[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 234 (Thursday, December 9, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 70162-70164]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-26610]


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DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS


Privacy Act of 1974; Matching Program

AGENCY: Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).

ACTION: Notice of a modified matching program.

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SUMMARY: This is an 18-month re-establishment computer matching 
agreement (CMA) with the Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC), 
Department of Defense (DoD) and the Department of Veterans Affairs 
(VA), Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), regarding Veterans who 
are in return to active duty and in receipt of compensation or pension 
benefits. The purpose of this CMA is to re-establish the agreement 
between VA, Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) and the DoD, DMDC. 
DoD will disclose information about individuals who have returned to 
active duty. VBA will use this information as a match for recipients of 
Compensation and Pension benefits for adjustments of awards.

DATES: Comments on this matching program must be received no later than 
January 10, 2022. If no public comment is received during the period 
allowed for comment or unless otherwise published in the Federal 
Register by VA, the new agreement will become effective a minimum of 30 
days after date of publication in the Federal Register. If VA receives 
public comments, VA shall review the comments to determine whether any 
changes to the notice are necessary. This matching program will be 
valid for 18 months from the effective date of this notice.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted through www.Regulations.gov or 
mailed to VA Privacy Service, 810

[[Page 70163]]

Vermont Avenue NW, (005R1A), Washington, DC 20420. Comments should 
indicate that they are submitted in response to ``CMA #2 Return to 
Active Duty #87''. Comments received will be available at 
regulations.gov for public viewing, inspection or copies.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Charlene Small (VBA), Program Analyst, 
Department of Veterans Affairs, 810 Vermont Ave. NW, Room 1064, 
Washington, DC 20420, 202-306-8914, [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This agreement continues an arrangement for 
a periodic computer-matching program between the United States 
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veterans Benefits Administration 
(VBA) as the matching recipient agency and the Department of Defense 
(DoD), Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC) as the matching source 
agency. This agreement sets forth the responsibilities of VBA and DoD 
with respect to information disclosed pursuant to this agreement and 
considers both agencies' responsibilities under the Privacy Act of 
1974, 5 U.S.C. 552a, as amended by the Computer Matching and Privacy 
Protection Act of 1988, as amended, and the regulations promulgated 
thereunder, including computer matching portions of a revision of OMB 
Circular No. A-130, 65 FR 77677 dated December 12, 2000.

PARTICIPATING AGENCIES:
    VA, VBA as the matching recipient agency and DoD, DMDC as the 
matching source agency.

AUTHORITY FOR CONDUCTING THE MATCHING PROGRAM:
    The legal authority for conducting the matching program for use in 
the administration of VA's Compensation and Pension Benefits Programs 
is contained in 38 U.S.C. 5304(c), Prohibition Against Duplication of 
Benefits, which precludes pension, compensation, or retirement pay on 
account of any person's own service, for any period for which he 
receives active duty pay. The head of any Federal department or agency 
shall provide, pursuant to 38 U.S.C. 5106, such information as 
requested by VA for the purpose of determining eligibility for, or 
amount of benefits, or verifying other information with respect 
thereto.

PURPOSE(S):
    The purpose of this matching program between VBA and DoD is to 
identify those Veterans and VA beneficiaries who are in receipt of 
certain VA benefit payments and have returned to active duty. VBA has 
the obligation to reduce or suspend compensation and pension benefit 
payments to Veterans who have returned to active duty. VBA will use the 
DoD records provided in the match to update the master records of 
Veterans and VA beneficiaries receiving benefits and to adjust their VA 
benefits, accordingly, if needed.

CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS:
    (1) Veterans who have applied for compensation for service-
connected disability under 38 U.S.C. Chapter 11.
    (2) Veterans who have applied for nonservice-connected disability 
under 38 U.S.C. Chapter 15.
    (3) Veterans entitled to burial benefits under 38 U.S.C. Chapter 
23.
    (4) Surviving spouses and children who have claimed pensions based 
on nonservice-connected death of a Veteran under 38 U.S.C. Chapter 15.
    (5) Surviving spouses and children who have claimed death 
compensation based on service-connected death of a Veteran under 38 
U.S.C. Chapter 11.
    (6) Surviving spouses and children who have claimed dependency and 
indemnity compensation for service-connected death of a Veteran under 
38 U.S.C. Chapter 13.
    (7) Parents who have applied for death compensation based on 
service connected death of a Veteran under 38 U.S.C. Chapter 11.
    (8) Parents who have applied for dependency and indemnity 
compensation for service-connected death of a Veteran under 38 U.S.C. 
Chapter 13.
    (9) Individuals who applied for educational assistance benefits 
administered by VA under title 38 of the U.S. Code.
    (10) Individuals who applied for educational assistance benefits 
maintained by the Department of Defense under title 10 of the U.S. Code 
that are administered by VA.
    (11) Veterans who apply for training and employers who apply for 
approval of their programs under the provisions of the Emergency 
Veterans' Job Training Act of 1983, Public Law 98-77.
    (12) Any VA employee who generates or finalizes adjudicative 
actions using the Benefits Delivery Network (BDN) or the Veterans 
Service Network (VETSNET) computer processing systems.
    (13) Veterans who apply for training and employers who apply for 
approval of their programs under the provisions of the Service Members 
Occupational Conversion and Training Act of 1992, Public Law 102-484.
    (14) Representatives of individuals covered by the system.

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS:
    The record, or information contained in the record, may include:
    (1) Identifying information (e.g., name, address, social security 
number);
    (2) Military service and active duty separation information (e.g., 
name, service number, date of birth, rank, sex, total amount of active 
service, branch of service, character of service, pay grade, assigned 
separation reason, service period, whether Veteran was discharged with 
a disability, reenlisted, received a Purple Heart or other military 
decoration);
    (3) Payment information (e.g., Veteran payee name, address, dollar 
amount of readjustment service pay, amount of disability or pension 
payments, number of non-pay days, any amount of indebtedness (accounts 
receivable) arising from title 38 U.S.C. benefits and which are owed to 
the VA);
    (4) Medical information (e.g., medical and dental treatment in the 
Armed Forces including type of service connected disability, medical 
facilities, or medical or dental treatment by VA health care personnel 
or received from private hospitals and health care personnel relating 
to a claim for VA disability benefits or medical or dental treatment);
    (5) Personal information (e.g., marital status, name and address of 
dependents, occupation, amount of education of a Veteran or a 
dependent, dependent's relationship to Veteran);
    (6) Education benefit information (e.g., information arising from 
utilization of training benefits such as a Veteran trainee's induction, 
reentrance or dismissal from a program or progress and attendance in an 
education or training program);
    (7) Applications for compensation, pension, education and 
vocational rehabilitation benefits and training--which may contain 
identifying information, military service and active duty separation 
information, payment information, medical and dental information, 
personal and education benefit information relating to a Veteran or 
beneficiary's incarceration in a penal institution (e.g., name of 
incarcerated Veteran or beneficiary, claims folder number, name and 
address of penal institution, date of commitment, type of offense, 
scheduled release date, Veteran's date of birth, beneficiary 
relationship to Veteran and whether Veteran or beneficiary is in a work 
release or half-way house program, on parole or has been released from 
incarceration);
    (8) VA employee's BDN or VETSNET identification numbers, the number 
and kind of actions generated and/or

[[Page 70164]]

finalized by each such employee, the compilation of cases returned for 
each employee.

SYSTEM(S) OF RECORDS:
    Compensation, Pension, Education, and Vocational Rehabilitation and 
Employment Records--VA (58 VA 21/22/28), published at 86 FR 61858 
(November 8, 2021), last amended at 84 FR 4138 on February 14, 2019.

Signing Authority

    The Senior Agency Official for Privacy, or designee, approved this 
document and authorized the undersigned to sign and submit the document 
to the Office of the Federal Register for publication electronically as 
an official document of the Department of Veterans Affairs. Joseph S. 
Stenaka, Executive Director for Information Security Operations, Chief 
Privacy Officer and Chair of the VA Data Integrity Board approved this 
document on November 30, 2021 for publication.

    Dated: December 3, 2021.
Amy L. Rose,
Program Analyst, VA Privacy Service, Office of Information Security, 
Office of Information and Technology, Department of Veterans Affairs.
[FR Doc. 2021-26610 Filed 12-8-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8320-01-P