[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 224 (Wednesday, November 24, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 67072-67073]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-25685]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

[Docket No. DHS-2021-0036]


Privacy Act of 1974; Computer Matching Program

AGENCY: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Department of 
Homeland Security.

ACTION: Notice of a re-established matching program.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended by the 
Computer Matching and Privacy Act of 1988 and the Computer Matching and 
Privacy Protections Amendment of 1990 (Privacy Act), and Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) guidance on the conduct of matching 
programs, notice is hereby given of the re-establishment of a matching 
program between the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), U.S. 
Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), and the Texas Workforce 
Commission (TWC). TWC will match against DHS-USCIS data to verify the 
immigration status of non-U.S. citizens who apply for federal benefits 
(Benefit Applicants) under Unemployment Compensation (UC) that TWC 
administers to determine whether Benefit Applicants possess the 
requisite immigration status to be eligible for the UC it administers.

DATES: Please submit comments on or before December 27, 2021. The 
matching program will be effective on December 27, 2021 unless comments 
have been received from interested members of the public that require 
modification and republication of the notice. The matching program will 
continue for 18 months from the beginning date and may be extended an 
additional 12 months if the conditions specified in 5 U.S.C. 
552a(o)(2)(D) have been met.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by docket number DHS-
2021-0036 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: Lynn Parker Dupree, 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-2021-0036. 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: To obtain additional information about 
this matching program and the contents of this Computer Matching 
Agreement between DHS-USCIS and TWC, please view this Computer Matching 
Agreement at the following website: https://www.dhs.gov/publication/
computer-matching-agreements-and-

[[Page 67073]]

notices. For general questions about this matching program, contact 
Jonathan M. Mills, Acting Chief, USCIS SAVE Program at (202) 306-9874. 
For general privacy questions, please contact Lynn Parker Dupree, (202) 
343-1717, Chief Privacy Officer, Department of Homeland Security, 
Washington, DC 20528-0655.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: DHS-USCIS provides this notice in accordance 
with the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a), as amended by the 
Computer Matching and Privacy Protection Act of 1988 (Pub. L. 100-503) 
and the Computer Matching and Privacy Protection Amendments of 1990 
(Pub. L. 101-508) (Privacy Act); Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
Final Guidance Interpreting the Provisions of Public Law 100-503, the 
Computer Matching and Privacy Protection Act of 1988, 54 FR 25818 (June 
19, 1989); and OMB Circular A-108, 81 FR 94424 (December 23, 2016).

PARTICIPATING AGENCIES:
    DHS-USCIS and TWC.

AUTHORITY FOR CONDUCTING THE MATCHING PROGRAM:
    Section 121 of the Immigration Reform and Control Act (IRCA) of 
1986, Public Law 99-603, as amended by the Personal Responsibility and 
Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA), Public Law 104-
193, 110 Stat. 2168 (1996), requires DHS to establish a system for the 
verification of immigration status of noncitizen applicants for, or 
recipients of, certain types of benefits as specified within IRCA, and 
to make this system available to state agencies that administer such 
benefits. The Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility 
Act of 1996 (IIRIRA), Public Law 104-208, 110 Stat. 3009 (1996) grants 
federal, state or local government agencies seeking to verify or 
ascertain the citizenship or immigration status of any individual 
within the jurisdiction of the agency with the authority to request 
such information from DHS-USCIS for any purpose authorized by law.

PURPOSE:
    This Agreement re-stablishes the terms and conditions governing 
TWC's access to, and use of, the DHS-USCIS Systematic Alien 
Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) Program, which provides 
immigration status information from federal immigration records to 
authorized users, and to comply with the Computer Matching and Privacy 
Protection Act of 1988 (CMPPA). TWC will use SAVE to verify the 
immigration status of non-U.S. citizens who apply for federal benefits 
(Benefit Applicants) under the Unemployment Compensation (UC) benefits 
program that it administers. TWC will use the information obtained 
through SAVE to determine whether Benefit Applicants possess the 
requisite immigration status to be eligible for the UC benefits 
administered by TWC. This Agreement describes the respective 
responsibilities of DHS-USCIS and TWC to verify Benefit Applicants' 
immigration status while safeguarding against unlawful discrimination 
and preserving the confidentiality of information received from the 
other party. The requirements of this Agreement will be carried out by 
authorized employees and/or contractor personnel of DHS-USCIS and TWC.

CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS:
    The individuals about whom DHS-USCIS maintains information, which 
is contained in its Verification Information System (VIS) database used 
by the SAVE Program to verify immigration status, that are involved in 
this matching program include noncitizens (meaning any person as 
defined in Immigration and Nationality Act section 101(a)(3)), those 
naturalized, and to the extent those that have applied for Certificates 
of Citizenship, derived U.S. citizens, on whom DHS-USCIS has a record 
as an applicant, petitioner, sponsor, or beneficiary. The individuals 
about whom TWC maintains information that is involved in this matching 
program include non-citizen Benefit Applicants for, or recipients of, 
UC administered by TWC.

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS:
    Data elements to be matched between TWC records and DHS-USCIS 
federal immigration records include the following: Last Name, First 
Name, Middle Name, Date of Birth, Immigration Numbers (e.g., Alien 
Registration/USCIS Number, I-94 Number, SEVIS ID Number, Certificate of 
Naturalization Number, Certificate of Citizenship Number, or Unexpired 
Foreign Passport Number), and Other Information from Immigration 
Documentation (for example, Country of Birth, Date of Entry, Employment 
Authorization Category). Additional Data elements provided to TWC from 
DHS-USCIS records related to the match may include: Citizenship or 
Immigration Data (for example, immigration class of admission and/or 
employment authorization), Sponsorship Data (for example, name, 
address, and social security number of Form I-864/I-864EZ sponsors and 
Form I-864A household members, when applicable) and Case Verification 
Number.

SYSTEM OF RECORDS:
    DHS/USCIS-004 Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) 
System of Records Notice, 85 FR 31798 (May 27, 2020).

Lynn Parker Dupree,
Chief Privacy Officer, Department of Homeland Security.
[FR Doc. 2021-25685 Filed 11-23-21; 8:45 am]
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