[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 190 (Friday, October 1, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53424-53426]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-25612]


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OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT


Privacy Act of: Amendment to a System of Records

AGENCY: Office of Personnel Management (OPM).
ACTION: Notice to amend a system of records.

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SUMMARY: OPM proposes to amend a system of records in its inventory of 
record systems subject to the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a), as 
amended.

DATES: The changes will be effective without further notice on Movember 
10, 1999, unless comments are received that would result in a contrary 
determination.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Office of Personnel Management, 
ATTN: Mary Beth Smith-Toomey, Office of the Chief Information Officer, 
1900 E Street NW., Room 5415, Washington, DC 20415-7900.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mary Beth Smith-Toomey, (202) 606-
8358.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice serves to amend the system 
manager and clarify the notification and records access procedures for 
OPM/Central-8, Privacy Act/Freedom of Information Act (PA/FOIA) Case 
Records. It also updates the retention and disposal practices in 
accordance with NARA General Records Schedule 14 and aligns records 
storage practices with OPM's current operations.

Office of Personnel Management.
Janice R. Lachance,
Director.
OPM/CENTRAL-8

SYSTEM NAME:
    Privacy Act/Freedom of Information Act (PA/FOIA) Case Records

SYSTEM LOCATION:
    Offices of the Office of Personnel Management, 1900 E Street NW., 
Washington, DC 20415-0001 and OPM field service centers.

CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM:
    This system contains records and related correspondence on 
individuals who have filed with OPM:
    a. Requests for information under the provisions of the Freedom of 
Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552), including requests for review of 
initial denials of such requests.
    b. Requests under the provisions of the Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552a) 
for records about themselves, including:

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    (1) Requests for notification of the existence of records about 
them.
    (2) Requests for access to these records.
    (3) Requests for amendment of these records.
    (4) Requests for review of initial denials of such requests for 
notification, access, and amendment.
    (5) Requests for an accounting of disclosure of records about them.

    Note: Since these PA/FOIA case records contain inquiries and 
requests regarding any of OPM's other systems of records subject to 
the Privacy Act, information about individuals from any of these 
other systems may become part of this PA/FOIA Case Records system.

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
    This system contains correspondence and other documents related to 
requests made by individuals to OPM for:
    a. Information under the provisions of the Freedom of Information 
Act (5 U.S.C. 552), including requests for review of initial denials of 
such requests.
    b. Information under provisions of the Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552a) 
and requests for review of initial denials of such requests made under 
OPM's Privacy Act regulations including requests for:
    (1) Notification of the existence of records about them.
    (2) Access to records about them.
    (3) Amendment of records about them.
    (4) Review of initial denials of such requests for notification, 
access, or amendment.
    (5) Requests for an accounting of disclosure of records about them.

AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
    Includes the Following with any Revisions and Amendments:
    The Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a), the Freedom of Information 
Act, as amended (5 U.S.C. 552), and 5 U.S.C. 301.

PURPOSE(S):
    These records are maintained to process an individual's request 
made under the provisions of the Freedom of Information and Privacy 
Acts. The records are also used by OPM to prepare its reports to the 
Office of Management and Budget and the Department of Justice required 
by the Privacy and Freedom of Information Acts.

ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES 
OF USERS AND THE PURPOSES OF SUCH USES:
    Routine uses 1 and 3 through 10 of the Prefatory Statement of OPM's 
system notices (60 FR 63075, effective January 17, 1996) apply to the 
records maintained within this system. The following routine uses are 
specific to this system of records only:
    a. To disclose information to the Office of Management and Budget 
at any stage in the legislative coordination and clearance process in 
connection with private relief legislation as set forth in OMB Circular 
No. A-19.
    b. To disclose information to an agency, subject to law, rule, or 
regulation enforced by OPM having been found in violation of such law, 
rule, or regulation, in order to achieve compliance with OPM 
instructions.
    c. To disclose information to Federal agencies (e.g., Department of 
Justice) in order to obtain advice and recommendations concerning 
matters on which the agency has specialized experience or particular 
competence, for use by OPM in making required determinations under the 
Freedom of Information Act or the Privacy Act of 1974.
    d. To disclose information to any source from which additional 
information is requested (to the extent necessary to identify the 
individual, inform the source of the purpose of the request, and to 
identify the type of information requested), where necessary to obtain 
information relevant to an OPM decision concerning a Privacy or Freedom 
of Information Act request.
    e. To disclose to the Federal agency involved, an OPM decision on 
an appeal from an initial denial of a request involving OPM-controlled 
records.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES OF STORING, RETRIEVING, SAFEGUARDING, RETAINING 
AND DISPOSING OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
STORAGE:
    These records are maintained on one of the following: paper copies 
in file folders, electronic copies on Local Area Network (LAN) servers 
or diskettes, or microfilm.

RETRIEVABILITY:
    Records are retrieved by the name of the individual on whom they 
are maintained and year of the request.

SAFEGUARDS:
    The records maintained on paper and microfilm are located in 
lockable metal filing cabinets or in a secured room, with access 
limited to personnel whose duties require access. Only authorized 
personnel have access to the records on the LAN and diskettes.

RETENTION AND DISPOSAL:
    These records are maintained for varying periods of time, in 
accordance with NARA General Records Schedule 14. Paper records are 
destroyed by shredding or burning; microfilm and electronic records are 
erased or deleted.

SYSTEM MANAGER(S) AND ADDRESS:
    The system manager for PA/FOIA requests is: FOIA/PA Officer, Office 
of the Chief Information Officer, Office of Personnel Management, 1900 
E Street NW., Washington DC 20415-7900.
    The system manager for PA/FOIA appeals is: Office of the General 
Counsel, Office of Personnel Management, 1900 E Street NW., Washington, 
DC 20415-1300.

NOTIFICATION PROCEDURE:
    Individuals wishing to inquire whether this system of records 
contains information about them should contact the system manager or 
the program office where their original Privacy Act or Freedom of 
Information Act requests were sent, or from where they received 
responses to such requests. Individuals must furnish the following 
information for their records to be located and identified:
    a. Name.
    b. Date of birth.
    c. Approximate dates of Privacy Act or Freedom of Information Act 
correspondence between OPM and the individual.

RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURE:
    Material from other OPM systems of records which are exempt from 
certain Privacy Act requirements may be included in this system as part 
of a PA/FOIA case record. Such material retains its exemption if it is 
included in this system of records. The section of this notice titled 
Systems Exempted from Certain Provisions of the Act explains the 
exemptions for this system.
    Individuals wishing to request access to their records should 
contact the system manager or the program office where their original 
Privacy Act or Freedom of Information Act request was sent or from 
which they received responses to such requests. Individuals must 
furnish the following information for their records to be located and 
identified:
    a. Name.
    b. Date of birth.
    c. Approximate dates of Privacy Act or Freedom of Information Act 
correspondence between OPM and the individual.
    Individuals requesting access must also comply with OPM's Privacy 
Act regulations regarding verification of identity and access to 
records (5 CFR part 297).

CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURE:
    Material from other OPM systems of records which are exempt from 
certain

[[Page 53426]]

Privacy Act requirements may be included in this system as part of a 
PA/FOIA case record. Such material retains its exemption if it is 
included in this system of records. The section of this notice titled 
Systems Exempted from Certain Provisions of the Act explains the 
exemptions for this system. Individuals wishing to request amendment to 
their records should contact the system manager or the program office 
where their original Privacy Act or Freedom of Information Act requests 
were sent or from which they received responses to such requests.
    Individuals must furnish the following information for their 
records to be located and identified:
    a. Name.
    b. Date of birth.
    c. Appropriate dates of Privacy Act or Freedom of Information Act 
correspondence between OPM and the individual.
    Individuals requesting amendment must also comply with OPM's 
Privacy Act regulations regarding verification of identity and 
amendment of records (5 CFR part 297).

    Note: The amendment provisions of this system are not intended 
to permit an individual a second opportunity to request amendment of 
a record which was the subject of the initial Privacy Act amendment 
request which created the record in this system. That is, after an 
individual has requested amendment of a specific record in an OPM 
system under provisions of the Privacy Act, that specific record may 
itself become part of this system of PA/FOIA Case Records. An 
individual may not subsequently request amendment of that specific 
record again, simply because a copy of the record has become part of 
this second system of PA/FOIA Case Records.

RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
    Information in this system of records is obtained from--
    a. The individual to whom the information applies.
    b. Officials of OPM.
    c. Official documents of OPM.

SYSTEMS EXEMPTED FROM CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF THE ACT:
    OPM has claimed exemptions for several of its other systems of 
records under 5 U.S.C. 552a (k)(1), (2), (3), (4), (5), (6), and (7). 
During the course of a PA/FOIA action, exempt materials from those 
other systems may become part of the case records in this system. To 
the extent that copies of exempt records from those other systems are 
entered into these PA/FOIA case records, the office has claimed the 
same exemptions for the records as they have in the original primary 
systems of records which they are a part.

[FR Doc. 99-25612 Filed 9-30-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6325-01-P