[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 16 (Tuesday, January 25, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4456-4458]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-33016]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention


Privacy Act of 1974; Report of Modified or Altered System of 
Records

AGENCY: Division of Applied Research and Technology (DART), National 
Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Department of Health and Human 
Services (DHHS).

ACTION: Notification of Proposed Altered System of Records.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Health and Human Services proposes to alter 
System of Records, 09-20-0118, ``Study at Work Sites Where Agents 
Suspected of Being Occupational Hazards Exist, HHS/CDC/NIOSH.'' HHS is 
proposing to add the following Breach Response Routine Use Language to 
comply with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Memoranda (M) 07-
16, Safeguarding Against and responding to the Breach of Personally 
Identifiable Information:
    To appropriate federal agencies and Department contractors that 
have a need

[[Page 4457]]

to know the information for the purpose of assisting the Department's 
efforts to respond to a suspected or confirmed breach of the security 
or confidentiality of information disclosed is relevant and necessary 
for that assistance.
    These records will be maintained by the National Institute for 
Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).

DATES: Comments must be received on or before February 24, 2011. The 
proposed altered System of Records will be effective 40 days from the 
date submitted to the OMB, unless NIOSH receives comments that would 
result in a contrary determination.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by the Privacy Act 
System of Record Number 09-20-0118:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://regulations.gov. Follow 
the instructions for submitting comments.
     E-mail: Include PA SOR number 09-20-0118 in the subject 
line of the message.
     Phone: 770/488-8660 (not a toll-free number).
     Fax: 770/488-8659.
     Mail: HHS/CDC Senior Official for Privacy (SOP), Office of 
the Chief Information Security Officer (OCISO), 4770 Buford Highway--M/
S: F-35, Chamblee, GA 30341
     Hand Delivery/Courier: HHS/CDC Senior Official for Privacy 
(SOP), Office of the Chief Information Security Officer (OCISO), 4770 
Buford Highway--M/S: F-35, Chamblee, GA 30341
     Comments received will be available for inspection and 
copying at this same address from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, Federal holidays excepted.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NIOSH proposes to alter System of Records, 
No. 09-20-0118, ``Study at Work Sites Where Agents Suspected of Being 
Occupational Hazards Exist, HHS/CDC/NIOSH.'' The purpose of this system 
is to determine the relationship between worker exposure to hazardous 
agents or stressors and occupational disease. This information is used 
to recommend procedures to reduce the incidence of occupational 
disease.
    This System of Record Notice is being altered to add the Breach 
Response Routine Use Language to comply with the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) memorandum dated May 22, 2007.
    The following notice is written in the present tense, rather than 
the future tense, in order to avoid the unnecessary expenditure of 
public funds to republish the notice after the System has become 
effective.

    Dated: December 11, 2009.
James D. Seligman,
Chief Information Officer, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

    Editorial Note: This document was received at the Office of the 
Federal Register on December 27, 2010.

Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)

Study at Work Sites Where Agents Suspected of Being Occupational 
Hazards Exist--Report of Modified or Altered System of Records

Narrative Statement

I. Background and Purpose of the System

A. Background

    The Department of Health and Human Services proposes to alter 
System of Records, No. 09-20-0118 ``Study at Work Sites Where Agents 
Suspected of Being Occupational Hazards Exist, HHS/CDC/NIOSH.'' HHS is 
proposing to add the following Breach Response Routine Use Language to 
comply with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Memoranda (M) 07-
16, Safeguarding Against and responding to the Breach of Personally 
Identifiable Information:
    To appropriate federal agencies and Department contractors that 
have a need to know the information for the purpose of assisting the 
Department's efforts to respond to a suspected or confirmed breach of 
the security or confidentiality of information disclosed is relevant 
and necessary for that assistance.

B. Purpose

    The purpose of this system is to determine the relationship between 
worker exposure to hazardous agents or stressors and occupational 
disease. This information is used to recommend procedures to reduce the 
incidence of occupational disease.

II. Authority for Maintenance of the System

    Occupational Safety and Health Act, Section 20, ``Research and 
Related Activities'' (29 U.S.C. 669); and the Federal Mine Safety and 
Health Act of 1977, Section 501, ``Research'' (30 U.S.C. 951).

III. Proposed Routine Use Disclosures of Data in the System

    The Privacy Act allows us to disclose information without an 
individual's consent if the information is to be used for a purpose 
that is compatible with the purpose(s) for which the information was 
collected. Any such compatible use of data is known as a ``routine 
use.'' The routine uses proposed for this System are compatible with 
the stated purpose of the System:
    Disclosure may be made to a congressional office from the record of 
an individual in response to a verified inquiry from the congressional 
office made at the written request of that individual.
    In the event of litigation where the defendant is: (a) The 
Department, any component of the Department, or any employee of the 
Department in his or her official capacity; (b) the United States where 
the Department determines that the claim, if successful, is likely to 
directly affect the operations of the Department or any of its 
components; or (c) any Department employee in his or her individual 
capacity where the Department of Justice has agreed to represent such 
employee, for example, in defending a claim against the Public Health 
Service based upon an individual's mental or physical condition and 
alleged to have arisen because of activities of the Public Health 
Service in connection with such individual, disclosure may be made to 
the Department of Justice to enable that Department to present an 
effective defense, provided that such disclosure is compatible with the 
purpose for which the records were collected.
    In the event of litigation initiated at the request of NIOSH, the 
Institute may disclose such records as it deems desirable or necessary 
to the Department of Justice and to the Department of Labor, Office of 
the Solicitor, where appropriate, to enable the Departments to 
effectively represent the Institute, provided such disclosure is 
compatible with the purpose for which the records were collected. The 
only types of litigative proceedings that NIOSH is authorized to 
request are: (1) Enforcement of a subpoena issued to an employer to 
provide relevant information; or (2) contempt citation against an 
employer for failure to comply with a warrant obtained by the 
Institute.
    Disclosure may be made to NIOSH collaborating researchers (NIOSH 
contractors, grantees, cooperative agreement holders, or other Federal 
or State scientists) in order to accomplish the research purpose for 
which the records are collected. The collaborating researchers must 
agree in writing to comply with the confidentiality provisions of the 
Privacy Act and NIOSH must have determined that the

[[Page 4458]]

researchers' data security procedures will protect confidentiality.
    Records may be disclosed by CDC in connection with public health 
activities to the Social Security Administration for sources of 
locating information to accomplish the research or program purposes for 
which the records were collected.
    Records subject to the Privacy Act are disclosed to private firms 
for data entry, computer systems analysis and computer programming 
services. The contractors promptly return data entry records after the 
contracted work is completed. The contractors are required to maintain 
Privacy Act safeguards.
    Records may be disclosed to appropriate federal agencies and 
Department contractors that have a need to know the information for the 
purpose of assisting the Department's efforts to respond to a suspected 
or confirmed breach of the security or confidentiality of information 
disclosed is relevant and necessary for that assistance.

IV. Effects of the Proposed System of Records on Individual Rights

    The routine uses proposed for this System are compatible with the 
stated purpose of the System:
    The first routine use permits an individual may learn if a record 
exists about himself or herself by contacting the system manager at the 
address above. Requesters in person must provide driver's license or 
other positive identification. Individuals who do not appear in person 
must either: (1) Submit a notarized request to verify their identity; 
or (2) certify that they are the individuals they claim to be and that 
they understand that the knowing and willful request for or acquisition 
of a record pertaining to an individual under false pretenses is a 
criminal offense under the Privacy Act subject to a $5,000 fine.
    An individual who requests notification of or access to medical 
records shall, at the time the request is made, designate in writing a 
responsible representative who is willing to review the record and 
inform the subject individual of its contents at the representative's 
discretion.
    The following information must be provided when requesting 
notification: (1) Full name; (2) the approximate date and place of the 
study, if known; and (3) nature of the questionnaire or study in which 
the requester participated.
    Same as notification procedures. Requesters should also reasonably 
specify the record contents being sought. An accounting of disclosures 
that have been made of the record, if any, may be requested.

V. Safeguards

    The records in this System are stored in file folders. Service 
fellow personnel data is also maintained in an automated database. The 
records in this System are retrieved by the name of the individual, 
fellow, or guest researcher.
    The records in this System have the following safeguards in place 
to maintain and protect the information as it relates to Authorized 
users, physical and procedural safeguards:
    Authorized users--Access is granted to only a limited number of 
physicians, scientists, statisticians, and designated support staff of 
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as authorized by 
the system manager to accomplish the stated purposes for which the data 
in this system have been collected.
    Physical Safeguards--Locked cabinets in locked rooms, electronic 
anti-intrusion devices in operation at the Federal Records Center, 
security guard service in buildings, personnel screening of visitors.
    Procedural Safeguards--Users of individually identified data 
protect information from public scrutiny, and only specifically 
authorized personnel may be admitted to the record storage area. CDC 
employees who maintain records are instructed to check with the system 
manager prior to making disclosures of data.
    Implementation Guidelines: The safeguards outlined above in 
accordance with the Chapter 45-13, ``Safeguarding Records Contained in 
Systems of Records,'' of the HHS General Administration Manual.
    The records in this System are retained and disposed of in the 
following way: Records are maintained in agency for three years. 
Personal identifiers are destroyed as soon as the system has 
stabilized, and statistical summaries can be run. Disposal methods 
include burning or shredding paper materials or transferring records to 
the Federal Records Center when no longer needed for evaluation and 
analysis. Records destroyed by paper recycling process when 20 years 
old, unless needed for further study.

VI. OMB Control Numbers, Expiration Dates, and Titles of Information 
Collection

    A. Full Title: ``Study at Work Sites Where Agents Suspected of 
Being Occupational Hazards Exist, HHS/CDC/NIOSH.''
    OMB Control Number: 09-20-0118.
    Expiration Date: TBD.

VII. Supporting Documentation

    A. Preamble and Proposed Notice of System for publication in the 
Federal Register.
    B. Agency Rules: None.
    C. Exemption Requested: None.
    D. Computer Matching Report: The new system does not require a 
matching report in accordance with the computer matching provisions of 
the Privacy Act.

[FR Doc. 2010-33016 Filed 1-24-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4163-18-P