[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 66 (Thursday, April 5, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14652-14655]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-06986]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

[Docket No. DHS-2018-0008]


Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records

AGENCY: Department of Homeland Security.

ACTION: Notice of modified system of records.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974, the Department of 
Homeland Security (DHS) proposes to modify and reissue a current DHS 
system of records titled, ``Department of Homeland Security/ALL-011 
Biographies and Awards.'' This system of records allows DHS to collect 
and maintain biographical information about current and former DHS 
employees, contractors, and other non-DHS individuals that attend 
Departmental meetings or receive awards. Information pertaining to 
Departmental performance-based award recipients who are DHS employees 
is covered under ``U.S. Office of Personnel Management/GOVT-2 Employee 
Performance File System Records''.

DATES: Submit comments on or before May 7, 2018. This modified system 
will be effective upon publication. New or modified routine uses will 
become effective May 7, 2018.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by docket number DHS-
2018-0008 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: Philip S. Kaplan, Chief Privacy Officer, Privacy 
Office, Department of Homeland Security, Washington, DC 20528-0655.
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name 
and docket number DHS-2018-0008. 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 and privacy questions, 
please contact: Philip S. Kaplan, [email protected], (202) 343-1717, 
Chief Privacy Officer, Privacy Office, Department of Homeland Security, 
Washington, DC 20528-0655.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: DHS is modifying and reissuing this system 
of records notice (SORN) to (1) expand the purpose to include reviewing 
and distributing biographical information on DHS award recipients and 
attendees of conferences or other public meetings; (2) expand the 
categories of individuals to include all DHS employees and contractors 
as well as members of the public receiving awards from DHS or attending 
conferences or meetings; (3) expand the categories of records to 
include individual contact information, nomination information, and 
identity documentation; (4) modify routine use (E) and add routine use 
(F) to comply with Office of Management and Budget (OMB) guidance 
pertaining to data breach procedures; (5) modify routine use (I) to 
expand the language to include awardee information disseminated to the 
public; and (6) add a new routine use (J) to encompass the release of 
information to assist in employment decisions or to issue clearances, 
licenses, or other benefits with which the information may be relevant. 
Finally, the Department has updated the retention schedule for records 
contained in this system. This notice also includes non-substantive 
changes to simplify the formatting and text of the previous published 
notice. This modified system will be included in DHS's inventory of 
record systems.

I. Background

    DHS is modifying and reissuing this SORN to expand the purpose, 
categories of individuals, and categories of records, and to update the 
retention schedule. DHS is also expanding and adding to the routine 
uses, as well as making non-substantive changes to the text and 
formatting of this SORN to align with previously published DHS SORNs.
    DHS is expanding the purpose of this system beyond collecting 
biographic and award information on DHS employees, DHS contractors, and 
other non-DHS individuals for disclosure to the media and public. DHS 
may use biographic information submitted by these individuals when 
considering or

[[Page 14653]]

publicly recognizing an individual for a DHS award. Biographic 
information collected may also be used as material in public meetings 
and conferences held for or by DHS employees and contractors. In 
addition, biographic information will also be collected voluntarily 
from non-DHS individuals to aid DHS in preparing for and conducting 
meetings with DHS and contractor employees.
    DHS is modifying this SORN to expand and clarify the categories of 
records covered by this system. DHS may collect contact information and 
the professional background, education, qualifications, and academic 
achievements of non-DHS individuals who are award nominees or 
recipients and DHS employees or contractors nominated or awarded non-
performance-based awards. Individuals may opt to include information 
beyond professional qualifications, such as hobbies and personal 
interests. All biographic information is submitted directly from the 
individual or is publicly available and confirmed by the individual. 
This system of records does not include information and records on 
Departmental performance-based award recipients who are DHS employees 
and contractors that are covered for separate purposes elsewhere in the 
Federal Register under ``OPM/GOVT-2 Employee Performance File System 
Records,'' (71 FR 35347 (June 19, 2006); 80 FR 74815 (Nov. 30, 2015)).
    DHS is expanding and clarifying the categories of individuals of 
this system to include non-DHS individuals, DHS employees, and 
contractors who have provided biographic information for public 
meetings or conferences.
    DHS is modifying routine use (E) and adding routine use (F) to 
conform to OMB Memorandum M-17-12 ``Preparing for and Responding to a 
Breach of Personally Identifiable Information'' (January 3, 2017). DHS 
is expanding the language of routine use (I) (disclosures to audiences) 
to include awardee information disseminated on public-facing websites, 
conferences, press releases, or other media. DHS is adding new routine 
use (J) to permit disclosures 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, delegation or designation of 
authority, 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, delegation or designation of authority, 
or other benefit and disclosure is appropriate to the proper 
performance of the official duties of the person making the request. 
All routine uses after routine use (F) have been renumbered to account 
for the additional routine use. Lastly, DHS is making non-substantive 
changes to the text and formatting of this SORN to align with 
previously published DHS SORNs.
    Consistent with DHS's information sharing mission, information 
covered by DHS/ALL-011 Department of Homeland Security Biographies and 
Awards system of records may be shared with other DHS Components that 
have a need to know the information to carry out their national 
security, law enforcement, immigration, intelligence, or other homeland 
security functions. In addition, DHS may share information with 
appropriate Federal, state, local, tribal, territorial, foreign, or 
international government agencies consistent with the routine uses set 
forth in this SORN.
    This modified system will be included in DHS's inventory of record 
systems.

II. Privacy Act

    The Privacy Act embodies fair information practice principles in a 
statutory framework governing the means by which 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 from 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. Additionally, the Judicial Redress Act (JRA) 
provides a covered person with a statutory right to make requests for 
access and amendment to covered records, as defined by the JRA, along 
with judicial review for denials of such requests. In addition, the JRA 
prohibits disclosures of covered records, except as otherwise permitted 
by the Privacy Act.
    Below is the description of the DHS/ALL-011 Biographies and Awards 
System of Records.
    In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552a(r), DHS has provided a report of 
this system of records to the OMB and to Congress.
SYSTEM NAME AND NUMBER
    Department of Homeland Security/ALL-011 Biographies and Awards.

SECURITY CLASSIFICATION:
    Unclassified.

SYSTEM LOCATION:
    Records are maintained at several Headquarters locations and in 
Component offices of the Department of Homeland Security, in both 
Washington, DC and field locations.

SYSTEM MANAGER(S):
    For DHS Headquarters Components, the System Manager is the Deputy 
Chief Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Officer, Department of Homeland 
Security, Washington, DC 20528. For Components of DHS, the System 
Manager can be found at http://www.dhs.gov/foia under ``Contacts.''

AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
    5 U.S.C. 4502 et seq., 5 U.S.C. 301, 5 U.S.C. 4103, 44 U.S.C. 3101, 
Public Law 107-296, Executive Order (E.O.) 9830, and E.O. 12107.

PURPOSE(S) OF THE SYSTEM:
    The purpose of this system is to (1) collect and use biographic 
information on professional background, education, qualifications, and 
academic achievements of DHS employees, DHS contractors, and non-DHS 
individuals as background information to consider and publicly 
recognize DHS awardees and nominees; (2) aid DHS in setting up and 
conducting meetings with DHS and contractor employees; and (3) create 
information materials for publication outside of the Department as part 
of public events, conferences, and meetings.

CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM:
    Categories of individuals within this system include:
    1. Current and former DHS employees, contractors, and other non-DHS 
individuals who are award nominators, recipients, or nominees. This 
category of individuals does not include DHS employees who receive 
Departmental employment performance-based awards as that information is 
covered for the purposes pursuant to ``OPM/GOVT-2 Employee Performance 
File System Records.''
    2. Non-DHS individuals who attend meetings with DHS personnel who 
provide biographic information to aid DHS in setting up and conducting 
such meetings.

[[Page 14654]]

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
     Full name;
     Date of birth;
     Place of birth;
     Photo;
     Work history and experience;
     Education;
     Military experience, if applicable;
     Civic duties and previous awards;
     Immigration history, to include date of naturalization;
     Hometown;
     Hobbies and personal interests;
     Job title;
     Name and job title of Supervisor;
     Personal and/or Professional phone numbers;
     Personal and/or Professional email addresses;
     Personal and/or Professional addresses;
     Employee/Contractor identification or badge number;
     Identity documentation;
     Professional qualifications, beyond what is described in 
OPM-approved position description;
     Type of award for which received/nominated for (e.g., 
President, Secretary, or Component Leadership);
     Name of the nominating official;
     Nomination materials including a summary of outstanding 
accomplishments, distinguished service, or extraordinary valor to make 
him or her eligible for an award;
     Published factual account of the nominee's 
accomplishments; and
     Other information directly relevant to the award that may 
be collected and distributed to the public.

RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
    Records are obtained directly from DHS employees, contractors, and 
non-DHS individuals who have submitted biographies to DHS or have been 
selected or nominated for a DHS award; the nominating individual or 
organization; or other sources available to the general public.

ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES 
OF USERS AND 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 DHS as a 
routine use pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(b)(3) as follows:
    A. To the Department of Justice (DOJ), including the U.S. Attorneys 
Offices, or other Federal agency conducting litigation or proceedings 
before any court, adjudicative, or administrative body, 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 or former employee of DHS in his/her official 
capacity;
    3. Any employee or former employee of DHS in his/her individual 
capacity, only when DOJ or DHS has agreed to represent the employee; or
    4. The United States or any agency thereof.
    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 (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 there has been a breach of the system of 
records; (2) DHS has determined that as a result of the suspected or 
confirmed breach there is a risk of harm to individuals, DHS (including 
its information systems, programs, and operations), the Federal 
Government, or national security; 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 
breach or to prevent, minimize, or remedy such harm.
    F. To another Federal agency or Federal entity, when DHS determines 
that information from this system of records is reasonably necessary 
and otherwise compatible with the purpose of collection to assist the 
recipient agency or entity in (1) responding to a suspected or 
confirmed breach or (2) preventing, minimizing, or remedying the risk 
of harm to individuals, the recipient agency or entity (including its 
information systems, programs, and operations), the Federal Government, 
or national security, resulting from a suspected or confirmed breach.
    G. 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.
    H. To unions recognized as exclusive bargaining representatives of 
the individual under the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978, 5 U.S.C. 
7111 and 7114, the Merit Systems Protection Board, arbitrators, the 
Federal Labor Relations Authority, and other parties responsible for 
the administration of the Federal labor-management program for the 
purpose of processing any corrective actions, grievances, conducting 
administrative hearings or appeals, or if needed in the performance of 
other authorized duties.
    I. To audiences attending a particular event, conference, or 
meeting when the biographies of speakers are used as background in 
introductions or other informational material, and to the public when 
used to recognize individuals for awards not covered pursuant to an OPM 
SORN or used to recognize non-DHS individuals.
    J. 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, delegation or designation of authority, 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, delegation 
or designation of authority, or other benefit and disclosure is 
appropriate to the proper performance of the official duties of the 
person making the request.
    K. 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, when 
disclosure is necessary to preserve confidence in the integrity of DHS, 
or when disclosure is necessary to demonstrate the accountability of 
DHS's officers, employees, or individuals covered by the system, except 
to the extent the Chief Privacy Officer determines that release of the 
specific information in the context of a particular case would 
constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.

[[Page 14655]]

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORAGE OF RECORDS:
    DHS stores records in this system electronically or on paper in 
secure facilities in a locked drawer behind a locked door. The records 
may be stored on magnetic disc, tape, and digital media.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETRIEVAL OF RECORDS:
    DHS retrieves records by name, job title, date of naturalization, 
award title, and location where the individual resides or works.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETENTION AND DISPOSAL OF RECORDS:
    DHS retains and disposes of records in accordance with NARA General 
Records Schedule (GRS) 2.2, item 30. Employee awards files (excluding 
records relating to Department-level awards and awards for non-DHS 
individuals) will be destroyed when two years old or two years after 
award is approved or disapproved, whichever is later, but longer 
retention is authorized if required for a business use. Individual 
Components may develop separate retention schedules in consultation 
with NARA. Records pertaining to Department-level awards and all awards 
for non-DHS individuals must be scheduled by submitting an SF 115, 
Request for Records Disposition Authority, to NARA. Records pertaining 
to biographies for meetings and speaking engagements are retained and 
disposed of in accordance with NARA GRS 6.4, item 10. Records will be 
destroyed when three years old, or no longer needed, whichever is 
later.

ADMINISTRATIVE, TECHNICAL, AND PHYSICAL SAFEGUARDS:
    DHS safeguards records in this system according to applicable rules 
and policies, including all applicable DHS automated systems security 
and access policies. DHS has imposed strict controls to minimize the 
risk of compromising the stored information. Access to the computer 
system containing the records in this system is limited to those 
individuals who have a need to know the information in furtherance of 
the performance of their official duties, and who have appropriate 
clearances or permissions.

RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURES:
    Individuals seeking access to and notification of any record 
contained in this system of records, or seeking to contest its content, 
may submit a request in writing to the Chief Privacy Officer and Chief 
FOIA Officer, whose contact information can be found at http://www.dhs.gov/foia under ``Contacts Information.'' 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 FOIA Officer, Department of Homeland 
Security, Washington, DC 20528-0655. Even if neither the Privacy Act 
nor the JRA provide a right of access, certain records about a person 
may be available under FOIA.
    When an individual is seeking records about himself or herself from 
this system of records or any other Departmental system of records, the 
individual's request must conform with the Privacy Act regulations set 
forth in 6 CFR part 5. The individual must first verify his/her 
identity, meaning that the individual must provide his/her full name, 
current address, and date and place of birth. The individual must sign 
the request, and the individual's 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, an individual may obtain forms for this 
purpose from the Chief Privacy Officer and Chief FOIA Officer, http://www.dhs.gov/foia or 1-866-431-0486. In addition, the individual should:
     Explain why the individual believes the Department would 
have information on him/her;
     Identify which component(s) of the Department the 
individual believes may have the information about him/her;
     Specify when the individual believes 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 an individual's request is seeking records pertaining to another 
living individual, the first individual must include a statement from 
the second individual certifying his/her agreement for the first 
individual to access his/her records. Without the above information, 
the component(s) may not be able to conduct an effective search, and 
the individual's request may be denied due to lack of specificity or 
lack of compliance with applicable regulations.

CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES:
    For records covered by the Privacy Act or covered JRA records, see 
``Record Access Procedures'' above.

NOTIFICATION PROCEDURES:
    See ``Record Access Procedures.''

EXEMPTIONS PROMULGATED FOR THE SYSTEM:
    None.

HISTORY:
    DHS/ALL-011 Department of Homeland Security Biographies and Awards, 
73 FR 66654 (Nov. 10, 2008).

Philip S. Kaplan,
Chief Privacy Officer, Department of Homeland Security.
[FR Doc. 2018-06986 Filed 4-4-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 9110-9B-P