[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 156 (Friday, August 12, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 50198-50199]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-20608]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Privacy Act of 1974; Computer Matching Program

AGENCY: Office of the Inspector General, U.S. Department of Education.

ACTION: Notice of computer matching between the U.S. Department of 
Education and the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, and the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB)

[[Page 50199]]

guidelines on the conduct of computer matching programs, notice is 
hereby given of the establishment of a computer matching program 
between the U.S. Department of Education (ED) (recipient agency), and 
the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) (source agency). This 
matching program will become effective as explained in this notice.
    In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a), as 
amended by the Computer Matching and Privacy Protection Act of 1988 
(Pub. L. 100-503) and the Computer Matching and Privacy Protections 
Amendments of 1990 (Pub. L. 101-508) (Privacy Act), Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) Guidelines on the Conduct of Matching 
Programs published in the Federal Register on June 19, 1989 (54 FR 
25818), and OMB Circular No. A-130, Transmittal Memorandum 4, 
Management of Federal Information Resources (Nov. 28, 2000), we provide 
the following information:

1. Names of Participating Agencies

    The U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Office of Personnel 
Management.

2. Purpose of the Match

    The purpose of this matching program between ED and OPM is to 
assist ED in detecting improper disbursements or overpayments of need-
based student financial assistance funds under Title IV of the Higher 
Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA), to Federal employees or their 
dependents. Overpayments may occur when Federal employee applicants 
underreport family income on the Free Application for Federal Student 
Aid (FAFSA). Financial need is determined by using a standard formula, 
established by Congress, to evaluate the financial information reported 
on the FAFSA and to determine the expected family contribution (EFC). A 
fundamental element in this standard formula is the student's or 
parents' income. This program will assist in verifying the income 
information reported by Federal employees on the FAFSA. ED will compare 
the FAFSA income to the income listed in OPM/GOVT-1 General Personnel 
Records System (71 FR 35342, June 29, 2006).

3. Authority for Conducting the Matching Program

    ED is authorized to participate in the matching program under the 
Inspector General Act (IG Act) (5 U.S.C. App.). Section 2 of the IG Act 
authorizes ED's Office of Inspector General (OIG) to conduct audits and 
investigations relating to the programs and operations of ED. Section 
4(a)(3) of the IG Act provides that it shall be the duty and 
responsibility of each Inspector General to coordinate other activities 
carried out or financed by ED for the purpose of preventing and 
detecting fraud and abuse in its programs and operations. In addition, 
under section 4(a)(4) of the IG Act it is the responsibility of ED's 
Inspector General to coordinate relationships between ED and other 
Federal agencies with respect to all matters relating to the prevention 
and detection of fraud and abuse in programs and operations 
administered or financed by ED.

4. Categories of Records and Individuals Covered by the Match

    The Office of Inspector General Data Analytics System (ODAS) (18-
10-02), which downloads data from the National Student Loan Data System 
(NSLDS) (18-11-06) and contains FAFSA information that ED uses to 
determine eligibility for need-based student financial assistance, will 
be matched against OPM's General Personnel Records System, which 
maintains records of current and former Federal employees, including 
grades, dates, and salaries for all Federal positions held.

5. Effective Dates of the Matching Program

    The matching program will become effective: (1) Thirty days after 
publication of this notice in the Federal Register; or (2) forty days 
after a report concerning the matching program has been transmitted to 
the Office of Management and Budget and the Congress, whichever date 
occurs last. The matching program will continue for 18 months and can 
be extended for an additional 12 months thereafter if the conditions 
specified in 5 U.S.C. 552a(o)(2)(D) have been met.

6. Address for Receipt of Public Comments or Inquiries

    Individuals wishing to comment on this matching program or obtain 
additional information about the program, including requesting a copy 
of the computer matching agreement between ED and OPM, should contact 
Ms. Shelley Shepherd, Assistant Counsel to the Inspector General, U.S. 
Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 
20202. Telephone: (202) 245-7077. If you use a telecommunications 
device for the deaf (TDD), call the Federal Relay Service (FRS), toll 
free, at 1-800-877-8339.
    Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an 
accessible format (e.g., braille, large print, audiotape or computer 
diskette) on request to the contact person listed in the preceding 
paragraph.
    Electronic Access to This Document: 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 via the Federal Digital System 
at: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys. At this site you can 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). To 
use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at 
the site.
    You may also access documents of the Department published in the 
Federal Register by using the article search feature at: http://www.federalregister.gov. Specifically, through the advanced search 
feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published 
by the Department.

    Dated: August 9, 2011.
Kathleen S. Tighe,
Inspector General.
[FR Doc. 2011-20608 Filed 8-11-11; 8:45 am]
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