[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 81 (Tuesday, April 27, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22890-22891]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-9498]


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RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD


Privacy Act of 1974; Proposed Changes to System of Records

AGENCY: Railroad Retirement Board (RRB).

ACTION: Notice of a revision of a Privacy Act System of Records.

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SUMMARY: The purpose of this document is to give notice of changes to 
several categories of information in RRB-42, Uncollectible Benefit 
Overpayment Accounts. The RRB proposes to expand the scope of the 
system to include employee salary overpayments. Currently the system 
includes only benefit payments.

DATES: The changes to this System of Records shall become effective as 
proposed without further notice in 40 calendar days from the date of 
this publication unless comments are received before this date that 
would result in further modifications.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to Beatrice Ezerski, Secretary to the Board, 
Railroad Retirement Board, 844 N. Rush St., Chicago, Illinois 60611-
2092.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: LeRoy Blommaert, Privacy Act Officer, 
Railroad Retirement Board, 844 N. Rush St., Chicago, Illinois 60611-
2092, telephone number (312) 751-4548, e-mail address, [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The RRB proposes to expand the scope of the 
system to include employee salary overpayments. Currently the system 
includes only benefit overpayments.

[[Page 22891]]

This proposed expansion requires revision in the following categories 
of information: Name; categories of individuals covered by the system; 
categories of records in the system; authority for maintenance of the 
system; and purpose(s). In addition, two routine uses need to be 
revised. It is anticipated that less than five salary overpayment 
accounts will be added each year.

I. Discussion of Revised Routine Uses

    Routine use ``a'' is being revised solely to reflect that debts 
arising from salary overpayments may now be disclosed to private 
collection agencies for the purpose of recovery of those overpayments.
    Routine use ``c'' is being revised to add salary overpayments to 
benefit overpayments and to delete the reference to debts arising from 
benefits paid under the Regional Rail Reorganization Act of 1973. 
Reference to this Act is no longer valid because all debts in the 
system were written off as uncollectible and no new debts are possible.

II. Altered System Report

    On April 21, 2004, the Railroad Retirement Board filed an altered 
system report for this system with the chairmen of the designated 
Senate and House committees and with the Office of Management and 
Budget. This was done to comply with section 3 of the Privacy Act of 
1974 and OMB Circular A-130, Appendix I.

    By Authority of the Board.
Beatrice Ezerski,
Secretary to the Board.
RRB-42
    The following sections in RRB-42 are revised to read as follows:

System Name:
    Overpayment Accounts.
* * * * *

Categories of individuals covered by the system:
    Individuals who were overpaid in the benefits or salaries they 
received from the Railroad Retirement Board. Benefits are further 
delineated in the following two categories:
    --Individuals receiving the following types of annuities, payable 
under the Railroad Retirement Act: railroad retirement, disability, 
supplemental, and survivor.
    --Individuals receiving unemployment or sickness insurance benefits 
payable under the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act.

Categories of records in the system:
    Name, address, Social Security number, Railroad Retirement claim 
number, whether salary or benefit and if benefit type of benefit 
previously paid, amount of overpayment, debt identification number, 
cause of overpayment, source of overpayment, original debt amount, 
current balance of debt, installment repayment history, recurring 
accounts receivable administrative offset history, waiver, 
reconsideration and debt appeal status, general billing, dunning, 
referral, collection, and payment history, amount of interest and 
penalties assessed and collected, name and address of debt collection 
agency or Federal agency to which uncollectible account is referred for 
collection, date of such referral, amount collected, and name and 
address of consumer reporting agencies to which debt information is 
disclosed and date of such referral.

Authority for maintenance of the system:
    Section 7(b)(6) of the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 (45 U.S.C. 
231f(b)(6)); section 12(1) of the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act 
(45 U.S.C. 362(1)); Public Law 97-92, Joint Resolution; Pub. L. 97-365 
(Debt Collection Act of 1982); Federal Claims Collection Act (31 U.S.C. 
3701 et seq.); Pub. L. 104-134 (Debt Collection Improvement Act of 
1996); 5 U.S.C. section 5514 and 20 CFR part 361.

Purpose(s):
    The records in this system are created, monitored and maintained to 
enable the Railroad Retirement Board to fulfill regulatory and 
statutory fiduciary responsibilities to its trust funds, the 
individuals to whom it pays benefits or salaries and the Federal 
Government as directed under the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act, 
Debt Collection Act of 1982, Federal Claims Collection Act, and Debt 
Collection Improvement Act of 1996. These responsibilities include: 
accurate and timely determination of debt; sending timely, accurate 
notice of debt with correct repayment and rights options; taking 
correct and timely action when rights/appeals have been requested; 
assessing appropriate charges; using all appropriate collection tools; 
releasing required, accurate reminder notices; and correctly and timely 
entering all recovery, write-off, and waiver offsets to debts.

Routine uses of records maintained in the system, including categories 
of users and the purposes of such uses:
    Paragraph ``a'' is revised to read as follows:
    a. Overpayment amounts, history of collectible, history of 
collection efforts and identification information (name, address--
including IRS address information--Social Security number, Railroad 
Retirement Claim number), whether salary or benefit overpayment, and if 
benefit, type of benefit may be disclosed to private collection 
agencies for the purpose of recovering overpayments.
* * * * *
    Paragraph c is revised to read as follows:
    c. For information related to overpayments of salaries paid to RRB 
employees, in the event that this system of records, maintained by the 
Railroad Retirement Board to carry out its functions, indicates a 
violation or potential violation of law, whether civil, criminal or 
regulatory in nature, and whether arising by general statute or 
particular program statute, or by regulation, rule or order issued 
thereto, the relevant records in the system of records may be referred, 
as a routine use, to the appropriate agency, whether Federal, State, 
local or foreign, charged with the responsibility of investigating or 
prosecuting such violation or charged with enforcing or implementing 
the statute, rule, regulation or order issued pursuant thereto; for 
information related to overpayments paid under the Railroad Retirement 
Act or the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act, in the event this 
system of records maintained by the Railroad Retirement Board to carry 
out its functions indicates a violation or potential violation of law, 
whether civil, criminal or regulatory in nature, and whether arising by 
general statute or particular program statute, or by regulation, rule 
or order issued thereto, the relevant records in the system of records 
may be referred, as a routine use, to the appropriate agency, whether 
Federal, State, local or foreign, charged with the responsibility of 
investigating or prosecuting such violation or charged with enforcing 
or implementing the statute, rule, regulation or order issued pursuant 
thereto, provided that disclosure would be to an agency engaged in 
functions related to the Railroad Retirement Act or the Railroad 
Unemployment Insurance Act or provided that disclosure would be clearly 
in furtherance of the interest of the subject individual.
[FR Doc. 04-9498 Filed 4-26-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7905-01-P