[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 153 (Wednesday, August 8, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 47415-47419]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-19207]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Office of the Secretary

[Docket No. DHS-2012-0047]


Privacy Act of 1974; Department of Homeland Security U.S. 
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)--004--Systematic Alien 
Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) Program System of Records

AGENCY: Privacy Office, Department of Homeland Security.

ACTION: Notice of Privacy Act system of records.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974, the Department of 
Homeland Security proposes to update and reissue a current Department 
of Homeland Security system of records titled, ``Department of Homeland 
Security/United States Citizenship and Immigration Services--004--
Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements Program System of 
Records.'' The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, 
Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program is a fee-
based intergovernmental initiative designed to help federal, state, 
tribal, and local government agencies check immigration status for 
granting benefits, licenses, and other lawful purposes. The Department 
of Homeland Security is updating this Privacy Act System of Records for 
the SAVE program to provide notice that SAVE is: (1) Adding the 
collection of the foreign passport country of issuance (COI) from the 
agencies that issue the benefits and from the United States Visitor and 
Immigrant Status Indicator Technology (US-VISIT) Arrival and Departure 
Information System (ADIS) to the ``Categories of Records;'' (2) moving 
the list of sources of records from ``Category of Records'' to ``Record 
Source Categories,'' removing two decommissioned systems and adding two 
new systems from ``Record Source Categories;'' (3) updating the system 
location information for the Verification Information System (VIS), the 
underlying technology supporting the SAVE program, from a contractor-
owned facility in Meriden, CT to a government-owned facility in 
Stennis, MS; (4) incorporating minor changes to the ``Routine Uses'' to 
improve clarity; and (5) adding COI to ``Retrievability'' as a way in 
which DHS may retrieve records in this system of records. This updated 
system is included in the Department of Homeland Security's inventory 
of records systems.

[[Page 47416]]


DATES: Submit comments on or before September 7, 2012. This updated 
system will be effective September 7, 2012.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by docket number DHS-
2012-0047 by one of the following methods:
     Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     Fax: 202-343-4010.
     Mail: Jonathan R. Cantor, Acting Chief Privacy Officer, 
Privacy Office, Department of 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: 
Brian C. Hobbs, 202-443-0114, Privacy Branch Chief, Verification 
Division, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Department of 
Homeland Security, 131 M Street NE., Suite 200, MS 2600, Washington, DC 
20529. For privacy issues please contact: Jonathan R. Cantor (202-343-
1717), Acting Chief Privacy Officer, Privacy Office, Department of 
Homeland Security, Washington, DC 20528.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974, 5 U.S.C. 552a, the 
Department of Homeland Security (DHS), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration 
Services (USCIS) proposes to update and re-issue the current DHS system 
of records titled, ``DHS/U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services--
DHS/USCIS-004, Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlement (SAVE) 
Program System of Records.'' The USCIS SAVE program is a fee-based 
intergovernmental initiative designed to help federal, state, tribal, 
and local government agencies check immigration status for granting 
benefits, licenses, and other lawful purposes.
    DHS is updating this Privacy Act System of Records Notice for the 
SAVE Program to provide notice that SAVE is: (1) Adding the collection 
of the foreign passport country of issuance (COI) from the agencies 
that issue benefits and from the United States Visitor and Immigrant 
Status Indicator Technology (US-VISIT) Arrival and Departure 
Information System (ADIS) to the ``Categories of Records;'' (2) moving 
the list of sources of records from ``Category of Records'' to ``Record 
Source Categories,'' removing two decommissioned systems and adding two 
new systems to ``Record Source Categories;'' (3) updating the system 
location information for the Verification Information System (VIS), the 
underlying technology supporting the SAVE program, from a contractor-
owned facility in Meriden, CT to a government-owned facility in 
Stennis, MS; (4) incorporating minor changes to the ``Routine Uses'' to 
improve clarity; and (5) adding COI to ``Retrievability'' as a way in 
which DHS may retrieve records in this system of records.
    As described in more detail in the DHS/USCIS/PIA-006(a), SAVE 
currently uses the I-94 number, which is generally issued to aliens at 
the time they lawfully enter the United States, as a primary identifier 
to determine immigration status for non-immigrants. U.S. Customs and 
Border Protection (CBP) is in the process of automating the I-94 system 
to increase efficiency and streamline the admission process for 
travelers to the United States. However, since SAVE depends on the 
integrity of the I-94 number and the CBP's automation efforts are still 
underway, USCIS is updating its process for SAVE by using a foreign 
passport number and COI as a primary identifier. A stand-alone passport 
number does not result in a unique primary identifier because multiple 
countries could issue the same passport number. Benefit granting 
agencies will enter the foreign passport number and COI. SAVE will 
verify this data against ADIS.
    In order to provide greater clarity in this SORN, USCIS has removed 
the sources of records that were described in the ``Category of 
Records'' and moved them to ``Source Record Categories''. In addition 
to moving the list of source records, DHS has removed two sources, ISRS 
and RNACS, and added two new sources of records: (1) Customer Profile 
Management System (CPMS) for biometric information on individuals 
issued a Permanent Resident Card (Form I-551) or Employment 
Authorization Document (Form I-766), and (2) eCISCOR to manually verify 
the immigration status of benefit applicants.
    USCIS is also providing public notice of the relocation of the VIS 
system. In alignment with OMB's Federal Data Center Consolidation 
Initiative, the DHS Office of the Chief Information Officer is 
consolidating 43 of the Department's legacy data centers into two 
Enterprise Data Centers (EDCs), known as Data Center (DC)1 and DC2. The 
consolidation of numerous Component systems at our EDCs enables more 
effective collection and use of business information across the 
enterprise. VIS was originally stored in a contractor owned facility in 
Meriden, CT. Since the publication of the original SORN, the system has 
moved to the DHS-owned facility, DC1.
    DHS is updating the routine uses to add additional clarity 
concerning the uses of data. These updates do not create any new 
sharing uses of data. The routine uses are being updated to add general 
language ensuring that ``[a]ny disclosure of information must be made 
consistent with the official duties of the person making the 
disclosure.'' Routine uses A, B, and D are being reworded to provide 
greater clarity and make non-substantive grammatical changes. Routine 
use C is being updated to change ``other federal government agencies'' 
to ``General Services Administration'' to better reflect the statutory 
authorities and the fact that records will be shared with the National 
Archives and Records Administration (NARA) where NARA maintains the 
records as permanent records.
    DHS is updating ``Retreivability'' to include COI as a way in which 
DHS may retrieve records in this system of records.

II. Privacy Act

    The Privacy Act embodies fair information practice principles in a 
statutory framework governing the means by which the federal government 
agencies collect, maintain, use, and disseminate individuals' records. 
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 U.S. 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.
    Below is the description of the DHS/U.S. Citizenship and 
Immigration Services (USCIS)--004, Systematic Alien Verification for 
Entitlements, System of Records.
    In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552a(r), DHS has provided a report of 
this system of records to the Office of Management and Budget and to 
Congress.

[[Page 47417]]

System of Records
    Department of Homeland Security (DHS)/U.S. Citizenship and 
Immigration Services (USCIS)--004.

System name:
    Department of Homeland Security (DHS)/U.S. Citizenship and 
Immigration Services (USCIS), Systematic Alien Verification for 
Entitlements (SAVE).

Security classification:
    Unclassified, For Official Use Only

System location:
    Records are maintained at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services 
Headquarters in Washington, DC, in U.S. Citizenship and Immigration 
Services field offices, and at the DHS Stennis Data Center (DC1).

Categories of individuals covered by the system:
    Categories of individuals covered by this system include both U.S. 
citizens and non-U.S. citizens covered by provisions of the Immigration 
and Nationality Act of the United States, including individuals who 
have been lawfully admitted to the United States, individuals who have 
been granted or derived U.S. citizenship, and individuals who have 
applied for other immigration benefits pursuant to 8 U.S.C. 1103 et 
seq.

Categories of records in the system:
    A. Information collected from the benefit applicant by the agency 
issuing the benefit to facilitate immigration status verification may 
include the following about the benefit applicant:
     Receipt number
     Alien Number (A-Number)
     Admission number (I-94 number)
     Name (last, first, middle, maiden)
     Date of birth
     Country of birth
     Customer agency case number
     Department of Homeland Security document type
     Department of Homeland Security document expiration date
     U. S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement's (ICE) Student 
and Exchange Visitor Identification System (SEVIS) ID
     Foreign passport number and Country of Issuance (COI)
     Visa number
     Social Security Number (in very limited circumstances 
using the Form G-845, Document Verification Request), and type of 
benefit(s) for which the applicant has applied (e.g., unemployment 
insurance, educational assistance, driver licensing, etc.).
    B. System-generated responses as a result of the SAVE program 
verification process including case verification number and SAVE 
program response.
    C. The individual information that may be verified through the SAVE 
program includes:
     Alien Number
     Name (last, first, middle)
     Date of birth
     Date entered into the United States (entry date)
     Country of birth
     Class of admission code
     File control office code
     Social Security Number
     I-94 number
     Provision of law code cited for employment authorization
     Alien's status change date
     Date admitted until, country of citizenship
     Port of entry
     Departure date
     Visa number
     Passport number and country of issuance (COI)
     Passport information
     Passport card number
     Document receipt number
     Form numbers (e.g., Form I-551 Lawful Permanent Resident 
Card or Form I-766 Employment Authorization Document)
     SEVIS Identification Number (SEVIS ID)
     Naturalization date
     Federal Bureau of Investigation Number (FIN)
     Beneficiary alien number
     Beneficiary date of birth
     Beneficiary country of birth
     Beneficiary Social Security number
     Beneficiary name (last, first, middle)
     Petitioner alien number
     Petitioner Social Security Number
     Petitioner naturalization certificate number
     Petitioner name (last, first)
     Petitioner tax number
     Information may also include spouse's name (last, first, 
middle), date of birth, country of birth, country of citizenship, class 
of admission, date of admission, Alien Number, receipt number, phone 
number, marriage date and place, and naturalization date and place
     Information may also include child's name(s) (last, first, 
middle), date of birth, country of birth, class of admission, Alien 
Number
     Employer information: Name, address, supervisor's name, 
and supervisor's phone number
     Case history: Alerts, case summary comments, case 
category, date of encounter, encounter information, custody actions and 
decisions, case actions and decisions, bonds, and photograph, asylum 
applicant receipt date, airline and flight number, country of 
residence, city where boarded, city where visa was issued, date visa 
issued, address while in the United States, nationality, decision 
memoranda, investigatory reports and materials compiled for the purpose 
of enforcing immigration laws, exhibits, transcripts, and other case-
related papers concerning aliens, alleged aliens, or lawful permanent 
residents brought into the administrative adjudication process.

Authority for maintenance of the system:
    Authority for having a system for verification of immigration 
status is found in Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA), Public 
Law 99-603, 100 Stat. 3359 (1986); Personal Responsibility and Work 
Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA), Public Law 104-193, 110 Stat. 
2105 (1996); Title IV, Subtitle A, of Illegal Immigration Reform and 
Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRIRA), Public Law 104-208, 110 Stat. 
3009 (1997); and the REAL ID Act of 2005, Public Law 109-13, 119 Stat. 
231 (2005).

Purpose(s):
    The purpose of the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements 
(SAVE) program is to provide a fee-based intergovernmental service, 
which assists federal, state, tribal, or local government agencies, or 
contractors acting on the agency's behalf, and licensing bureaus 
confirm immigration status information, to the extent that such 
disclosure is necessary to enable these agencies to make decisions 
related to: (1) Determining eligibility for a federal, state, or local 
public benefit; (2) issuing a license or grant; (3) issuing a 
government credential; (4) conducting a background investigation; or 
(5) any other lawful purpose.

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 or 
information contained in this system may be disclosed outside the 
Department of Homeland Security as a routine use pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 
552a(b)(3). Any disclosure of information must be made consistent with 
the official duties of the person making the disclosure. The routine 
uses are as follows:
    A. To the Department of Justice (DOJ), including U.S. Attorney 
Offices, or other federal agency conducting litigation or in 
proceedings before any court, adjudicative or administrative body,

[[Page 47418]]

when it is relevant or 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 DOJ or 
DHS has agreed to represent the employee; or
    4. The U.S. or any agency thereof.
    B. To a congressional office from the record of an individual in 
response to a written inquiry from that congressional office made 
pursuant to a Privacy Act waiver from the individual to whom the record 
pertains.
    C. To the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) or 
General Services Administration pursuant to records management 
inspections being conducted under the authority of 44 U.S.C. 2904 and 
2906.
    D. To an agency or organization 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. DHS 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 that rely 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.
    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 approved federal, state, and local government agencies for 
any legally mandated purpose in accordance with their authorizing 
statute or law and where an approved Memorandum of Agreement or 
Computer Matching Agreement (CMA) is in place between DHS and the 
entity.
    I. 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 in a locked drawer behind a locked door. The records 
are stored on magnetic disc, tape, digital media, and CD-ROM.

Retrievability:
    Records may be retrieved by name of applicant or other unique 
identifier to include: Verification Number, Alien Number, I-94 Number, 
Social Security Number, Passport Number and Country of Issuance (COI), 
Visa Number, SEVIS Identification, or by the submitting agency name.

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:
    The retention and disposal schedule, N1-566-08-7, has been approved 
by the National Archives and Records Administration. Records collected 
in the process of enrolling in SAVE and in verifying citizenship or 
immigration status are stored and retained in SAVE for ten (10) years 
from the date of the completion of verification, unless the records are 
part of an ongoing investigation in which case they will be retained 
until completion of the investigation. This period is based on the 
statute of limitations for most types of misuse or fraud possible using 
SAVE (under 18 U.S.C. 3291, the statute of limitations for false 
statements or misuse regarding passports, citizenship, or 
naturalization documents).

System Manager and address:
    Chief, Verification Division, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration 
Services, 131 M Street NE., Suite 200, Mail Stop 200, Washington, DC 
20529.

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 USCIS'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 and Chief Freedom of 
Information Act Officer, Department of Homeland Security, 245 Murray 
Drive SW., Building 410, STOP-0655, 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 Chief Privacy 
Officer and Chief

[[Page 47419]]

Freedom of Information Act Officer, http://www.dhs.gov or 1-866-431-
0486. In addition you should:
     Explain 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; and
     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 individual 
certifying his/her agreement for you to access his/her records.
    Without the above information the component(s) may not be able to 
conduct an effective search, and your request may be denied due to 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 several sources to include:
    (A) Agencies seeking to determine immigration status;
    (B) Individuals seeking public licenses, benefits, or credentials;
     (C) Information collected from the Federal databases 
listed below: Arrival/Departure Information System (ADIS),
     Central Index System (CIS)
     Computer-Linked Application Information Management System 
3 & 4 (CLAIMS 3 & CLAIMS 4)
     Customer Profile Management System (CPMS)
     Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) Nonimmigrant 
Information System and Border Crossing Information (NIIS and BCI)
     Enforcement Integrated Database (EID)
     Enforcement Alien Removal Module (EARM)
     Enterprise Citizenship and Immigration Services 
Centralized Operational Repository (eCISCOR)
     Enterprise Document Management System (EDMS)
     Marriage Fraud Amendment System (MFAS)
     Microfilm Digitization Application System (MiDAS)
     National File Tracking System (NFTS)
     Refugees, Asylum, and Parole System (RAPS)
     Student and Exchange Visitor Identification System (SEVIS)
     Immigration status (e.g., Lawful Permanent Resident) from 
the Department of Justice Executive Office of Immigration Review 
(EOIR), System and the Department of State the Consular Consolidated 
Database (DOS-CCD).
    (D) Information created by the Systematic Alien Verification for 
Entitlements (SAVE) program.

Exemptions claimed for the system:
    None.

    Dated: July 27, 2012.
Mary Ellen Callahan,
Chief Privacy Officer, Department of Homeland Security.
[FR Doc. 2012-19207 Filed 8-7-12; 8:45 am]
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