[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 239 (Thursday, December 16, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 71494-71497]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-27345]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

[FR ID: 62319]


Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Notice of a modified system of records.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Communications Commission (FCC or Commission or 
Agency) is modifying a system of records, FCC/WCB-3, Emergency 
Broadband Benefit Program, subject to the Privacy Act of 1974, as 
amended. This action is necessary to meet the requirements of the 
Privacy Act to publish in the Federal Register notice of the existence 
and character of records maintained by the agency. The Emergency 
Broadband Benefit Program (``Emergency Broadband'') provides discounts 
for broadband internet access service (``BIAS'') to qualifying 
households. Under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, signed 
into law on November 15, 2021, the Emergency Broadband program will 
become the Affordable Connectivity Program (``ACP'') on December 31, 
2021. A household may qualify for ACP if an individual in the household 
has applied for and has been approved to receive benefits under the 
free and reduced price lunch program, receives assistance through the 
special supplemental nutritional program for women, infants, and 
children established by section 17 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1996 
(``WIC''), receives a Pell Grant, qualifies for the Lifeline program, 
meets certain income requirements, or qualifies for a low-income 
program offered by internet service providers. The ACP will be 
administered by the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) 
under

[[Page 71495]]

the direction of the Commission and, by delegation, of the Commission's 
Wireline Competition Bureau (WCB). This system of records contains 
information about individual ACP participants, providers' claims and 
certifying officers, and providers' enrollment representatives.

DATES: Written comments are due on or before January 18, 2022. This 
action takes effect on December 16, 2021, except for any new or 
significantly modified routine uses, which will take effect on January 
18, 2022.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to Brendan McTaggart, Federal Communications 
Commission (FCC), 45 L Street NE, Washington, DC 20554, or to 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brendan McTaggart, (202) 418-1738, or 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In December 2020, Congress passed and the 
President signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 authorizing 
Emergency Broadband Service During Emergency Period Related to COVID-
19, establishing the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program to temporarily 
provide eligible households a discount on the cost of internet service 
and a subsidy for low-cost devices such as computers and tablets. The 
Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) was designated to 
administer this Program. In November 2021, Congress passed and the 
President signed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, modifying 
and extending the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program and changing its 
name to the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). Households can 
qualify for the benefit if an individual in the household: Has applied 
for and has been approved to receive benefits under the free and 
reduced price lunch program, receives a Pell Grant, receives assistance 
under WIC (42 U.S.C. 1786), qualifies for the Lifeline program, meets 
certain income requirements, or qualifies for a low-income program 
offered by internet service providers. USAC will administer this 
program on behalf of the Commission.
    The substantive changes and modifications to the previously 
published version of the FCC/WCB-3 system of records include:
    (a) Updating the name of the system of records to reflect the 
change in the title of the program;
    (b) Updating the authorities to include the Infrastructure 
Investment and Jobs Act that modifies the Consolidated Appropriations 
Act, 2021;
    (c) Updating the purpose for maintaining this system of records to 
include using the information to perform recertification verifications 
and provide program notifications;
    (d) Updating the categories of records maintained in this system of 
records to add email address and identification number of veteran or 
beneficiary issued by the Veterans Administration;
    (e) Updating the name of the program throughout the system of 
records notice; and,
    (f) Updating the Summary to include WIC participant households as 
households qualifying for ACP benefits.
    (g) Updating Routine Use 1 to remove the FCC as already covered by 
the Privacy Act under 5 U.S.C. 552a(b)(1).
    (h) Consolidating Routine Uses 2, 3, and 4, and deleting Routine 
Uses 3 and 4.
    (i) Consolidating Routine Uses 5 and 7, and deleting Routine Use 7.
    (j) Modifying Routine Use 8 to avoid overlap with Routine Use 5.
    (k) Modifying Routine Use 15 and creating a new Routine Use 16 to 
distinguish disclosures to the U.S. Department of Justice from 
disclosures to a court or other adjudicative body.
    (l) Consolidating Routine Use 18 into Routine Uses 5 and 10, and 
deleting Routine Use 18.
    (m) Making other conforming and grammatical edits, including 
renumbering the Routine Uses.
SYSTEM NAME AND NUMBER:
    FCC/WCB-3, Affordable Connectivity Program.

SECURITY CLASSIFICATION:
    No information in the system is classified.

SYSTEM LOCATION(S):
    Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC), 700 12th Street 
NW, Suite 900, Washington, DC 20005; and
    Wireline Competition Bureau (WCB), Federal Communications 
Commission (FCC), 45 L Street NE, Washington, DC 20554.

SYSTEM MANAGER(S) AND ADDRESS(ES):
     USAC administers the ACP for the FCC.
    Address inquiries to the Universal Service Administrative Company 
(USAC), 700 12th Street NW, Suite 900, Washington, DC 20005; or
    Wireline Competition Bureau (WCB), 45 L Street NE, Washington, DC 
20554.

AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
    47 U.S.C. 151-154, 201-205, 214, 403; Consolidated Appropriations 
Act, 2021, Public Law 116-260 Sec.  904; Infrastructure Investment and 
Jobs Act, Public Law 117-58 Sec. Sec.  60501 et seq.; 47 CFR Sections 
54.400, 54.401, 54.404, 54.407, 54.409, 54.410, 54.417, 54.419, 54.420, 
54.1600-54.1612.

PURPOSE(S):
    This system of records is maintained for use in determining whether 
a member of a household meets the eligibility criteria to qualify for 
and/or recertify for a discount on the cost of internet service and a 
subsidy for low-cost devices such as computers and tablets; ensuring 
benefits are not duplicated; dispute resolution regarding eligibility 
for the ACP; customer surveys and program notifications; audit; 
verification of a provider's representative identity; and statistical 
studies.

CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM:
    The categories of individuals in this system include, but are not 
limited to, those individuals who have applied for the ACP; are 
currently receiving ACP benefits; are individuals who enable another 
individual to qualify for benefits, including veterans or their 
beneficiaries; are minors whose status qualifies a household for 
benefits; are individuals who have received benefits under the Lifeline 
Program; or are individuals acting on behalf of a participating 
provider as enrollment representatives who have enrolled or verified 
the eligibility of a household in the ACP.

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
    The categories of records in the system include an applicant's 
first and last name; email address; residential address; information on 
whether the individual resides on Tribal lands or certain high-cost 
areas; information on whether the address is temporary and/or 
descriptive and whether it includes coordinates; mailing address (if 
different); address based on geographic coordinates (geocoding); 
internet Protocol (IP) address; date of birth; last four digits of 
social security number, full Tribal identification number, or 
identification number assigned by the Veterans Administration; 
telephone number; full name of the qualifying person (if different from 
the individual applicant); qualifying person's date of birth; 
qualifying person's email address; qualifying person's residential 
address; qualifying person's mailing address; the last four digits of 
the qualifying person's social security number, their full Tribal 
identification number, or identification number assigned by the 
Veterans Administration; information on whether the qualifying person 
resides on Tribal lands or certain high cost areas; full

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name of the veteran (if different from the individual applicant and 
qualifying person); veteran's date of birth (if different from the 
individual applicant and qualifying person); the veteran's 
identification number assigned by the Veterans Administration; 
veteran's email address; the veteran's residential address (if 
different from the individual applicant and qualifying person); the 
veteran's mailing address; means of qualification for the ACP (i.e., 
participation in Lifeline, receipt of a Pell Grant, qualification for 
federal nutrition programs, etc.); documents demonstrating eligibility; 
ACP subscriber identification number; ACP application number; security 
question; answer to security question; user name; password; agent 
identification information (if an agent is assisting in completing the 
application); individual applicant's eligibility certifications; 
individual applicant's signature and date of application; ACP service 
initiation date and termination date; amount of discount received; and 
amount of device benefit received.
    For participating provider enrollment representatives who register 
to access the National Verifier or National Lifeline Accountability 
Database the following information may be collected: First and last 
name, date of birth, the last four digits of his or her social security 
number, email address, and address, or other identity proof 
documentation.

RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
    Participating providers and their registered enrollment 
representatives; individuals applying on behalf of a household; 
schools; Lifeline databases; and State, Federal, Local and Tribal 
Government databases; and third-party identity verifiers.

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, all or a portion of the records or 
information contained in this system may be disclosed to authorized 
entities, as is determined to be relevant and necessary, outside the 
FCC as a routine use pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(b)(3) as follows:
    1. Program Management--To USAC employees to conduct official duties 
associated with the management, operation, and oversight of the ACP, 
the National Lifeline Accountability Database (NLAD), the National 
Verifier, and the Representative Accountability Database (RAD), as 
directed by the Commission.
    2. Third Party Contractors--To an employee of a third-party 
contractor engaged by USAC or a participating provider, or to a 
subcontractor engaged by a third-party contractor engaged by USAC, to, 
among other things, develop the ACP Eligibility Database, perform and 
review eligibility evaluations where the National Verifier conducts 
such processes for purposes of performing manual eligibility 
verification (when needed), conduct the eligibility verification or 
recertification process, run call center and email support operations, 
assist in dispute resolution, and develop, test, and operate the 
database system and network.
    3. Federal, State, and Local Agencies, Tribal Nations and Agencies, 
and Other Authorized Government Entities--To designated Federal, State, 
and Local agencies, and Tribal Nations and agencies, and other 
authorized governmental entities that share data with USAC or the FCC 
for purposes of eligibility verification, including through a computer 
matching program; providing enrollment and other selected reports; or 
comparing information contained in NLAD and ACP eligibility.
    4. Social Service Agencies and Other Approved Third Parties--To 
social service agencies and other third parties that have been approved 
by USAC for purposes of assisting individuals in applying for the ACP.
    5. Tribal Nations--To Tribal Nations for purposes of assisting 
individuals in applying for and recertifying for ACP.
    6. Service Providers--To broadband providers, and their registered 
representatives, in order to confirm an individual's eligibility, 
complete benefit transfer requests, facilitate the provision of 
service, complete de-enrollments, allow for the provider to receive 
reimbursement through the ACP, to provide information to the relevant 
provider about a registered enrollment representative whose account has 
been disabled for cause, and provide enrollment and other selected 
reports.
    7. Other Federal Program Eligibility--To disclose an individual's 
ACP participation status to a federal agency or contractor, including 
through a computer matching program, when a federal program 
administered by the agency or its contractor uses qualification for ACP 
as an eligibility criterion.
    8. FCC Enforcement Actions--When a record in this system involves 
an informal complaint filed alleging a violation of FCC rules and 
regulations by an applicant, licensee, certified or regulated entity, 
or an unlicensed person or entity, the complaint may be provided to the 
alleged violator for a response. Where a complainant in filing his or 
her complaint explicitly requests confidentiality of his or her name 
from public disclosure, the Commission will endeavor to protect such 
information from public disclosure. Complaints that contain requests 
for confidentiality may be dismissed if the Commission determines that 
the request impedes the Commission's ability to investigate and/or 
resolve the complaint.
    9. Congressional Inquiries--To provide information to a 
Congressional office from the record of an individual in response to an 
inquiry from that Congressional office made at the request of that 
individual.
    10. Government-Wide Program Management and Oversight--To the 
Department of Justice (DOJ) to obtain that department's advice 
regarding disclosure obligations under the Freedom of Information Act 
(FOIA); or the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to obtain that 
office's advice regarding obligations under the Privacy Act.
    11. Law Enforcement and Investigation--To disclose pertinent 
information to appropriate Federal, State, or local agencies, 
authorities, and officials responsible for investigating, prosecuting, 
enforcing, or implementing a statute, rule, regulation, or order, where 
the FCC or USAC becomes aware of an indication of a violation or 
potential violation of a civil or criminal statute, law, regulation, or 
order, including but not limited to notifying the Internal Revenue 
Service (IRS) to investigate income eligibility verification.
    12. Litigation--To disclose the records to the Department of 
Justice (DOJ) when: (a) The FCC or any component thereof; (b) any 
employee of the FCC in his or her official capacity; (c) any employee 
of the FCC in his or her individual capacity where the DOJ or the FCC 
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, the FCC determines that the records 
are both relevant and necessary to the litigation, and the use of such 
records by the Department of Justice is for a purpose that is 
compatible with the purpose for which the FCC collected the records.
    13. Adjudication--To disclose the records in a proceeding before a 
court or adjudicative body, when: (a) The FCC or any component thereof; 
or (b) any employee of the FCC in his or her official capacity; or (c) 
any employee of the FCC in his or her individual

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capacity; or (d) the United States Government, is a party to litigation 
or has an interest in such litigation, and by careful review, the FCC 
determines that the records are both relevant and necessary to the 
litigation, and that the use of such records is for a purpose that is 
compatible with the purpose for which the agency collected the records.
    14. Breach Notification--To appropriate agencies, entities 
(including USAC), and persons when: (a) The Commission suspects or has 
confirmed that there has been a breach of the system of records; (b) 
the Commission has determined that as a result of the suspected or 
confirmed compromise there is a risk of harm to individuals, the 
Commission (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 the Commission's efforts to 
respond to the suspected or confirmed breach or to prevent, minimize, 
or remedy such harm.
    15. Assistance to Federal Agencies and Entities--To another Federal 
agency or Federal entity or USAC, when the Commission determines that 
information from this system 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 recipient agency or entity (including its 
information systems, program, and operations), the Federal Government, 
or national security, resulting from a suspected or confirmed breach.
    16. Prevention of Fraud, Waste, and Abuse Disclosure--To Federal 
agencies, non-Federal entities, their employees, and agents (including 
contractors, their agents or employees; employees or contractors of the 
agents or designated agents); or contractors, their employees or agents 
with whom the FCC or USAC has a contract, service agreement, 
cooperative agreement, or computer matching agreement for the purpose 
of: (1) Detection, prevention, and recovery of improper payments; (2) 
detection and prevention of fraud, waste, and abuse in Federal programs 
administered by a Federal agency or non-Federal entity; (3) detection 
of fraud, waste, and abuse by individuals in their operations and 
programs, but only to the extent that the information shared is 
necessary and relevant to verify pre-award and prepayment requirements 
prior to the release of Federal funds, prevent and recover improper 
payments for services rendered under programs of the FCC or of those 
Federal agencies and non-Federal entities to which the FCC or USAC 
provides information under this routine use.
    17. Contract Services, Grants, or Cooperative Agreements--To 
disclose information to FCC or USAC contractors, grantees, or 
volunteers who have been engaged to assist the FCC or USAC in the 
performance of a contract service, grant, cooperative agreement, or 
other activity related to this system of records and who need to have 
access to the records in order to perform their activity.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORAGE OF RECORDS:
    The information pertaining to the ACP includes electronic records, 
files, data, paper documents, records, and may include audio recordings 
of calls. Records are maintained in secure, limited access areas. 
Physical entry by unauthorized persons is restricted through use of 
locks, passwords, and other security measures. Both USAC and its 
contractors will jointly manage the electronic data housed at USAC and 
at the contractors' locations. Paper documents and other physical 
records (i.e., tapes, compact discs, etc.) will be kept in locked, 
controlled access areas. Paper documents submitted by applicants to the 
ACP and provider representatives will be digitized, and paper copies 
will be immediately destroyed after digitization.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETRIEVAL OF RECORDS:
    Information in the ACP system of records may be retrieved by 
various identifiers, including, but not limited to the individual's 
name, last four digits of the social security number, Tribal 
identification number, identification number assigned by the Veterans 
Administration, date of birth, email address, phone number, address, 
and ACP subscriber identification number.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETENTION AND DISPOSAL OF RECORDS:
    The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) has not 
established a records schedule for the information in the ACP system of 
records. Consequently, until NARA has approved a records schedule, USAC 
will maintain all information in the ACP system of records in 
accordance with NARA records management directives.

ADMINSTRATIVE, TECHNICAL, AND PHYSICAL SAFEGUARDS:
    The electronic records, data, and files are maintained in the FCC 
and the USAC computer network databases, which are protected by the 
FCC's and USAC's privacy safeguards, a comprehensive and dynamic set of 
IT safety and security protocols and features that are designed to meet 
all Federal IT privacy standards, including those required by the 
National Institute of Standard and Technology (NIST) and the Federal 
Information Security Management System (FISMA). In addition, access to 
the electronic files is restricted to authorized USAC and contractors' 
supervisors and staff and to the FCC's supervisors and staff in WCB and 
to the IT contractors who maintain these computer databases. Other FCC 
employees and contractors may be granted access only on a ``need-to-
know'' basis. In addition, data in the network servers for both USAC 
and its contractors will be routinely backed-up. The servers will be 
stored in secured environments to protect the data.
    The paper documents and files are maintained in file cabinets in 
USAC and the contractors' office suites. The file cabinets are locked 
when not in use and at the end of the business day. Access to these 
files is restricted to authorized USAC and its contractors' staffs.

RECORDS ACCESS PROCEDURES:
    Individuals wishing to request access to and/or amendment of 
records about themselves should follow the Notification Procedure 
below.

CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES:
    Individuals wishing to request an amendment of records about 
themselves should follow the Notification Procedure below.

NOTIFICATION PROCEDURE:
    Individuals wishing to determine whether this system of records 
contains information about themselves may do so by writing Federal 
Communications Commission (FCC), Washington, DC 20554, [email protected]. 
Individuals requesting access must also comply with the FCC's Privacy 
Act regulations regarding verification of identity to gain access to 
the records (47 CFR Part 0, Subpart E).

EXEMPTIONS CLAIMED FOR THE SYSTEM:
    None.

HISTORY:
    86 FR 11523 (Feb. 25, 2021).

Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene Dortch,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2021-27345 Filed 12-15-21; 8:45 am]
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