[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 154 (Monday, August 11, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 47555-47557]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-20435]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records

AGENCY: Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, 
Department of Education.

ACTION: Notice of a new system of records.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended 
(Privacy Act), the Department of Education (Department) publishes this 
notice of a new system of records for tracking telephone calls and 
correspondence from State personnel and parents about disability issues 
related to children with disabilities.

DATES: The Department seeks comments on the new system of records 
described in this notice, in accordance with the requirements of the 
Privacy Act. We must receive your comments on or before September 10, 
2003.
    The Department filed a report describing the system of records 
covered by this notice with the Chair of the Senate Committee on 
Governmental Affairs, the Chair of the House Committee on Government 
Reform, and the Administrator of the Office of Information and 
Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on August 6, 
2003. This system of records will become effective at the later date 
of--(1) The expiration of the 40-day period for OMB review on September 
15, 2003 or (2) September 10, 2003, unless the system of records needs 
to be changed as a result of public comment or OMB review.

ADDRESSES: Address all comments about this system of records to Larry 
Wexler, Deputy, Monitoring & State Improvement Planning Division, 
Office of Special Education, Office of Special Education and 
Rehabilitative Services, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland 
Avenue, SW., room 3630, Mary E. Switzer Building, Washington, DC 20202. 
If you prefer to send your comments through the Internet, use the 
following address: [email protected]. You must include the term ``OSEP 
TRACKING SYSTEM'' in the subject line of the electronic comment.
    During and after the comment period, you may inspect all comments 
about this notice in room 3630, Mary E. Switzer Building, 330 C Street, 
SW., Washington, DC, between the hours of 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Eastern 
time, Monday through Friday of each week except Federal holidays.

Assistance to Individuals With Disabilities in Reviewing the Rulemaking 
Record

    On request, we will supply an appropriate aid, such as a reader or 
print magnifier, to an individual with a disability who needs 
assistance to review the comments or other documents in the public 
rulemaking record for this notice. If you want to schedule an 
appointment for this type of aid, please contact the person listed 
under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Larry Wexler. Telephone: (202)-205-
5390. If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you 
may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-
8339.
    Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an 
alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer 
diskette) on request to the contact person listed in the preceding 
paragraph.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Introduction

    The Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(4)) requires the Department to 
publish in the Federal Register this notice of a new system of records 
maintained by the Department. The Department's regulations implementing 
the Privacy Act are contained in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 
in 34 CFR part 5b.
    The Privacy Act applies to a record about an individual that 
contains individually identifiable information that is retrieved by a 
unique identifier associated with each individual, such as a name or 
social security number. The information about each individual is called 
a ``record,'' and the system, whether manual or computer-based, is 
called a ``system of records.'' The Privacy Act requires each agency to 
publish notices of systems of records in the Federal Register and to 
prepare reports to OMB whenever the agency publishes a new or altered 
system of records. Each agency is also required to send copies of the 
report to the chair of the Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs and 
the chair of the House Committee on Governmental Reform.

[[Page 47556]]

Electronic Access to This Document

    You may view this document, as well as other Department of 
Education documents published in the Federal Register in text or Adobe 
Portable Document Format (PDF) on the Internet at the following site: 
http://www.ed.gov/legislation/FedRegister.
    To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available 
free at this site. If you have questions about using PDF, call the U.S. 
Government Printing Office (GPO), toll-free, at 1-888-293-6498; or in 
the Washington, DC, area at (202) 512-1530.

    Note: The official version of this document is the document 
published in the Federal Register. Free Internet access to the 
official version of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal 
Regulations is available on GPO Access at: http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/index.html.


    Dated: August 6, 2003.
Robert H. Pasternack,
Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.
    For reasons discussed in the preamble, the Assistant Secretary for 
Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) of the U.S. 
Department of Education (the Department) publishes a notice of a new 
system of records to read as follows:
18-16-01

System Name:
    OSEP Customer Service Tracking System.

Security Classification:
    None.

System Location(s):
    Monitoring and State Improvement Planning Division, Office of 
Special Education Programs (OSEP), Office of Special Education and 
Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), Mary E. Switzer Building, 330 C 
Street, SW., Room 3630, Washington, DC 20202.

Categories of Individuals Covered by the System:
    This system covers parents, advocates, State personnel and other 
third parties who contact OSEP with inquiries or complaints related to 
special education. OSEP staff, especially the Customer Service 
Specialists (CSS), receive letters, e-mails, facsimiles and telephone 
calls from State personnel and parents about disability issues related 
to children with disabilities.
    These complaints and inquiries are tracked by an electronic system 
that maintains customer demographic data, as well as information on the 
content of the complaints and inquiries. The system also allows OSEP to 
maintain a detailed history of the interactions between callers and/or 
writers and the CSS.

Categories of Records in the System:
    This system consists of records relating to inquiries or complaints 
made to OSEP staff, including but not limited to: the writer's and/or 
caller's name; the name, age and type of disability of the child about 
whom the writer/caller is inquiring about; the writer's or caller's 
address, including an e-mail address; the school district involved in 
the inquiry or complaint; the writer's or caller's phone number; the 
issue that the writer and/or caller is raising; a recommendation from 
the CSS for further action; and comments from the CSS.
    This notice does not cover records, including but not limited to 
letters, e-mails and facsimiles, sent by individuals to the Secretary, 
Deputy Secretary, Senior Officers such as the Assistant Secretary of 
OSERS and the Director of OSEP for whom the Department controls 
responses to such inquiries. Further, this notice does not cover the 
official correspondence files of OSEP, specifically the hard copies of 
official documents and electronic images of certain incoming and 
outgoing documents. These records are considered covered by the 
Department's system of records 18-01-01, Secretary's Communication 
Control System.

Authority for Maintenance of the System:
    Title I of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), 
as amended, 20 U.S.C. Section 1402.

Purpose(s):
    This system of records is maintained to provide its customers 
(parents, advocates and others) with more responsive, consistent 
service; to better track the large number of calls and other inquiries 
received; to provide trend analysis by issue; to develop a profile of 
the issues that arise in a certain State; to assist OSEP as a 
management tool in the preparation of reports, and to monitor State 
implementation of the IDEA.

Routine Uses of Records Maintained in the System, Including Categories 
of Users and the Purposes of Such Uses:
    The Department of Education (Department) may disclose information 
contained in a record in this system of records under the routine uses 
listed in this system of records without the consent of the individual 
if the disclosure is compatible with the purposes for which the record 
was collected. These disclosures may be made on a case-by-case basis 
or, if the Department has complied with the computer matching 
requirements of the Computer Matching and Privacy Protection Act of 
1998, under a computer matching agreement.
    (1) Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Advice Disclosure. The 
Department may disclose records to DOJ and OMB if the Department seeks 
advice regarding whether records maintained in the system of records 
must be released under the FOIA and the Privacy Act of 1974.
    (2) Disclosure to the DOJ. The Department may disclose records to 
the DOJ to the extent necessary for obtaining DOJ advice on any matter 
relevant to an audit, inspection, or other inquiry related to the 
programs covered by this system.
    (3) Contract Disclosure. If the Department contracts with an entity 
for the purposes of performing any function that requires disclosure of 
records in this system to employees of the contractor, the Department 
may disclose the records to those employees. Before entering into such 
a contract, the Department shall require the contractor to maintain 
Privacy Act safeguards as required under 5 U.S.C. 552a(m) with respect 
to the records in the system.
    (4) Litigation and Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) 
Disclosures.
    (a) Introduction. In the event that one of the following parties is 
involved in litigation or ADR, or has an interest in litigation or ADR, 
the Department may disclose certain records to the parties described in 
paragraphs (b), (c), and (d) of this routine use under the conditions 
specified in those paragraphs:
    (i) The Department, or any of its components; or
    (ii) Any Department employee in his or her official capacity; or
    (iii) Any Department employee in his or her official capacity where 
the DOJ is requested to provide or arrange for representation of the 
employee;
    (iv) Any Department employee in his or her individual capacity 
where the Department has agreed to represent the employee; or
    (v) The United States where the Department determines that the 
litigation is likely to affect the Department or any of its components.
    (b) Disclosure to the DOJ. If the Department determines that 
disclosure of certain records to the DOJ is relevant and necessary to 
litigation or ADR, and is compatible with the purpose for which the 
records were collected, the Department may disclose those records as a 
routine use to the DOJ.
    (c) Adjudicative disclosures. If the Department determines that 
disclosure

[[Page 47557]]

of certain records to an adjudicative body before which the Department 
is authorized to appear, an individual or entity designated by the 
Department or otherwise empowered to resolve or mediate disputes is 
relevant and necessary to the litigation or ADR, the Department may 
disclose those records as a routine use to the adjudicative body, 
individual, or entity.
    (d) Parties, counsels, representatives and witnesses. If the 
Department determines that disclosure of certain records to a party, 
counsel, representative or witness is relevant and necessary to the 
litigation or ADR, the Department may disclose those records as a 
routine use to the party, counsel, representative or witness.
    (5) Research Disclosure. The Department may disclose records to a 
researcher if an appropriate official of the Department determines that 
the individual or organization to which the disclosure would be made is 
qualified to carry out specific research related to functions or 
purposes of this system of records. The official may disclose records 
from this system of records to that researcher solely for the purpose 
of carrying out that research related to the functions or purposes of 
this system of records. The researcher shall be required to maintain 
Privacy Act safeguards with respect to the disclosed records.
    (6) Congressional Member Disclosure. The Department may disclose 
records to a Member of Congress from the record of an individual in 
response to an inquiry from the Member made at the written request of 
that individual. The Member's right to the information is no greater 
than the right of the individual who requested it.
    (7) Enforcement Disclosure. In the event that information in this 
system of records indicates, either on its face or in connection with 
other information, a violation or potential violation of any applicable 
statute, regulation, or order of a competent authority, the Department 
may disclose the relevant records to the appropriate agency, whether 
foreign, Federal, State, Tribal, or local, charged with the 
responsibility of investigating or prosecuting that violation or 
charged with enforcing or implementing the statute, Executive order, 
rule, regulation, or order issued pursuant thereto.

Disclosures to Consumer Reporting Agencies:
    Not applicable to this system of records.

Policies and Practices for Storing, Retrieving, Accessing, Retaining, 
and Disclosing of Records in the System: Storage:
    The information in the tracking system will be stored on a server 
maintained by the Department of Education. Records generated by the 
system will be maintained electronically on the server.

Retrievability:
    This system will only be accessible to Departmental contractors and 
employees of OSEP. Each record in this system can be retrieved by 
entering in any of the categories of information listed under the 
``Categories of Records In This System'' in this notice.

Safeguards:
    The primary users of this system, Monitoring and State Improvement 
Planning Division (MSIP) employees in OSEP, will enter a unique user ID 
as well as a password to enter the system. This user ID and password 
will be in addition to the user ID and password that all Department 
employees must enter to access the Department's computer system. Users 
will be required to change their passwords periodically, and they will 
not be allowed to repeat old passwords. Any individual attempting to 
log on who fails is locked out of the system after three attempts. 
Access after that time requires intervention by the system manager.
    The computer system employed by the U.S. Department of Education 
offers a high degree of resistance to tampering and circumvention. This 
security system limits data access to Department and contract staff on 
a ``need to know'' basis and controls individual users' ability to 
access and alter records within the system.
    The location of the server includes safeguards and firewalls, 
including the physical security of the server room. In addition, the 
server is located in a secure room, with limited access only through a 
special pass. Further, all physical access to the site where the server 
is maintained is controlled and monitored by security personnel who 
check each individual entering the building for his or her employee or 
visitor badge.

Retention and Disposal:
    Records in this system will be retained in accordance with the 
National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) General Records 
Schedule 20, Item 1.c which provides disposal authorization for 
electronic files and hard-copy printouts created to monitor system 
usage. Records will be deleted or destroyed when the agency determines 
they are no longer needed for administrative, legal, audit, or other 
operational purposes.

System Managers and Address:
    Deputy, MSIP Division, Office of Special Education Programs, Office 
of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, U.S. Department of 
Education, Mary E. Switzer Building, Room 3630, 330 C Street, SW., 
Washington, DC 20202.

Notification Procedure:
    If you wish to determine whether a record exists about you in the 
system of records, provide the system manager with your name or your 
child's name and your address. Your request for notification must also 
meet the requirements of the regulations at 34 CFR 5b.5, including 
proof of identity. You may also present your request in person or make 
your request in writing to the system manager at the above address.

Record Access Procedures:
    Request to access a record must also reasonably specify the record 
contents sought and otherwise meet the requirements of the regulations 
at 34 CFR 5b.5, including proof of identity.

Contesting Record Procedures:
    If you wish to change the content of a record in this system of 
records, you must contact the system manager at the above address and 
follow the steps outlined in the Notification procedure. Requests to 
amend a record must also reasonably identify the record, specify the 
information being contested, provide in writing your reasons for 
requesting the change, and otherwise meet the regulations at 34 CFR 
5b.7.

Record Source Categories:
    Information in this system is obtained from parents, advocates, and 
other third parties that contact OSEP with concerns or complaints 
related to special education.

System Exempted From Certain Provisions of the Act:
    None.
[FR Doc. 03-20435 Filed 8-8-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P