpose that is 
compatible with the purpose for which we collected the information. 
SSA's regulations also state that SSA will disclose when required by 
law (20 CFR 401.205). 

[[Page 52949]]

    In section 1106(d) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1306(d)), 
Congress has established that epidemiological and similar research is 
an authorized use of information in SSA's records that indicate that a 
person is alive or dead. Section 1106(d) thus establishes the 
compatibility of the purposes of that research with the purposes for 
which SSA collects those records.
    Moreover, Sec. 401.325 of the disclosure regulation permits us to 
disclose information under a routine use for statistical and research 
purposes if:
     We determine that the researcher needs the information in 
an identifiable form and will protect individuals from unreasonable and 
unwanted contacts;
     The activity is designed to increase knowledge about 
Social Security programs or other Federal or State income maintenance 
or health-maintenance programs or consists of epidemiological or 
similar research; and
     The recipient agrees to keep the information as a system 
of statistical records, to follow appropriate safeguards, to allow our 
on-site inspection of those safeguards so that we can be sure the 
information is used or redisclosed only for statistical or research 
purposes, and to obtain our approval before redisclosing the 
information.
    Before releasing information to a requester for epidemiological or 
similar research under the proposed routine use statement, we will 
execute an agreement with the researcher, containing the safeguards and 
restrictions required by section 1106(d) of the Social Security Act and 
Sec. 401.325 of the regulations.

C. Effect of the Proposed Alteration on the Privacy of Individuals

    Under section 1106(d) of the Social Security Act, added by the 
SSIPIA, researchers must agree to comply with any restrictions imposed 
by SSA regarding safeguarding of the information and limiting 
redisclosures as a condition of receiving information under this 
routine use. Thus, we do not anticipate that any adverse effects on the 
privacy of individuals will result from disclosures under the routine 
use statement proposed in this notice.

    Dated: September 29, 1995.
Shirley S. Chater,
Commissioner of Social Security.
[FR Doc. 95-25174 Filed 10-10-95; 8:45 am]
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