[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 48 (Wednesday, March 11, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14223-14226]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-04978]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

[Docket No. DHS-2019-0061]


Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records

AGENCY: Office of Immigration Statistics, Department of Homeland 
Security.

ACTION: Notice of a new system of records.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974, the Department of 
Homeland Security (DHS) proposes to establish a new DHS system of 
records titled, ``DHS/ALL-045 Statistical Immigration Data Production 
and Reporting System of Records.'' This system of records allows DHS/
Office of Immigration Statistics (OIS) to collect and maintain records 
on members of the public for whom federal agencies have collected 
information related to individuals' interactions with the immigration 
system. Information collected includes that pertaining to the granting 
of immigration requests, such as nonimmigrant admissions, grants of 
lawful permanent residence, changes in legal status, and 
naturalizations, as well as information related to the enforcement of 
immigration law, from across DHS and other federal immigration 
agencies. Additionally, DHS is issuing a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking 
to exempt this system of records from certain provisions of the Privacy 
Act, elsewhere in the Federal Register.
    This newly established system will be included in DHS's inventory 
of record systems.

DATES: Submit comments on or before April 10, 2020. This new system 
will be effective upon publication. Routine uses will be effective 
April 10, 2020.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by docket number DHS-
2019-0061 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-
0655.
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name 
and docket number DHS-2019-0061. 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: Jonathan R. Cantor, (202) 343-1717, [email protected], 
Acting Chief Privacy Officer, Privacy Office, Department of Homeland 
Security, Washington, DC 20528-0655.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974, 5 U.S.C. 552a, the 
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposes to establish a new DHS 
system of records titled, ``Department of Homeland Security/ALL-045 
Statistical Immigration Data Production and Reporting System of 
Records.'' Federal statutes, including the Immigration and Nationality 
Act of 1965, as amended, and the Homeland Security Act of 2002, as 
amended, as well as Executive Orders and congressional mandates, 
require DHS's Office of Immigration Statistics (OIS) to regularly 
prepare an extensive series of analytical and statistical reports on 
border security, immigration enforcement activities, refugee and asylum 
claims, and other immigration events. For instance, in December 2015, 
Congress's explanatory statement accompanying DHS's 2016 appropriations 
legislation specifically directed the DHS Office of Strategy, Policy, 
and Plans (which includes OIS), to report on the ``enforcement 
lifecycle,'' defined as ``the full scope of immigration enforcement 
activities, from encounter to final disposition, including the use of 
prosecutorial discretion.'' Further, Congress directed that ``[a]ll 
data necessary to support a better picture of this lifecycle and the 
Department's effectiveness in enforcing immigration laws shall be 
considered and prioritized, including appropriate data collected by the 
[Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR)] at the Department of 
Justice [DOJ].''
    Fulfilling these mandates requires OIS to collect data related to 
the granting of immigration requests, such as nonimmigrant admissions, 
grants of lawful permanent residence, changes in legal status, 
naturalizations, and information related to the enforcement of 
immigration law, from across DHS and other federal immigration 
agencies. These data contain both personally identifiable information 
(PII) and sensitive PII (SPII). OIS is establishing this system of 
records notice (SORN) to inform the public of its collection and use of 
PII to create its statistical products.
    DHS's immigration Components and other federal immigration agencies 
initially collect this data for operational purposes in accordance to 
their own mission and authorities. While the data that are first 
collected for operations purposes are covered by their respective 
SORNs, OIS is developing its own SORN to cover the records it creates 
and has aggregated as they enter OIS's analytical environment. Once in 
this environment, OIS processes the records in preparation for use in 
statistical analysis. Analyses may include merging of records from 
these distinct data systems to create new records.
    Data within this system of records are intended only for analytical 
and statistical purposes, and are not intended for operational uses. 
This is reflected in the routine uses, which allow for the use of and 
sharing of data in this system of records solely for these purposes.
    Consistent with DHS's information sharing mission, information 
stored in the DHS/ALL-045 Statistical Immigration Data Production and 
Reporting 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, except for data that the DHS Information Sharing 
and Safeguarding Governance Board (ISSGB) has granted a waiver from 
this requirement on behalf of the Secretary of Homeland Security. In 
addition, DHS/OIS may share information with appropriate federal, 
state, local, tribal, territorial, foreign, or international government 
agencies consistent with the routine uses set forth in this system of 
records notice.
    This newly established 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

[[Page 14224]]

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 covered persons 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-045 Statistical Immigration 
Data Production and Reporting 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.

SYSTEM NAME AND NUMBER:
    Department of Homeland Security (DHS)/ALL-045 Statistical 
Immigration Data Production and Reporting.

SECURITY CLASSIFICATION:
    Unclassified.

SYSTEM LOCATION:
    Records are maintained at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration 
Services Headquarters on behalf of the Office of Immigration Statistics 
and at the Office of Immigration Statistics in Washington, DC.

SYSTEM MANAGER(S):
    The system manager is the Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of 
Immigration Statistics, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, 2707 
Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20528.

AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
    Section 103 of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, as 
amended (8 U.S.C. 1103); Section 709 of the Homeland Security Act of 
2002, as amended (6 U.S.C. 349(f)); Section 1092 of the National 
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 (Pub. L. 114-328, Title 
X, Sec. 1092, December 23, 2016); 6 U.S.C. 223(f); Executive Order 
13767, Border Security and Immigration Enforcement Improvements; and 
Executive Order 13768, Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the 
United States.

PURPOSE(S) OF THE SYSTEM:
    The purpose of this system is to support DHS/OIS in fulfilling its 
mandate to regularly prepare an extensive series of analytical and 
statistical reports on border security, immigration enforcement 
activities, refugee and asylum claims, and other immigration requests 
and events.

CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED:
    Categories of individuals covered by this system include 
individuals and their dependents (and individuals acting on their 
behalf such as attorneys) interacting with the U.S. Government in its 
role of implementing and enforcing its immigration system and laws, 
including those who have applied for immigration requests or received 
immigration benefits, such as adjustment of status to lawful permanent 
resident, and those who are subject to immigration enforcement actions, 
including those arrested, detained, or removed from the United States 
for criminal or administrative violations of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act.

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
     Alien Registration Number(s) (A-Number);
     Receipt file number(s);
     Full name and any aliases used;
     Known or possible addresses;
     United States destination address;
     Phone numbers and email addresses;
     Date of birth;
     Place of birth (city, state, and country);
     Countries of citizenship and nationality(ies);
     Ethnic origin;
     Languages spoken;
     Religion;
     Gender;
     Marital and family status;
     Place of marriage;
     Government-issued identification (e.g., passport 
information, permanent resident card, Trusted Traveler Program card) 
and travel document information, such as document type, issuing country 
or entity, document number, and expiration date;
     Arrival/Departure information (e.g., record number, 
expiration date, class of admission);
     Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Identification 
Number;
     Fingerprint Identification Number or other biometric 
identifying numbers;
     Digital fingerprints (i.e., numerical identification 
number);
     Other unique identifying numbers (e.g., federal, state, 
local, and tribal identification numbers);
     Detention data, including: Location, facility, 
transportation information, identification numbers, book-in/book-out 
dates and times, custody recommendation, information about an alien's 
release from custody on bond, recognizance, or supervision, information 
related to prosecutorial discretion determinations, and other alerts;
     Immigration enforcement and court case-related data, 
including: Descriptive information of events involving alleged law 
violations; arrests and charges; case number; status; record number; 
case category; proceedings and immigration judge decisions; schedule 
info; court appointments; bonds; motions; appeals; disposition; case 
agent; date initiated and completed;
     Immigration status and history (e.g., citizenship/
naturalization certificate number, removals, explanations);
     Visa information;
     Travel history;
     Port(s) and clearance processing lane or location of 
crossing, secondary examination status, date(s) and time(s) of entry, 
status at entry(ies);
     Carrier-related information, such as airline carrier code, 
flight number, vessel name and country of registry/flag, individual's 
status on board the aircraft, and the location where passengers and 
crew members will undergo customs and immigration clearance by CBP;
     Education history;
     Occupation and employment history;
     Professional accreditation information;
     Criminal history;
     Benefit case processing information, such as date 
applications were filed or received by USCIS, application/petition 
status, and fee receipt data;
     Specific benefit eligibility information as required by 
the benefit being sought;
     Claimed basis of eligibility for benefit(s) sought;
     Notices and communications, including Appointment notices, 
Receipt notices, Requests for evidence, Notices of Intent to Deny 
(NOID), Decision notices and assessments, or proofs of benefit;
     Information on preparers, representatives, and 
interpreters, including name, law firm/recognized organization, and 
physical and mailing addresses;
     Electronic biographic information on individual applicants 
for admission to the United States as refugees, Special Immigrant Visa 
individuals electing resettlement benefits, and U.S.-based relatives, 
including: A-Number, name, date and place of birth, nationality, U.S. 
ties, resettlement agency, arrival date, relationship to principal 
applicant, and destination city and state; and
     One-time person-level identifer created and used by OIS to 
link records

[[Page 14225]]

across datasets each time the data are matched.

RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
    Records are obtained from operational immigration Components within 
DHS, including U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), U.S. 
Customs and Border Protection (CBP), U.S. Immigration and Customs 
Enforcement (ICE), as well as the Executive Office for Immigration 
Review (EOIR), within the Department of Justice (DOJ), and the 
Department of State (DOS). Source systems SORNs that cover these 
records in their native form include:
     DHS/USCIS/ICE/CBP-001 Alien File, Index, and National File 
Tracking System of Records, 82 FR 43556 (September 18, 2017);
     DHS/USCIS-010 Asylum Information and Pre-Screening System 
of Records, 80 FR 74781 (November 30, 2015);
     DHS/USCIS-007 Benefits Information System, 84 FR 54622 
(October 10, 2019);
     DHS/CBP-007 Border Crossing Information, 81 FR 89957 
(December 13, 2016);
     DHS/CBP-023 Border Patrol Enforcement Records (BPER), 81 
FR 72601 (October 20, 2016);
     DHS/CBP-011 TECS, 73 FR 77778 (December 19, 2008);
     DHS/ICE-011 Criminal Arrest Records and Immigration 
Enforcement Records (CARIER) System of Records, 81 FR 72080 (October 
19, 2016);
     EOIR-001 Records and Management Information System, 69 FR 
26179 (May 11, 2004), and as amended by 82 FR 24147 (May 25, 2017); and
     State-59 Refugee Case Records, 77 FR 5865 (February 6, 
2012).

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 agencies 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. secs. 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 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 appropriate Federal Governmental agencies, with the approval 
of the Chief Privacy Officer, when OIS is aware of a need to use 
relevant data for purposes of testing new technology related to its own 
mission.
    I. To the Departments of Health and Human Services, Justice, Labor, 
and State, to support analytical, reporting, and statistical needs and 
mission related to immigration enforcement and benefits processing, 
provided that the records support DHS programs and activities that 
relate to the purpose(s) stated in this SORN, and that they will not be 
used in whole or in part in making any determination regarding an 
individual's rights, benefits, or privileges under federal programs, 
and are not published publicly in any manner that identifies an 
individual.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORAGE OF RECORDS:
    DHS/OIS stores records in this system electronically in secure 
facilities. The records may be stored on magnetic disc, tape, and 
digital media.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETRIEVAL OF RECORDS:
    OIS does not retrieve records by personal identifier for the 
purpose of making decisions about individuals. However, records are 
retrieved by a one-time person-level identifer created and used by OIS 
to link records across datasets each time the data are matched to 
ensure the data are correctly attributed to one individual across 
multiple datasets. The purpose of this is to enable OIS to examine 
large trends in groups or cohorts of those who interact with the 
immigration system. While these analyses will inform high-level 
strategic operational planning, data OIS possesses are not used 
directly for operational purposes, such as the vetting of an individual 
or the adjudication of a benefit. OIS data are strictly used for 
statistical analysis and reporting. However, records may be retrieved 
by any value or range of values of any field, including personal 
identifiers. Please see the categories of records section of this SORN 
for fields within this system of records.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETENTION AND DISPOSAL OF RECORDS:
    OIS has an established NARA-approved retention schedule, N1-563-09-
3 (January 1, 2009), which classifies OIS records into several 
categories of records. Records containing PII that OIS uses to complete 
its statistical analyses and reporting fall into Section 6: ``Research 
and background material used to produce the Yearbook of Immigration 
Statistics.'' The scheduled

[[Page 14226]]

disposition provides for the data to be evaluated for remaining 
business need or destruction three years following the end of the 
fiscal year in which the yearbook is produced. However, the schedule 
authorizes longer retention periods if records are needed for business 
use beyond this period. Due to many tables in the Yearbook of 
Immigration Statistics and accompanying reports containing tabulations 
of ten years, the need in some cases for OIS to compare new records 
with records going back several decades, and the unknown nature of 
future requests and necessary future comparisons, a large portion of 
the data OIS maintains is kept for longer than three years.

ADMINISTRATIVE, TECHNICAL, AND PHYSICAL SAFEGUARDS:
    DHS/OIS safeguards records in this system according to applicable 
rules and policies, including all applicable DHS automated systems 
security and access policies. OIS has imposed strict controls 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.

RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURES:
    The Secretary of Homeland Security has exempted portions of this 
system from the notification, access, and amendment procedures of the 
Privacy Act, and the Judicial Redress Act if applicable. These 
exemptions apply to the extent that information in this system of 
records is recompiled or is created from information contained in other 
systems of records with appropriate exemptions in place. However, DHS/
OIS will consider individual requests with the original data owner to 
determine whether or not information may be released. 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 Freedom of 
Information Act (FOIA) Officer, whose contact information can be found 
at http://www.dhs.gov/foia under ``Contact 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 Freedom of Information Act Officer, 
Department of Homeland Security, Washington, DC 20528-0655. Even if 
neither the Privacy Act nor the Judicial Redress Act provide a right of 
access, certain records about an individual may be available under the 
Freedom of Information Act.
    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 Freedom of Information 
Act Officer, http://www.dhs.gov/foia or 1-866-431-0486. In addition, 
the individual should:
     Explain why he or she believes the Department would have 
information being requested;
     Identify which component(s) of DHS he or she believes may 
have the information;
     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'' above.

EXEMPTIONS PROMULGATED FOR THE SYSTEM:
    Pursuant to 6 CFR part 5, Appendix C, the Secretary of Homeland 
Security, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(4), has exempted records created 
and aggregated by OIS in this system from the following provisions of 
the Privacy Act: 5 U.S.C. 552a(c)(3); (d); (e)(1), (e)(4)(G), 
(e)(4)(H), (e)(4)(I); and (f). When this system receives a record from 
another system exempted in that source system under 5 U.S.C. 552a(j)(2) 
and (k)(2), DHS will claim the same exemptions for those records that 
are claimed for the original primary systems of records from which they 
originated and claims any additional exemptions set forth here.

HISTORY:
    None.

Jonathan R. Cantor,
Acting Chief Privacy Officer, Department of Homeland Security.
[FR Doc. 2020-04978 Filed 3-10-20; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 9112-FP-P