[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 31 (Friday, February 14, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8539-8542]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-03007]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
[Docket No. APHIS-2015-0085]
Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of a new system of records.
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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the Privacy Act of 1974 and Office of Management
and Budget Circular No. A-108, the U.S. Department of Agriculture
(USDA) gives notice that a component agency, the Animal and Plant
Health Inspection Service (APHIS) proposes to add a new system of
records to its inventory of records. The system of records being
proposed is the APHIS Plant Protection and Quarantine's Lacey Act
Declaration Information Systems (LADIS), USDA/APHIS-24. The purpose of
this system is enable businesses to file Lacey Act declarations. LADIS
collects these records as part of an effort to combat illegal timber
imports and to protect global natural resources. Under the Lacey Act,
it is unlawful to import certain plants and plant products without an
import declaration. The records in LADIS contain information regarding
imported shipments, description of shipments, and the name and address
of the importer and consignee.
DATES: In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(4) and (11), this notice
will become applicable upon publication, subject to a 30-day notice and
comment period in which to comment on the routine uses described in the
``ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM'' section of this
system of records notice. Please submit any comments by March 16, 2020.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to: http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2015-0085.
Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to
Docket No. APHIS-2015-0085, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD,
APHIS, Station 3A-03.8, 4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-
1238.
Supporting documents and any comments we receive on this docket may
be viewed at http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2015-
0085 or in our reading room, which is located in room 1141 of the USDA
South Building, 14th Street and Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC.
Normal reading room hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through
Friday, except holidays. To be sure someone is there to help you,
please call (202) 799-7039 before coming.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For general questions, please contact
Dr. Robert Baca, Assistant Director, Permitting and Compliance
Coordination, Compliance and Environmental Coordination Branch, PPQ,
APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 150, Riverdale, MD 20737; (301) 851-2292.
For Privacy Act questions concerning this system of records notice,
please contact Ms. Tonya Woods, Director, Freedom of Information and
Privacy Act Staff, 4700 River Road Unit 50, Riverdale, MD 20737; (301)
851-4076. For USDA Privacy Act questions, please contact the USDA Chief
Privacy Officer, Information Security Center, Office of Chief
Information Officer, USDA, Jamie L. Whitten Building, 1400 Independence
Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20250; email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to the provisions of the Privacy
Act of 1974, as amended (5 U.S.C. 552a), notice is given that the
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) of the United States
Department of Agriculture (USDA) is proposing to add a new system of
records, titled Lacey Act Declaration Information Systems (LADIS), to
maintain records of activities conducted by the agency pursuant to its
mission and responsibilities authorized by the Lacey Act (16 U.S.C.
3371 et seq.).
LADIS supports the mission of the Lacey Act program in APHIS by
providing to agency personnel information that can be used to assist
with combatting illegal timber imports and protecting global natural
resources. For formal customs entries, importers are required to submit
a Lacey Act plant declaration based on products as listed on the
implementation schedule of enforcement of Harmonized Tariff Schedule
codes. The declaration information may be filed electronically through
U.S. Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) Automated Commercial
Environment (ACE) or through APHIS' Lacey Act Web Governance System
(LAWGS) importer interface. (Using ACE or LAWGS, APHIS can more quickly
review the declaration information for accuracy and completeness to
assist APHIS in verifying that plants and plant products imported into
the United States are
[[Page 8540]]
legally harvested, sold, and transported.) ACE enables importers or
brokers to file their declaration information when they file their
customs entry information and enables them to correct erroneous data
entries through the ACE system. LAWGS may also be used to file
declaration information through the internet into a system owned and
operated by APHIS. LAWGS enables APHIS to assist importers or brokers
in correcting declaration information they filed through a notification
option in the system. Alternatively, paper declaration forms may be
submitted to APHIS by U.S. mail service to APHIS headquarters in
Riverdale, MD.
LAWGS collects declaration information during a self-registration
process through which APHIS customers and employees may obtain accounts
as authorized users of APHIS services. Users will be able to securely
generate and file the declaration form, and save it for their records
electronically via the internet for future use.
The CBP ACE users will submit the Lacey Act declaration information
using systems that are not owned or managed by APHIS. The users
(importers or brokers) enter data required under the Act into to a set
of fields or message set that was designed by APHIS to ensure all
information is captured. The data is then moved to LADIS for storage by
APHIS.
APHIS personnel use the information in LADIS to monitor compliance
with the Lacey Act declaration requirement, identify trends in
international trade, and alert other Federal enforcement agencies of
unusual or suspicious activity. All individuals about whom information
in this system is maintained voluntarily submit the information for the
express purpose of participating in the program and will receive
benefits equal to or greater than any potential impact on their
privacy.
APHIS will share information from the system pursuant to the
requirements of the Privacy Act and, in the case of its routine uses,
when the disclosure is compatible with the purpose for which the
information was compiled. A full list of routine uses is included in
the routine uses section of the document published with this notice.
A report on the new system of records, required by 5 U.S.C.
552a(r), as implemented by Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
Circular A-108, was sent to the Chairman, Committee on Homeland
Security and Governmental Affairs, United States Senate; the Chairman,
Committee on Oversight and Reform, House of Representatives; and the
Administrator, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, OMB.
Done in Washington, DC, this 7th day of February 2020.
Kevin Shea,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
SYSTEM NAME AND NUMBER:
Lacey Act Declaration Information System (LADIS), USDA/APHIS-24.
SECURITY CLASSIFICATION:
Unclassified.
SYSTEM LOCATION:
The master data for the Lacey Act Declaration Information System
(LADIS) are stored and maintained electronically via the National
Information Center (NITC) on a secure U.S. Department of Agriculture
(USDA) owned and operated system at 8930 Ward Parkway, Kansas City, MO
64114. Paper declarations are securely maintained under the control of
Plant Protection and Quarantine at 4700 River Road, Riverdale, MD
20737.
SYSTEM MANAGERS:
Lacey Act Program Manager, 4700 River Road Unit 150, Riverdale, MD
20737-1234; IT Project Manager, 4700 River Road Unit 144, Riverdale, MD
20737-1234; phone (301) 851-2021.
AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
The Lacey Act, 16 U.S.C. 3372 et seq.
PURPOSES OF THE SYSTEM:
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Lacey Act
Declaration Information Systems (LADIS) is an online tool which enables
the users (importers) to securely generate and file the declaration
form, and save it for their records electronically via the internet for
future use. LADIS also enables filers to save commonly used declaration
data in templates for quick and easy future submissions. Filers are
able to view, edit, and resubmit declarations they created. The forms,
as physical hardcopy or electronic format, are used to obtain the
information required by the Lacey Act. The declaration form contains
the estimated date of arrival, shipment information, description of
merchandise, scientific name of the plant, value, quantity of plant
material, the name of the country from which the plant was taken. The
form also contains the name and address of the importer and consignee
to provide contact information for APHIS. APHIS uses this information
to verify compliance with the declaration requirement and examine
trends associated with imported plants and plant products.
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Automated Commercial
Environment (ACE) users will submit the Lacey Act declaration
information using systems not associated with APHIS. The data is then
moved to LADIS by APHIS. LADIS enables the Plant Protection and
Quarantine (PPQ) Lacey Act Program officials to review the submitted
declaration for accuracy and completeness.
APHIS' Lacey Act Web Governance System (LAWGS) generates the
declaration form containing all data collected in PDF format. The
importer can file the electronic declaration form and print it for
their records.
CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM:
All individuals granted access to the LADIS are covered: (1)
Employees and contractors of the USDA (``USDA personnel''); (2) other
Government officials; and (3) business personnel. All individuals, even
if they are not users of the LADIS, who are mentioned or referenced in
any documents entered into LADIS by a user are also covered. This group
may include, but is not limited to, plant workers, vendors, agents,
consignees, importers of record, and brokers with a CBP power of
attorney who import or aid in the importation of merchandise subject to
the provisions of the Lacey Act.
CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
LADIS collects, uses, disseminates and maintains records received
from business personnel. They provide declaration information regarding
the shipment details, entry information, Lacey Act compliance data, and
contact information associated with the business.
The information includes the importer name, importer address,
importer email address, consignee name, consignee address, the shipment
estimated date of arrival, entry number, harmonized tariff code number,
container number, bill of lading, manufacturing identification code,
and description of merchandise. The compliance data includes the value,
description of the article or component of the article, plant
scientific name (genus and species), country of harvest, quantity of
plant material, unit of measure, and percent of recycled plant
material.
RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
The information source is primarily provided by the importers or
customs brokers, and Federal regulatory agencies. For formal customs
entries,
[[Page 8541]]
importers are required to submit a Lacey Act plant declaration
consisting of the data elements on the Plant and Plant Product
Declaration form via a paper form, or CBP's ACE, or APHIS' LAWGS
importer interface.
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, records maintained in the system may be
disclosed outside USDA as a routine use under 5 U.S.C. 552a(b)(3), as
follows, to the extent that such disclosures are compatible with the
purposes for which the information was collected:
(1) To other Federal enforcement agencies, including the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service (Department of the Interior), U.S. Department of
Justice, and including CBP and Homeland Security Investigations within
the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, who will treat the data as
law enforcement sensitive primarily for the purpose of enforcing the
Lacey Act or the Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES);
(2) To other cooperating Federal, State, and local government
officials, employees, or contractors, and other parties assisting in
administering the Lacey Act program who will be bound by the
nondisclosure provision of the Privacy Act and the Trade Secrets Act;
(3) To appropriate law enforcement agencies, entities, and persons,
whether Federal, foreign, State, Tribal, local, or other public
authority responsible for enforcing, investigating, or prosecuting an
alleged violation or a violation of law or charged with enforcing,
implementing, or complying with a statute, rule, regulation, or order
issued pursuant thereto, when a record in this system on its face, or
in conjunction with other records, indicates a violation or potential
violation of law, whether civil, criminal, or regulatory in nature, and
whether arising by general statute or particular program statute, or by
regulation, rule, or court order issued pursuant thereto, if the
information disclosed is relevant to any enforcement, regulatory,
investigative, or prosecutive responsibility of the receiving entity;
(4) To the Department of Justice when: (a) USDA, or any component
thereof; or (b) any employee of USDA in his or her official capacity
where the Department of Justice has agreed to represent the employee;
or (c) the United States Government, is a party to litigation or has an
interest in such litigation, and by careful review, USDA determines
that the records are both relevant and necessary to the litigation and
the use of such records by the Department of Justice is therefore
deemed by USDA to be for a purpose for which USDA collected the
records;
(5) To a court or adjudicative body in a proceeding when: (a) USDA
or any component thereof; or (b) any employee of USDA in his or her
official capacity; or (c) any employee of USDA in his or her individual
capacity where USDA has agreed to represent the employee; or (d) the
United States Government, is a party to litigation or has an interest
in such litigation, and by careful review, USDA determines that the
records are both relevant and necessary to the litigation and the use
of such records is therefore deemed by USDA to be for a purpose that is
compatible with the purpose for which USDA collected the records;
(6) To appropriate agencies, entities, and persons when: (a) USDA
suspects or has confirmed that the security or confidentiality of
information in the system of records has been compromised; (b) USDA has
determined that as a result of the suspected or confirmed breach there
is a risk of harm to individuals, USDA (including its information
systems, programs, and operations), the Federal Government, or national
security; and (c) the disclosure made to such agencies, entities, and
persons is reasonably necessary to assist in connection with USDA's
efforts to respond to the suspected or confirmed compromise and
prevent, minimize, or remedy such harm;
(7) To another Federal agency or Federal entity, when information
from this system of records is reasonably necessary to assist the
recipient agency or entity in (a) responding to a suspected or
confirmed breach or (b) preventing, minimizing, or remedying the risk
of harm to individuals, the agency (including its information systems,
programs, and operations), the Federal Government, or national
security;
(8) To a Congressional office in response to an inquiry made at the
written request of the individual to whom the record pertains;
(9) To USDA contractors and other parties engaged to assist in
administering the program, analyzing data, and conducting audits. Such
contractors and other parties will be bound by the nondisclosure
provisions of the Privacy Act;
(10) To USDA contractors, partner agency employees or contractors,
or private industry employed to identify patterns, trends, or anomalies
indicative of fraud, waste, or abuse; and
(11) To the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) or
to other Federal government agencies pursuant to records management
activities being conducted under the authority of 44 U.S.C. 2904 and
2906.
POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORAGE OF RECORDS:
Electronic records are maintained on the LADIS server at NITC in
Kansas City, MO; and the backup server is at St. Louis, MO, on magnetic
hard-disk. Paper records are temporarily maintained in a secured
building which requires LincPass ID for entry. The Lacey Act Program
will move the paper records to a separate, secure USDA building, under
control of PPQ personnel, or in a National Archives and Records
Administration-approved records storage facility until the records are
no longer necessary for the conduct of business and the records are
disposed of in accordance with an approved records disposition
authority.
POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETRIEVAL OF RECORDS:
Records are retrieved by importer or consignee name, entry number
or unique LAWGS assigned identifier, manufacturer identification
number, container number, and bill of lading. Users of the electronic
systems can retrieve their own records in the systems by their name,
entry or submission date, entry number, or unique LAWGS assigned
identifier.
POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETENTION AND DISPOSAL OF RECORDS:
APHIS records disposition authority from the National Archives and
Records Administration allows for retention of records for at least 5
years, and records will then be disposed of in accordance with the
authority granted.
ADMINISTRATIVE, TECHNICAL, AND PHYSICAL SAFEGUARDS:
Records, both paper and electronic, are only accessible to
authorized personnel. The following physical security measures are in
place to prevent outsiders from entering LADIS:
The electronic records are stored on secure file servers. To gain
access to LAWGS, all users are required to have a USDA e-Authentication
account. This a 2-step process where the user name identifies the user
and the password authenticates that the user is in fact who he claims
to be. On the Government side, PPQ Lacey Act Program officials who have
level 2 e-Authentication can review, print, and analyze the data to
meet program needs. Access to system
[[Page 8542]]
data is granted to Lacey Act Program employees, administrators, and
federal contractors, including help desk individuals to facilitate
assisting system users. All APHIS officials and contractors must take
the annual security awareness training provided by USDA.
LAWGS users are granted access to their own basic information.
LAWGS users can use their account's user ID and password and can modify
basic personal data such as address and email. Users can adjust the
level of access and permissions within their own organization's
account; however, users do not have access to modify sensitive data
such as level of access and permissions associated with another
account. Also, they cannot access the declaration information submitted
by other users of the system.
System security measures in place to protect the safety and
integrity of declaration information filed in ACE, including access
controls, is administered by CBP. Neither importers nor brokers using
ACE to file declaration information have access to the data stored in
the LADIS database.
Paper files are kept in a safeguarded environment with controlled
access only by authorized personnel. All APHIS personnel are required
to go through a basic security clearance and are required to complete
appropriate training to learn requirements for safeguarding records
maintained under the Privacy Act.
USDA's NITC safeguards records and ensures privacy requirements are
met in accordance with Federal cyber security mandates. NITC provides
continuous storage management, security administration, regular dataset
backups and contingency planning including disaster recovery.
RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURES:
An individual who is the subject of a record in this system may
seek access to those records that are not exempt from the access
provisions. Exemptions apply only to the extent that the information in
the system is subject to exemption pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(2), if
applicable. A determination whether a record may be accessed will be
made at the time a request is received. All inquiries should be
addressed under ``Notification procedures.''
CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES:
Individuals seeking to contest or amend information maintained in
the system should direct their requests to the address indicated in the
``Notification procedures'' section, below. Some information may be
exempt from the amendment provisions, as described in the section
entitled ``Exemptions promulgated for the system.'' An individual who
is the subject of a record in this system may seek amendment of those
records that are not exempt. A determination whether a record may be
amended will be made at the time a request is received.
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 Headquarters or component's
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Officer, whose contact information
can be found at http://www.da.usda.gov/foia.htm 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 FOIA Officer, Department of Agriculture, 1400 Independence
Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20250.
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 FOIA
Officer, Department of Agriculture, 1400 Independence Avenue SW,
Washington, DC 20250. In addition you should provide the following:
An explanation of 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;
Provide any other information that will help the FOIA
staff determine which USDA component agency may have responsive
records; and
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 this bulleted information the agency 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.
EXEMPTIONS CLAIMED FOR THE SYSTEM:
None.
HISTORY:
N/A.
[FR Doc. 2020-03007 Filed 2-13-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P