[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 167 (Tuesday, August 30, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51348-51351]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-17240]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records

AGENCY: Program and Analytic Studies, Policy and Program Studies 
Service, 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), 5 United States Code (U.S.C.) 552a, the Department of 
Education (Department) publishes this notice of a new system of records 
entitled ``The Graduate Fellowship Programs Participants Study (18-17-
01).'' This system will contain information about graduate students who 
received financial support between the years 1997-1999 through one or 
more of the following fellowship programs sponsored by the Office of 
Postsecondary Education (OPE): the Foreign Language and Area Studies 
Fellowship Program (FLAS), the Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation

[[Page 51349]]

Research Abroad Fellowship Program (DDRA), the Jacob K. Javits 
Fellowship Program (Javits), and the Graduate Assistance in Areas of 
National Need Fellowship Program (GAANN). It will include names; social 
security numbers; addresses; demographic information such as race/
ethnicity, age, educational background, degree and enrollment 
information; fellowship funding and financial support; employment; and 
responses to survey questions.
    The Department seeks comment on this new system of records 
described in this notice, in accordance with the requirements of the 
Privacy Act.

DATES: We must receive your comments on the proposed routine uses for 
this system of records on or before September 29, 2005.
    The Department filed a report describing the new system of records 
covered by this notice with the Chair of the Senate Committee on 
Homeland Security and 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 24, 2005. This system of records will become effective 
at the later date of--(1) The expiration of the 40-day period for OMB 
review on October 5, 2005 or (2) September 29, 2005, unless the system 
of records needs to be changed as a result of public comment or OMB 
review.

ADDRESSES: Address all comments about the proposed routine uses of this 
system to Dr. David Goodwin, Director, Program and Analytic Studies 
Division, Policy and Program Studies Service, U.S. Department of 
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 6W231, Washington, DC 20202. 
Telephone: (202) 401-3630.
    If you prefer to send your comments through the Internet, use the 
following address: [email protected].
    You must include the term ``Graduate Fellowship Programs 
Participants Study'' in the subject line of the electronic message.
    During and after the comment period, you may inspect all comments 
about this notice in room 6W200, 400 Maryland Avenue, 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 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: Dr. David Goodwin. Telephone: (202) 
401-3630. If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), 
you may call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) 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 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 is 
maintained in a system of records from which information 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-driven, 
is called a ``system of records.'' The Privacy Act requires each agency 
to publish a system of records notice in the Federal Register and to 
prepare reports to OMB and congressional committees whenever the agency 
publishes a new system of records.

Electronic Access to This Document

    You may view this document, as well as all other documents of this 
Department published in the Federal Register, in text or Adobe Portable 
Document Format (PDF) on the Internet at the following site: http://www.ed.gov/news.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 edition of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal 
Regulations is available on GPO Access at: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/nara/index.html.


    Dated: August 25, 2005.
Tom Luce,
Assistant Secretary , Office of Planning, Evaluation and Policy 
Development.
    For reasons discussed in the preamble, the Director, Policy and 
Program Studies Service, U.S. Department of Education, publishes a 
notice of a new system of records to read as follows:
18-17-01

SYSTEM NAME:
    The Graduate Fellowship Programs Participants Study.

SECURITY CLASSIFICATION:
    None.

SYSTEM LOCATION:
    Program and Analytic Studies Division, Policy and Program Studies 
Service, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Room 
6W231, Washington, DC 20202.

CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM:
    This system contains records on graduate students who received 
financial support through one or more of the following programs 
sponsored by OPE: FLAS, DDRA, Javits, and GAANN during the years 1997-
1999.

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
    This system consists of the name, address, and social security 
number of the study participants as well as demographic information 
such as race/ethnicity, age, educational background, degree and 
enrollment information; fellowship funding and financial support; 
employment; and responses to survey questions.

AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
    20 U.S.C. 6381h and 6381j.

PURPOSE(S):
    The information in this system is used for the following purposes: 
(1) to identify the educational outcomes of study participants; and (2) 
to provide information to the Department on the extent to which study 
participants obtain employment in areas that correspond to their fields 
of study.

ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES 
OF USERS AND THE PURPOSE OF SUCH USES:
    The Department may disclose information contained in a record in 
this system of records under the routine uses listed in this system of 
records

[[Page 51350]]

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 
Privacy Act, under a computer matching agreement.
    (1) Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and the Privacy Act of 1974 
Advice Disclosure. The Department may disclose records to the 
Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Office of Management and Budget if 
the Department seeks advice regarding whether records maintained in the 
system of records are required to be released under the FOIA and the 
Privacy Act of 1974.
    (2) Disclosure to the Department of Justice (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 this 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 if 
the Department of Justice (DOJ) is asked to provide or arrange for 
representation of the employee;
    (iv) Any Department employee in his or her individual capacity if 
the Department has agreed to represent the employee; or
    (v) The United States if the Department determines that the 
litigation is likely to affect the Department or any of its components.
    (b) Disclosure to the Department of Justice (DOJ). If the 
Department determines that disclosure of certain records to the DOJ, or 
attorneys employed by 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 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) Disclosure for use by law enforcement agencies. The Department 
may disclose information to any Federal, State, local, or other agency 
responsible for enforcing, investigating, or prosecuting violations of 
administrative, civil, or criminal law or regulation if that 
information is relevant to any enforcement, regulatory, investigative, 
or prosecutorial responsibility within the agency's jurisdiction.
    (8) 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.
    (9) Employment, benefit, and contracting disclosure.
    (a) Decisions by the Department. The Department may disclose a 
record to a Federal, State, or local agency maintaining civil, 
criminal, or other relevant enforcement or other pertinent records, or 
to another public authority or professional organization, if necessary 
to obtain information relevant to a decision concerning the hiring or 
retention of an employee or other personnel action, the issuance of a 
security clearance, the letting of a contract, or the issuance of a 
license, grant, or other benefit.
    (b) Decisions by Other Public Agencies and Professional 
Organizations. The Department may disclose a record to a Federal, 
State, local, or foreign agency or other public authority or 
professional organization, in connection with the hiring or retention 
of an employee or other personnel action, the issuance of a security 
clearance, the reporting of an investigation of an employee, the 
letting of a contract, or the issuance of a license, grant, or other 
benefit, to the extent that the record is relevant and necessary to the 
receiving agency's decision on the matter.
    (10) Employee grievance, complaint or conduct disclosure. The 
Department may disclose a record in this system of records to another 
agency of the Federal Government if the record is relevant to one of 
the following proceedings regarding a present or former employee of the 
Department: Complaint, grievance, discipline or competence 
determination proceedings. The disclosure may only be made during the 
course of the proceeding.
    (11) Labor organization disclosure. The Department may disclose 
records from this system of records to an arbitrator to resolve 
disputes under a negotiated grievance procedure or to officials of 
labor organizations recognized under 5 U.S.C. Chapter 71 when relevant 
and necessary to their duties of exclusive representation. The 
disclosures will be made only as authorized by law.

[[Page 51351]]

DISCLOSURE TO CONSUMER REPORTING AGENCIES:
    Not applicable to this system of records.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORING, RETRIEVING, ACCESSING, RETAINING, 
AND DISPOSING OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
STORAGE:
    Records are on a computer database as well as in hard copy.

RETRIEVABILITY:
    The records in this system are indexed by the name of the 
individual and/or a number assigned to each individual.

SAFEGUARDS:
    All physical access to the Department's site, and the sites of 
Department contractors where this system of records is maintained, 
controlled and monitored by security personnel. The computer system 
employed by the Department 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 contractor, InfoUse, has established a set of procedures to 
ensure confidentiality of data. The system ensures that information 
identifying individuals is in files physically separated from other 
research data. InfoUse will maintain security of the complete set of 
all master data files and documentation. Access to individually 
identifiable data will be strictly controlled. All data will be kept in 
locked file cabinets during nonworking hours, and work on hardcopy data 
will take place in a single room, except for data entry. Physical 
security of electronic data will also be maintained. Security features 
that protect project data include password-protected accounts that 
authorize users to use the InfoUse system but to access only specific 
network directories and network software; user rights and directory and 
file attributes that limit those who can use particular directories and 
files and determine how they can use them; e-mail passwords that 
authorize the user to access mail services and additional security 
features that the network administrator establishes for projects as 
needed.

RETENTION AND DISPOSAL:
    Records are maintained and disposed of in accordance with the 
Department's Records Disposition Schedules (ED/RDS).

SYSTEM MANAGER AND ADDRESS:
    Director, Program and Analytic Studies Division, Policy and Program 
Studies Service, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, 
SW., room 6W231, Washington, DC 20202.

NOTIFICATION PROCEDURE:
    If you wish to determine whether a record exists regarding you in 
the system of records, contact the system manager. Your request must 
meet the requirements of the Department's Privacy Act regulations in 34 
CFR 5b.5, including proof of identity.

RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURE:
    If you wish to gain access to a record regarding you in the system 
of records, contact the system manager. Your request must meet the 
requirements of the Department's Privacy Act regulations in 34 CFR 
5b.5, including proof of identity.

CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURE:
    If you wish to contest the content of a record regarding you in the 
system of records, contact the system manager. Your request must meet 
the requirements of the Department's Privacy Act regulations in 34 CFR 
5b.7, including proof of identity.

RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
    Information in this system is obtained from surveys with graduate 
students who received financial support through one or more of the 
following programs sponsored by OPE: FLAS, DDRA, Javits, and GAANN 
during the years 1997-1999. Surveys are being conducted as a source of 
providing information.

EXEMPTIONS CLAIMED FOR THE SYSTEM:
    None.
[FR Doc. 05-17240 Filed 8-29-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-U