[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 124 (Friday, June 27, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Page 34721]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-16784]


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OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET


Options for Promoting Privacy on the National Information 
Infrastructure

AGENCY: Office of Management and Budget.

ACTION: Notice; extension of comment period.

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SUMMARY: On April 28, 1997, OMB announced the availability of ``Options 
for Promoting Privacy on the National Information Infrastructure'' 
(Options Paper) on behalf of the Information Policy Committee of the 
National Information Infrastructure Task Force (IITF) and requested 
public comments to be submitted on or before June 27, 1997. (62 Fed. 
Reg. 22978). Pursuant to public request, this notice serves to extend 
the deadline for receipt of comments through July 11, 1997.
    The Options Paper results from work performed by the Privacy 
Working Group and refined by the Committee. The Committee is chaired by 
the Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB). None of the options presented 
has been adopted as Administration policy; they are set forth in this 
document in the belief that they are worthy of public discussion.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before July 11, 1997.

ELECTRONIC AVAILABILITY AND ADDRESSES: The options paper is available 
electronically from the IITF site on the World Wide Web: http://
www.iitf.nist.gov/ipc/ipc-pub.html and in paper form from the OMB 
Publications Office, 725 17th Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20503, 
telephone: 202/395-7332, facsimile: 202/395-6137.
    Comments may be sent to the Information Policy Committee c/o the 
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and 
Budget, Room 10236, Washington, D.C. 20503. Comments may also be 
submitted by facsimile to 202-395-5167, or by electronic mail to 
[email protected]. Comments submitted by facsimile or electronic 
mail need not also be submitted by regular mail.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Maya A. Bernstein, Office of 
Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, 
Washington, D.C. 20503. Voice telephone: 202-395-4816. Facsimile: 202-
395-5167. Electronic mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The paper describes the status of electronic 
data protection and fair information practices in the United States 
today, beginning with a discussion of the ``Principles for Providing 
and Using Personal Information,'' issued by the Information 
Infrastructure Task Force in 1995. It then provides an overview of new 
information technologies, which shows that personal information is 
currently collected, shared, aggregated, and disseminated at a rate and 
to a degree unthinkable just a few years ago. Government is no longer 
the sole possessor of extensive amounts of personal information about 
U.S. citizens: in recent years the acquisition of personal information 
by the private sector has increased dramatically.
    The paper next considers in more detail the laws and policies 
affecting information privacy in four specific areas: government 
records, communications, medical records, and the consumer market. The 
paper then turns to the core question: in the context of the Global 
Information Infrastructure (GII), what is the best mechanism to 
implement fair information practices that balance the needs of 
government, commerce, and individuals, keeping in mind both our 
interest in the free flow of information and in the protection of 
information privacy? At one end of the spectrum there is support for an 
entirely market-based response. At the other end of the spectrum, the 
federal government is encouraged to regulate fair information practices 
across all sectors of the economy. In between these poles, the paper 
reviews some of the myriad of options.
    In particular, the paper considers a number of options that involve 
creation of a federal privacy entity. It discusses some of the many 
forms that such an entity could take and considers the advantages and 
disadvantages of the various choices. It also considers the functions 
that such an entity might perform, as well as various options for 
locating a privacy entity within the federal government.
    This paper presents a host of options for government and private 
sector action. The ultimate goal is to identify the means to maintain 
an optimal balance between personal privacy and freedom of information 
values in the digital environment. The next step is to receive and 
respond to public comment on the report in order to develop consensus 
regarding the appropriate allocation of public and private sector 
responsibility for implementation of fair information practices.
Sally Katzen,
Administrator, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs.
[FR Doc. 97-16784 Filed 6-26-97; 8:45 am]
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