[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 237 (Tuesday, December 9, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 74739-74743]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-29057]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Office of the Secretary

[Docket No. DHS-2008-0132]


Privacy Act of 1974; Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)-
007 Law Enforcement Support Center (LESC) Alien Criminal Response 
Information Management (ACRIMe) System of Records

AGENCY: Privacy Office, DHS.

ACTION: Notice of Privacy Act system of records.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974 and as part of the 
Department of Homeland Security's ongoing effort to review and update 
legacy system of records notices, the Department of Homeland Security 
(DHS) is giving notice that it proposes to update and reissue the 
following legacy record system Justice/INS. 023 Law Enforcement Support 
Center Database as an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) system 
of records titled Law Enforcement Support Center (LESC) Alien Criminal 
Response Information Management System (ACRIMe). The information in 
this system of records includes data collected and maintained by the 
ICE LESC to carry out its mission to respond to inquiries from law 
enforcement agencies concerning immigration status of an individual, 
and whether the individual is under investigation and/or wanted by ICE 
or other law enforcement agencies. Categories of individuals, 
categories of records, and the routine uses of this legacy system of 
records notice have been updated. Additionally, DHS is issuing a Notice 
of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) concurrent with this SORN elsewhere in 
the Federal Register. The exemptions for the legacy system of records 
notices will continue to be applicable until the final rule for this 
SORN has been completed. This system will be included in the DHS 
inventory of record systems.

DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before January 8, 2009. 
This new system will be effective January 8, 2009.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by docket number DHS-
2008-0132 by one of the following methods:
     Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     Fax: 1-866-466-5370.
     Mail: Hugo Teufel III, Chief Privacy Officer, Privacy 
Office, Department of

[[Page 74740]]

Homeland Security, Washington, DC 20528.
     Instructions: All submissions received must include the 
agency name and docket number for this rulemaking. All comments 
received will be posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov, 
including any personal information provided.
     Docket: For access to the docket to read background 
documents or comments received go to http://www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For general questions please contact 
Lyn Rahilly, Privacy Officer, (202-732-3300), Immigration and Customs 
Enforcement, 500 12th Street, SW., Washington, DC 20024, e-mail: 
[email protected]. For privacy issues please contact Hugo Teufel III 
(703-235-0780), Chief Privacy Officer, Privacy Office, U.S. Department 
of Homeland Security, Washington, DC 20528.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    Pursuant to the savings clause in the Homeland Security Act of 
2002, Public Law 107-296, Section 1512, 116 Stat. 2310 (November 25, 
2002), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and its components and 
offices have relied on preexisting Privacy Act systems of records 
notices for the maintenance of records concerning the operation of the 
ICE Law Enforcement Support Center (LESC). The LESC is ICE's 24-hour 
national enforcement operations facility. Although Title 8 U.S. Code 
immigration violations were the original focus of the LESC and ACRIMe 
under the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), the mission of 
the LESC now supports the full range of ICE's law enforcement 
operations. Specifically, the LESC provides assistance including, but 
not limited to, immigration status information to local, State and 
Federal law enforcement agencies on aliens suspected, arrested, or 
convicted of criminal activity, Customs violations, and violations of 
other laws within ICE's jurisdiction. This notice updates the 
preexisting system of records notice for the LESC Database published by 
the legacy INS, which owned the LESC prior to the creation of DHS. The 
LESC transferred to ICE with the creation of DHS and the LESC database 
is now known as the Alien Criminal Response Information Management 
System (ACRIMe).
    The ACRIMe Database facilitates the response of LESC personnel to 
specific inquiries from law enforcement agencies that seek to determine 
the immigration status of an individual and whether the individual is 
under investigation and/or wanted by ICE or other law enforcement 
agencies. ACRIMe also supports ICE's efforts to identify aliens with 
prior criminal convictions that may qualify them for removal from the 
U.S. as aggravated felons. In addition, this system of records helps to 
facilitate the processing of aliens for deportation or removal 
proceedings.
    The ACRIMe Database also facilitates the collection, tracking, and 
distribution of information about possible violations of customs and 
immigration law reported by the general public to the toll-free DHS/ICE 
Tip-line. ACRIMe logs requests for assistance from criminal justice 
personnel who contact the LESC on the full range of ICE law enforcement 
missions. ACRIMe supports the entry of both administrative 
(immigration) and criminal arrest warrants into the Federal Bureau of 
Investigation's National Crime Information Center (NCIC) system. 
Finally, ACRIMe also enables ICE to collect and analyze data to 
evaluate the effectiveness and quality of LESC services and ICE's 
immigration law enforcement efforts.
    Consistent with DHS's information sharing mission, information 
stored in ACRIMe may be shared with other DHS components, as well as 
appropriate Federal, State, local, tribal, foreign, or international 
government agencies. This sharing will only take place after DHS 
determines that the receiving component or agency has a need to know 
the information to carry out national security, law enforcement, 
immigration, intelligence, or other functions consistent with the 
routine uses set forth in this system of records notice.
    In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974 and as part of DHS's 
ongoing effort to review and update legacy system of records notices, 
DHS is giving notice that it proposes to update and reissue the 
following legacy record system Justice/INS. 023 Law Enforcement Support 
Center Database as an ICE system of records titled Law Enforcement 
Support Center (LESC) Alien Criminal Response Information Management 
System (ACRIMe). The information in this system of records includes 
data collected and maintained both in paper form and electronically by 
ICE's Law Enforcement Support Center to carry out its mission to 
respond to inquiries from law enforcement agencies concerning 
immigration status of an individual, and whether the individual is 
under investigation and/or wanted by ICE or other law enforcement 
agencies. Categories of individuals, categories of records, and the 
routine uses of this legacy system of records notice have been updated. 
Additionally, DHS is issuing a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) 
concurrent with this SORN elsewhere in the Federal Register. The 
exemptions for the legacy system of records notices will continue to be 
applicable until the final rule for this SORN has been completed. This 
system will be included in DHS's inventory of record systems.

II. Privacy Act

    The Privacy Act embodies fair information principles in a statutory 
framework governing the means by which the United States Government 
collects, maintains, uses, and disseminates individuals' information. 
The Privacy Act applies to information that is maintained in a ``system 
of records.'' A ``system of records'' is a group of any records under 
the control of an agency for which information is retrieved by the name 
of an individual or by some identifying number, symbol, or other 
identifying particular assigned to the individual. In the Privacy Act, 
an individual is defined to encompass United States citizens and lawful 
permanent residents. As a matter of policy, DHS extends administrative 
Privacy Act protections to all individuals where systems of records 
maintain information on U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents, and 
visitors. Individuals may request access to their own records that are 
maintained in a system of records in the possession or under the 
control of DHS by complying with Privacy Act regulations, 6 CFR Part 5.
    The Privacy Act requires each agency to publish in the Federal 
Register a description denoting the type and character of each system 
of records that the agency maintains, and the routine uses that are 
contained in each system in order to make agency record keeping 
practices transparent, to notify individuals regarding the uses of 
their records, and to assist individuals to more easily find such files 
within the agency. Below is the description of the LESC/ACRIMe system 
of records.
    In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552a(r), DHS has provided a report of 
this revised system of records to the Office of Management and Budget 
and to Congress.

System of Records:
DHS/ICE-007

System name:
    Immigration and Customs Enforcement Law Enforcement Support Center 
Alien Criminal Response

[[Page 74741]]

Information Management System (LESC/ACRIMe).

Security classification:
    Unclassified. Law Enforcement Sensitive (LES).

System location:
    Records are maintained at the ICE LESC in Burlington, Vermont.

Categories of individuals covered by the system:
    Categories of individuals covered by this system include:
    (1) Individuals covered by the Immigration and Nationality Act of 
1952 (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq. ) and who are either the subject of an 
investigation, or have been arrested, charged with, and/or convicted of 
criminal or civil offenses that could render them removable or 
excludable from the U.S. under the provisions of U.S. immigration and 
nationality laws.
    (2) Individuals who make reports to the DHS/ICE Tip-line and 
individuals about whom those reports were made.
    (3) Individuals who are the subject of administrative (immigration) 
and criminal arrest warrants that the LESC has entered into the FBI's 
National Crime Information Center System.
    (4) Individuals who are the subject of an investigation by Federal, 
State, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies and who have been 
identified through searches of shared DHS law enforcement information.

Categories of records in the system:
    Categories of records in this system include:
     Biographic identifiers (e.g. name, date and place of 
birth);
     Alien registration number (``A-number'');
     Social Security Number;
     Passport number;
     Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) criminal history 
number;
     Federal, State, and local law enforcement agency booking 
number;
     Correctional facility inmate numbers; and
    Records may also include other information, such as operator's 
license number, State identification number, Fingerprint Section 
number, and other personal identification numbers provided by law 
enforcement agencies, that may assist in the identification process, 
that would enable ICE special agents and analysts to gather additional 
evidence, respond to law enforcement queries, and/or to determine the 
status, removability, or excludability of an individual.
    In addition, the system also contains information about the 
inquiries submitted by Federal, State, local, and tribal law 
enforcement agencies and the LESC responses to those queries. Query 
information retained in the ACRIMe database includes mandatory and 
optional data. Mandatory information includes: Originating Agency 
Identifier (ORI) number, purpose for query, attention field, phone 
number for requestor, name of subject of query, date of birth, sex, 
place of birth, custody status, and offense code. Optional information 
includes: alien registration number, FBI number, State system 
identification number, operator license number, height, weight, eye 
color, mother's maiden name, mother's first name, father's last name, 
father's first name, Social Security Number, passport number, booking 
number, and narrative comments entered in a remarks section.

Authority for maintenance of the system:
    8 U.S.C. Sec. 1103; 8 U.S.C. Sec. 1324(b)(3); 8 U.S.C. Sec. 
1360(b); 5 U.S.C. Sec. 552a(b); 5 U.S.C. Sec. 301; Section 504 of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act of 1990 (Pub. L. 101-649); the Federal 
Records Act, 44 U.S.C. 3101, Executive Order 9373..

Purpose(s):
    The purpose of this system is to:
    (1) Facilitate the response of LESC personnel to specific inquiries 
from law enforcement agencies that seek to determine the immigration 
status of an individual and whether the individual is under 
investigation and/or wanted by ICE or other law enforcement agencies;
    (2) support ICE's efforts to identify aliens with prior criminal 
convictions that may qualify them for removal from the U.S. as 
aggravated felons;
    (3) facilitate the processing of aliens for deportation or removal 
proceedings;
    (4) support ICE's collection and distribution of possible violator 
information collected during telephone calls from the general public to 
DHS/ICE;
    (5) support ICE's efforts to assist Federal, State, local, and 
tribal criminal justice personnel who contact the LESC on the full 
range of ICE law enforcement missions, including both customs and 
immigration violations; and
    (6) enable ICE to collect and analyze data to evaluate the 
effectiveness and quality of LESC services and ICE's immigration law 
enforcement efforts.

Routine uses of records maintained in the system, including categories 
of users and the purposes of such uses:
    In addition to those disclosures generally permitted under 5 U.S.C. 
552a(b) of the Privacy Act, all or a portion of the records of 
information contained in this system may be disclosed outside DHS as a 
routine use pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(b)(3) as follows:
    A. To the Department of Justice (including United States Attorney 
Offices) or other Federal agency conducting litigation or in 
proceedings before any court, adjudicative or administrative body when 
it is necessary to the litigation and one of the following is a party 
to the litigation or has an interest in such litigation:
    1. DHS or any component thereof;
    2. any employee of DHS in his/her official capacity;
    3. any employee of DHS in his/her individual capacity where the 
Department of Justice or DHS has agreed to represent the employee; or
    4. the United States or any agency thereof, is a party to the 
litigation or has an interest in such litigation, and DHS determines 
that the records are both relevant and necessary to the litigation and 
the use of such records is compatible with the purpose for which DHS 
collected the records.
    B. To a congressional office from the record of an individual in 
response to an inquiry from that congressional office made at the 
request of the individual to whom the record pertains.
    C. To the National Archives and Records Administration or other 
Federal government agencies pursuant to records management inspections 
being conducted under the authority of 44 U.S.C. 2904 and 2906.
    D. To an agency, organization, or individual for the purpose of 
performing audit or oversight operations as authorized by law, but only 
such information as is necessary and relevant to such audit or 
oversight function.
    E. To appropriate agencies, entities, and persons when:
    1. DHS suspects or has confirmed that the security or 
confidentiality of information in the system of records has been 
compromised;
    2. The Department has determined that as a result of the suspected 
or confirmed compromise there is a risk of harm to economic or property 
interests, identity theft or fraud, or harm to the security or 
integrity of this system or other systems or programs (whether 
maintained by DHS or another agency or entity) or harm to the 
individual who relies upon the compromised information; and
    3. The disclosure made to such agencies, entities, and persons is 
reasonably necessary to assist in connection with DHS's efforts to 
respond to the suspected or confirmed compromise and prevent, minimize, 
or remedy such harm.

[[Page 74742]]

    F. To contractors and their agents, grantees, experts, consultants, 
and others performing or working on a contract, service, grant, 
cooperative agreement, or other assignment for DHS, when necessary to 
accomplish an agency function related to this system of records. 
Individuals provided information under this routine use are subject to 
the same Privacy Act requirements and limitations on disclosure as are 
applicable to DHS officers and employees.
    G. To an appropriate Federal, State, tribal, local, international, 
or foreign law enforcement agency or other appropriate authority 
charged with investigating or prosecuting a violation or enforcing or 
implementing a law, rule, regulation, or order, where a record, either 
on its face or in conjunction with other information, indicates a 
violation or potential violation of law, which includes criminal, 
civil, or regulatory violations and such disclosure is proper and 
consistent with the official duties of the person making the 
disclosure.
    H. To an appropriate Federal, State, local, tribal, foreign, or 
international agency, if the information is relevant and necessary to a 
requesting agency's decision concerning the hiring or retention of an 
individual, or issuance of a security clearance, license, contract, 
grant, or other benefit, or if the information is relevant and 
necessary to a DHS decision concerning the hiring or retention of an 
employee, 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 and disclosure is 
appropriate to the proper performance of the official duties of the 
person making the request.
    I. To a court, magistrate, or administrative tribunal in the course 
of presenting evidence, including disclosures to opposing counsel or 
witnesses in the course of civil discovery, litigation, or settlement 
negotiations or in connection with criminal law proceedings or in 
response to a subpoena from a court of competent jurisdiction.
    J. To third parties during the course of a law enforcement 
investigation to the extent necessary to obtain information pertinent 
to the investigation, provided disclosure is appropriate to the proper 
performance of the official duties of the officer making the 
disclosure.
    K. To Federal and foreign government intelligence or 
counterterrorism agencies or components where DHS becomes aware of an 
indication of a threat or potential threat to national or international 
security, or where such use is to assist in anti-terrorism efforts and 
disclosure is appropriate to the proper performance of the official 
duties of the person making the disclosure.
    L. To the news media and the public, with the approval of the Chief 
Privacy Officer in consultation with counsel, when there exists a 
legitimate public interest in the disclosure of the information or when 
disclosure is necessary to preserve confidence in the integrity of DHS 
or is necessary to demonstrate the accountability of DHS's officers, 
employees, or individuals covered by the system, except to the extent 
it is determined that release of the specific information in the 
context of a particular case would constitute an unwarranted invasion 
of personal privacy.

Disclosure to consumer reporting agencies:
    None.

Policies and practices for storing, retrieving, accessing, retaining, 
and disposing of records in the system:
Storage:
    Records in this system are stored electronically or on paper in 
secure facilities behind locked doors. Electronic records are stored on 
magnetic disc and digital optical media. Hardcopy records are stored in 
locked file cabinets.

Retrievability:
    Records are retrieved by name, alien registration number(s), 
booking number(s), FBI criminal history number(s), State criminal 
history number(s), Social Security Number, passport number, inmate 
number and other personal identifiers, and by biographic information, 
including place of birth, date of birth, and residential address.

Safeguards:
    Records in this system are safeguarded in accordance with 
applicable rules and policies, including all applicable DHS automated 
systems security and access policies. Strict controls have been imposed 
to minimize the risk of compromising the information that is being 
stored. Access to the computer system containing the records in this 
system is limited to those individuals who have a need to know the 
information for the performance of their official duties and who have 
appropriate clearances or permissions.

Retention and disposal:
    DHS will be working with NARA to develop the appropriate retention 
schedule based on the information below. The information, as collected 
and maintained in ACRIMe, pertains to immigration and other law 
enforcement investigations and national security related matters. 
Therefore, DHS proposes to maintain the records for seventy-five (75) 
years from the date of final action or case closure, after which the 
records will be deleted from the ACRIMe system.

 System Manager and address:
    Unit Chief, Law Enforcement Support Center, U.S. Immigration and 
Customs Enforcement, 188 Harvest Lane, Williston, VT 05495.

Notification procedure:
    Individuals seeking notification of and access to any record 
contained in this system of records, or seeking to contest its content, 
may submit a request in writing to the component's FOIA Officer, whose 
contact information can be found at http://www.dhs.gov/foia under 
``contacts.'' If an individual believes more than one component 
maintains Privacy Act records concerning him or her the individual may 
submit the request to the Chief Privacy Officer, Department of Homeland 
Security, 245 Murray Drive, SW., Building 410, STOP-0550, Washington, 
DC 20528.
    When seeking records about yourself from this system of records or 
any other Departmental system of records your request must conform with 
the Privacy Act regulations set forth in 6 CFR Part 5. You must first 
verify your identity, meaning that you must provide your full name, 
current address and date and place of birth. You must sign your 
request, and your signature must either be notarized or submitted under 
28 U.S.C. 1746, a law that permits statements to be made under penalty 
of perjury as a substitute for notarization. While no specific form is 
required, you may obtain forms for this purpose from the Director, 
Disclosure and FOIA, http://www.dhs.gov or 1-866-431-0486. In addition 
you should provide the following:
     An explanation of why you believe the Department would 
have information on you,
     Identify which component(s) of the Department you believe 
may have the information about you,
     Specify when you believe the records would have been 
created,
     Provide any other information that will help the FOIA 
staff determine which DHS component agency may have responsive records,
     If your request is seeking records pertaining to another 
living individual, you must include a statement from that

[[Page 74743]]

individual certifying his/her agreement for you to access his/her 
records.
    Without this bulleted information the component(s) will not be able 
to conduct an effective search, and your request may be denied due to 
lack of specificity or lack of specificity or lack of compliance with 
applicable regulations.

Record access procedures:
    See ``Notification procedure'' above.

Contesting record procedures:
    See ``Notification procedure'' above.

Record source categories:
    Records are obtained from Federal, State and local law enforcement 
and criminal justice agencies (e.g., investigators, prosecutors, 
correctional institutions, police departments, and inspectors general).

Exemptions claimed for the system:
    Pursuant to exemption 5 U.S.C. 552a(j)(2) of the Privacy Act, 
portions of this system are exempt from subsections (c)(3) and (4); 
(d); (e)(1), (2), (3), (4)(G), (4)(H), (5) and (8); (f); and (g) of the 
Privacy Act. In addition, the system has been exempted from subsections 
(c)(3), (d), and (e)(1), (4)(G), (4)(H), and (f) pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 
552a(k)(2). Rules have been promulgated in accordance with the 
requirements of 5 U.S.C. 553(b), (c) and (e) and have been published in 
the Federal Register as additions to Title 28, Code of Federal 
Regulations (28 CFR 16.99). In addition, to the extent a record 
contains information from other exempt systems of records, ICE will 
rely on the exemptions claimed for those systems.

    Dated: November 28, 2008.
Hugo Teufel III,
Chief Privacy Officer, Department of Homeland Security.
[FR Doc. E8-29057 Filed 12-8-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-10-P