[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 103 (Friday, May 27, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33695-33697]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-12600]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

[Docket No. FR-5921-N-06]


The Privacy Act of 1974, as Amended; System of Records Notice 
Amendment, Freedom of Information Act, Privacy Act, and Administrative 
Appeals Request Files, System of Records

AGENCY: Office of Administration, HUD.

ACTION: System of records notice amendment.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the requirements of the Privacy Act of 
1974, as amended, 5 U.S.C. 552a, the Department's Office of the 
Executive Secretariat proposes to update and reissue a current system 
of records notice (SORN): Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), Privacy 
Act, and Administrative Appeals Request Files, ADMIN/AHFDC.01. This 
SORN was previously titled ``Privacy Act and Appeals Request Files,'' 
CIO/QMPP.01, and published at 79 FR 44854-55 (August 1, 2014). This 
amendment consolidates under one notice FOIA, Privacy Act, and 
administrative appeals procedures for requests and disclosures and 
updates the SORN, categories of individuals covered, categories of 
records, authority for maintenance, routine uses, storage, safeguards, 
retention and disposal, system manager and address, notification 
procedures, records access, contesting records procedures, and records 
source categories to indicate that the SORN now includes FOIA-related 
records. This notice deletes and supersedes SORN CIO/QMPP.01, Privacy 
Act and Appeals Request Files. This updated publication will be 
included in the Department's inventory of SORNs. Detailed information 
pertaining to this amendment appears under the SORN's ``Supplementary 
Information'' caption.

DATES: 
    Effective Date: This notice action shall be effective immediately, 
with the exception of the new routine uses added to the notice, which 
will become effective June 27, 2016.
    Comments Due Date: June 27, 2016.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments regarding 
this notice to the Rules Docket Clerk, Office of General Counsel, 
Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 Seventh Street SW., 
Room 10276, Washington, DC 20410-0500. Communications should refer to 
the above docket number and title. Faxed comments are not accepted. A 
copy of each communication submitted will be available for public 
inspection and copying between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays at the above 
address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Frieda B. Edwards, Acting Chief 
Privacy Officer, 451 Seventh Street SW., Room 10139, Washington, DC 
20410, telephone number 202-402-6828 (this is not a toll-free number). 
Individuals who are hearing- and speech-impaired may access this number 
via TTY by calling the Federal Relay Service at 800-877-8339 (this is a 
toll-free number).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This SORN is being updated to encompass 
activities and procedures related to the Department's processing of 
FOIA, Privacy Act, and administrative appeals requests. The 
Department's Office of the Executive Secretariat consolidates under one 
notice processing activities related to FOIA, Privacy Act, and 
administrative appeals requests received or issued by the Department. 
The revised notice conveys subsequent updates to the system's title, 
categories of individuals covered, categories of records, authority for 
maintenance, routine uses, storage, safeguards, retention and disposal, 
system manager and address, notification procedures, records access and 
contesting procedures, and records source captions to identify that the 
updated notice now includes information related to FOIA requests. In 
addition, this notice identifies new disclosure requirements related to 
FOIA, by adding routine use (6) to clarify that records may be provided 
from this SORN to the National Archives and Records Administration 
(NARA), Office of Government Information Services (OGIS) for purposes 
set forth under 5 U.S.C. 552(h)(2)(A-B) and (3). Publication of this 
notice allows the Department to provide up-to-date information about 
its systems of records in a clear and cohesive format. The revised 
system of records incorporates Federal Privacy Act, FOIA, and HUD 
policy requirements. The Privacy Act places on Federal agencies 
principal responsibility for compliance with its provisions, by 
requiring Federal agencies to safeguard an individual's records against 
an invasion of personal privacy; protect the records contained in an 
agency system of records from unauthorized disclosure; ensure that the 
records collected are relevant, necessary, current, and collected only 
for their intended use; and adequately safeguard the records to prevent 
misuse of such information. In addition, this notice demonstrates the 
Department's focus on industry best practices and laws that protect 
interest such as

[[Page 33696]]

personal privacy and law enforcement records from inappropriate 
release. This notice states the name and location of the record system, 
the authority for and manner of its operations, the categories of 
individuals that it covers, the type of records that it contains, the 
sources of the information for the records, the routine uses made of 
the records, and the types of exemptions in place for the records. The 
notice also includes the business address of the HUD officials who will 
inform interested persons of how they may gain access to and/or request 
amendments to records pertaining to themselves.
    Pursuant to the Privacy Act and the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) guidelines, a report of the amended system of records was 
submitted to OMB, the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and 
Governmental Affairs, and the House Committee on Oversight and 
Government Reform, as instructed by paragraph 4c of Appendix l to OMB 
Circular No. A-130, ``Federal Agencies Responsibilities for Maintaining 
Records About Individuals,'' November 28, 2000.

    Authority: 5 U.S.C. 552a; 88 Stat. 1896; 42 U.S.C. 3535(d).

    Dated: April 28, 2016.
Patricia A. Hoban-Moore,
Senior Agency Official for Privacy.
ADMIN/AHFDC.01

SYSTEM NAME:
    Freedom of Information Act, Privacy Act, and Administrative Appeals 
Request Files.

SYSTEM LOCATION:
    The system is physically located at the Department of Housing and 
Urban Development, Office of the Executive Secretariat, 451 Seventh 
Street SW., Washington, DC 20410; at the service providers under 
contract with HUD, and at HUD regional and field offices \1\ where, in 
some cases, FOIA and Privacy Act records may be maintained or accessed.
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    \1\ http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/localoffices.
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CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM:
    This system encompasses all individuals who submit FOIA and/or 
Privacy Act requests or administrative appeals to the Department. Other 
individuals covered by the system include HUD staff assigned to process 
a request and staff that may have responsive records or are mentioned 
in such records. Note: FOIA requests are subject to the Privacy Act 
only to the extent that the information pertains to personal 
information concerning an individual (i.e., only the information that 
is personal about the individual who is the subject of the record is 
subject to the Privacy Act). Information pertaining to corporations, 
businesses, and organizations are not subject to the Privacy Act.

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
    Records in this system may include information about the handling 
of FOIA and Privacy Act requests and administrative appeals. The 
information maintained by the system may include: (1) Records received, 
copied, created, or compiled during the search and processing of 
initial requests and administrative appeals; (2) fee schedules, cost 
calculations, and costs assessed for processing FOIA requests 
(disclosed FOIA records--cost can be incurred even for records that are 
not provided to requesters); (3) appeals, intra-agency or interagency 
memorandums, and correspondence with the requesters or entities who 
submitted the requests and appeals; (4) the Department's responses and 
transferals to HUD regional/field offices or other agencies; (5) copies 
of records disclosed or withheld; (6) requesters' names, organizations, 
titles, addresses, emails, telephone numbers, fax numbers, Social 
Security numbers (which may be submitted with documentation or as proof 
of identification when requesting access to Privacy Act records); (7) 
information compiled on and about the parties who made written requests 
or appeals, including individuals on whose behalf such written requests 
or appeals were made; (8) FOIA tracking numbers; (9) descriptions of 
the types of requests or appeals, and dates the requests or appeals 
were received by the Department; (10) statuses of Department responses 
(i.e., the offices to which the requests were assigned, the dates by 
which responses to assigned request are due, the current dispositions 
of the requests); (11) and may include the requester's original Privacy 
Act/FOIA requests. The system also includes information on the 
Department personnel involved in the processing of FOIA and/or Privacy 
Act requests and appeals (e.g., FOIA staff and/or Privacy Act staff, 
appeals officials, and members of the Office of General Counsel staff) 
who respond to requests or appeals and process any final dispositions. 
The system also covers records related to requests for OGIS assistance.

AUTHORITY FOR MAINTNENACE OF THE SYSTEM:
    Freedom of Information Act, as amended, 5 U.S.C 552; Privacy Act, 
as amended, 5 U.S.C. 552a.

PURPOSE(S):
    The purpose of the information maintained by the system is to allow 
the Department to effectively monitor and track FOIA and Privacy Act 
requests, and administrative appeals received or issued by the 
Department. The information gathered by the system is used by the 
Department to satisfy its annual reporting obligations under the FOIA, 
manage FOIA-related fees and calculations, and respond to FOIA and 
Privacy Act requests and appeals.

ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES 
OF USERS AND THE PURPOSES OF SUCH USES:
    Records from this system may be disclosed for routine uses to:
    1. A congressional office from the record of an individual, in 
response to a verified inquiry from the congressional office made at 
the request of that individual.
    2. The Department of Justice for the purpose of obtaining advice 
regarding whether or not the records should be disclosed, when 
applicable.
    3. Student volunteers, individuals working under a personal 
services contract, and other individuals performing functions for the 
Department, but technically not having the status of agency employees, 
if they need access to the records in order to perform their assigned 
agency functions.
    4. Contractors, grantees, experts, consultants and their agents, or 
others performing or working under a contract, service, grant, or 
cooperative agreement with HUD, when necessary to accomplish the agency 
function related to a system of records. Disclosure requirements are 
limited to only those data elements considered relevant to 
accomplishing an agency function. Individuals provided information 
under this routine use conditions are subject to the Privacy Act 
requirements and disclosure limitations imposed on the Department.
    5. Appropriate agencies, entities, and persons to the extent such 
disclosures are compatible with the purpose for which the records in 
this system were collected, as set forth by Appendix I, HUD's Routine 
Use Inventory notice \2\ published in the Federal Register.
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    \2\ http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/documents/huddoc?id=routine_use_inventory.pdf.
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    6. The National Archives and Records Administration, OGIS, to the 
extent necessary to allow OGIS to fulfill its

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responsibilities under 5 U.S.C. 552(h) to review administrative agency 
policies, procedures, and compliance with the FOIA, and to offer 
mediation services to resolve disputes between persons making FOIA 
requests and administrative agencies.
    7. To appropriate agencies, entities, and persons when:
    (a) HUD suspects or has confirmed that the security or 
confidentiality of information in a system of records has been 
compromised;
    (b) HUD 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 systems or programs (whether maintained by HUD or another 
agency or entity) that rely upon the compromised information; and
    (c) The disclosure made to such agencies, entities, and persons is 
reasonably necessary to assist in connection with HUD's efforts to 
respond to the suspected or confirmed compromise and prevent, minimize, 
or remedy such harm for purposes of facilitating responses and 
remediation efforts in the event of a data breach.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORING, RETRIEVING, ACCESSING, RETAINING, 
AND DISPOSING OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM
STORAGE:
    The originals, or a copy, of the incoming requests and the written 
responses are maintained in case file folders and stored in metal file 
cabinets. Cross-reference data is maintained electronically and on CD-
ROM.

RETRIEVABILITY:
    Electronic and paper records are almost always retrieved by the 
name of the individual who made the request, the FOIA control number, 
or the subject of the request.

SAFEGUARDS:
    (1) Access Safeguards: Record access is restricted to FOIA and 
Privacy Act staff, involved program officials, appeals officials, and 
Office of General Counsel staff involved in the processing of such 
requests; (2) Physical Safeguards: Case file folders are stored in file 
cabinets located in secure areas that are either occupied by staff 
involved in processing FOIA and Privacy Act requests and administrative 
appeals or locked up during nonworking hours or whenever staff is not 
present in these areas, and entrance to the buildings where case files 
are maintained is controlled by security guards; (3) Logical Access: 
Records in the system are maintained in a secure area with access 
restricted to authorized personnel, security and hardware storage of 
backup material (e.g., disk, tape, CD-ROM) are secured in accordance 
with HUD-wide guidance for handling and securing information systems 
and cross-reference data is maintained electronically and access to the 
records is granted by User ID and password; and (4) Procedural 
Safeguards: Access to the systems records is limited to those staff 
members who are familiar with FOIA- and Privacy Act-related requests 
and who have a need to know. System managers are held responsible for 
safeguarding the records that are under their control.

RETENTION AND DISPOSAL:
    Computer and paper records will be maintained and disposed of in 
accordance with published NARA Transmittal No. 22, General Records 
Schedule 14, ``Information Services Records''.\3\ Paper records will be 
destroyed by shredding or burning. Electronic records will be destroyed 
pursuant to NIST Special Publication 800-88, ``Guidelines for Media 
Sanitization.''
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    \3\ http://www.archives.gov/records-mgmt/grs/grs14.html.
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SYSTEM MANAGER(S) AND ADDRESS:
    Frieda B. Edwards, Acting Chief Privacy Officer, 451 Seventh Street 
SW., Room 10139, Washington, DC 20410, telephone number 202-402-6828 
(this is not a toll-free number) (refer to the SORN's location caption 
for additional locations where Privacy Act records are accessed and 
maintained).

NOTIFICATION AND ACCESS PROCEDURES:
    For Information, assistance, or inquiries about the existence of 
records, contact Frieda B. Edwards, Acting Chief Privacy Officer, 451 
Seventh Street SW., Room 10139, Washington, DC 20410, telephone number 
202-402-6828 (this is not a toll-free number). When seeking records 
about yourself from this system of records or any other HUD system of 
records, your request must conform with the Privacy Act regulations set 
forth in 24 CFR part 16 ``Procedures for Inquiries''. You must first 
verify your identity by providing 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. In addition, your request should:
    (1) Explain why you believe HUD would have information on you.
    (2) Identify which HUD office you believe has the records about 
you.
    (3) Specify when you believe the records would have been created.
    (4) Provide any other information that will help the FOIA staff 
determine which HUD office may have responsive records.
    If you are seeking records pertaining to another living individual, 
you must obtain a statement from that individual certifying their 
agreement for you to access their records. Without the above 
information, the HUD Office 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.

CONTESTING RECORDS PROCEDURES:
    The Department's rules for contesting contents of records and 
appealing initial denials appear in 24 CFR part 16, ``Procedures for 
Inquiries.'' Additional assistance may be obtained by contacting Frieda 
B. Edwards, Acting Chief Privacy Officer, 451 Seventh Street SW., Room 
10139, Washington, DC 20410, or the HUD Departmental Privacy Appeals 
Officer, Office of General Counsel, Department of Housing and Urban 
Development, 451 Seventh Street SW., Room 10110, Washington, DC 20410.

RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
    The source of information is from the individuals making a FOIA 
request or a request for Privacy Act records, and components of the 
Department and other agencies that search for and provide records and 
related correspondence maintained in the case files.

SYSTEMS EXEMPTED FROM CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF THE ACT:
    Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(2), records in this system, which 
reflect records that are contained in other systems of records that are 
designated as exempt, are exempt from the requirements of subsections 
(c)(3), (d), (e)(1), (e)(4)(G), (H), (I), and (f) of 5 U.S.C. 552a. 
These exemptions apply only to the extent that information in the 
system is subject to an exemption pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a (k)(2) or a 
rule promulgated concerning the exemption of such records.

[FR Doc. 2016-12600 Filed 5-26-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210-67-P