[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 50 (Tuesday, March 15, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14552-14554]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-05438]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

[Docket Number: FR-7062-N-02]


Privacy Act of 1974; Matching Program

AGENCY: Office of Public and Indian Housing, Real Estate Assessment 
Center.

ACTION: Notice of a new matching program.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the Computer Matching and Privacy Protection Act 
of

[[Page 14553]]

1988, as amended, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) 
is providing notice of its intent to re-establish a computer matching 
agreement (CMA) with the Social Security Administration (SSA) for a 
recurring matching program with HUD's Office of Public and Indian 
Housing (PIH) and Office of Housing, involving comparisons of Social 
Security numbers (SSN) and benefit information provided by participants 
in any authorized HUD rental housing assistance program. HUD will 
obtain SSA data and make the results available to: (1) Program 
administrators such as public housing agencies (PHAs) and private 
owners and management agents (O/As) (collectively referred to as POAs) 
to enable them to verify the accuracy of income reported by the tenants 
(participants) of HUD rental assistance programs, and (2) contract 
administrators (CAs) overseeing and monitoring O/A operations as well 
as independent public auditors (IPAs) that audit both PHAs and O/As. 
The most recent renewal of the current matching agreement expired on 
November 7, 2021.

DATES: The CMA will become applicable 30 days after the publication of 
this notice, unless comments have been received from interested members 
of the public requiring modification and republication of the notice. 
The matching program will continue for 18 months after the applicable 
date and may be extended for an additional 12 months, if the respective 
agency Data Integrity Boards (DIBs) determine that the conditions 
specified in 5 U.S.C. 552a(o)(2)(D) have been met.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments regarding 
this notice to:
    Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 
instructions provided on that site to submit comments electronically.
    Fax: 202-619-8365.
    Email: [email protected].
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name 
and docket number for this rulemaking. 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: Contact the Recipient Agency, Nancy 
Corsiglia, Senior Agency Official for Privacy, Department of Housing 
and Urban Development, 451 Seventh Street SW, Room 6204, Washington, DC 
20410, telephone number (202) 402-4025. [This is not a toll-free 
number.] A telecommunication device for hearing- and speech-impaired 
individuals (TTY) is available at (800) 877-8339 (Federal Relay 
Service).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice supersedes a similar notice 
published in the Federal Register on March 26, 2019, at 84 FR 11321. 
Administrators of HUD rental assistance programs rely upon the accuracy 
of tenant-reported income to determine participant eligibility for and 
level of rental assistance. The computer matching program may provide 
indicators of potential tenant unreported or under-reported income, 
which will require additional verification to identify inappropriate or 
inaccurate rental assistance and may provide indicators for potential 
administrative or legal actions. The matching program will be carried 
out to detect inappropriate or inaccurate rental assistance. 
Specifically, the computer matching program will match HUD's tenant 
data to SSA's death data, Social Security (SS) and Supplemental 
Security Income (SSI) benefits data.
    Participating Agencies: Department of Housing and Urban Development 
and the Social Security Administration.
    Authority for Conducting the Matching Program: 42 U.S.C. 3543 
authorizes HUD to require rental assistance applicants and participants 
to disclose their SSNs. HUD requires, as a condition of eligibility, 
that individuals requesting, or continuing to receive, rental 
assistance disclose their SSNs (24 CFR 5.216). Section 1106 of the 
Social Security Act (Act) (42 U.S.C. 1306) and the regulations 
promulgated thereunder provide legal authority for SSA's disclosures in 
this agreement (20 CFR part 401). Section 205(r)(3) of the Act (42 
U.S.C. 405(r)(3)) provides legal authority for SSA to disclose death 
data to Federal agencies to ensure proper payment of Federally funded 
benefits. Pursuant to section 7213 of the Intelligence Reform and 
Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, Public Law (Pub. L.) No. 108-458, SSA 
includes death indicators in verification routines that SSA determines 
to be appropriate.
    Purpose(s): HUD's primary objective of the computer matching 
program is to verify the income of participants in certain rental 
assistance programs to determine the appropriate level of rental 
assistance, and to detect, deter, and correct fraud, waste, and abuse 
in rental housing assistance programs. In meeting these objectives, HUD 
also is carrying out a responsibility under 42 U.S.C. 1437f(k) to 
ensure that income data provided to POAs by household members is 
complete and accurate. HUD's various rental housing assistance programs 
require that participants meet certain income and other criteria to be 
eligible for rental assistance. In addition, tenants generally are 
required to report and recertify the amounts and sources of their 
income at least annually. However, under the Quality Housing and Work 
Responsibility Act of 1998, PHAs operating Public Housing programs may 
offer tenants the option to pay a flat rent or an income-based rent. 
Those tenants who select a flat rent will be required to recertify 
income at least every three years. In addition, the changes to the 
Admissions and Occupancy final rule (March 29, 2000 (65 FR 16692)) 
specified that household composition must be recertified annually for 
tenants who select a flat rent or income-based rent. Additional uses/
benefits of this computer matching program include: (1) Increasing the 
availability of rental assistance to individuals who meet the 
requirements of the rental assistance programs; (2) after removal of 
personal identifiers, conducting analyses of SSA death data and benefit 
information, and income reporting of program participants; and (3) 
measuring improper payments due to under-reporting of income and/or 
overpayment of subsidy on behalf of deceased program participants.

Categories of Individuals

Covered Programs

    This notice of computer matching program applies to individuals 
receiving assistance from the following rental assistance programs:

a. Disaster Housing Assistance Program (DHAP) under the United States 
Housing Act of 1937
b. Public Housing under 24 CFR part 960
c. Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) under 24 CFR part 982
d. Project-Based Vouchers Section 24 CFR parts 880, 881, 883, 884, 886, 
and 891
e. New Construction Multifamily Assisted Housing Reform and 
Affordability Act of 1997 (42 U.S.C. 1437f)
f. Substantial Rehabilitation Multifamily Assisted Housing Reform and 
Affordability Act of 1997 (42 U.S.C. 1437f)
g. Section 202/8 of the Housing Act of 1959 (12 U.S.C. 1701q)
h. Rural Housing Services Section 515/8 under section 515 of title V of 
the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1485)

[[Page 14554]]

i. Loan Management Set-Aside Section 236 of the National Housing Act 
(12 U.S.C. 1715z-1)
j. Property Disposition Set-Aside of the Housing Act of 1959 (12 U.S.C. 
1701)
k. Section 101 Rent Supplement of the Housing and Urban Development Act 
of 1965 (12 U.S.C. 1701s)
l. Section 202/162 Project Assistance Contract of the Housing Act of 
1959 (24 CFR 891.655)
m. Section 202 Project Rental Assistance Contract (PRAC) of the Housing 
Act of 1959 (12 U.S.C. 1701q)
n. Section 811 PRAC of the Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable 
Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 8013)
o. Section 236 of the National Housing Act (12 U.S.C. 1715z-1)
p. Section 236 Rental Assistance Program (RAP) of the National Housing 
Act (12 U.S.C. 1715z-1)
q. Section 221(d)(3) Below Market Interest Rate and 236 of the National 
Housing Act of 1959 (12 U.S.C. 171519(d)(3) and 1715z-1)
r. Section 8 Moderate Rehabilitation (24 CFR part 882)
s. Project-Based Voucher (24 CFR part 983)

    Note: The Low-Income Housing Tax Credit and Rural Housing 
Services Section 515 (non-section 8) are not included under the 
rental housing assistance programs covered under this CMA.

    Categories of Records: The following are the categories of record 
in this matching agreement that HUD will provide SSA for each 
individual for whom HUD requests information:

[ssquf] First name
[ssquf] Last name
[ssquf] SSN
[ssquf] Date of Birth (DOB)

    SSA will provide HUD with the following information for each 
individual for whom HUD requests information:

[ssquf] The amount of monthly benefits for each recipient of Title II, 
Title XVI, and Title VIII benefits
[ssquf] SSN match/no match response
[ssquf] In the case of a ``no match'', the reason for the no match 
response in the form of an error code
[ssquf] A death indicator, if applicable

    System(s) of Records: SSA will conduct the matching of tenant SSNs 
and additional identifiers (surnames and DOBs) to tenant data that HUD 
supplies from its systems of records known as:
    1. Tenant Rental Assistance Certification System (TRACS) 
HSNG.MF.HITS.02, a component of HUD's Tenant Housing Assistance and 
Contract Verification Data System, published on August 22, 2016 (81 FR 
56684);
    2. Inventory Management System, Public Housing Information System 
(IMS/PIC), HUD/PIH.01, published on March 25, 2019 (84 FR 11117); and
    3. Enterprise Income Verification (EIV) System, HUD/PIH-5, 
published on September 1, 2009 (74 FR 45235).
    Program administrators utilize the form HUD-50058 module within 
IMS/PIC system and the form HUD-50059 module within TRACS to provide 
HUD with the tenant data. SSA will match the tenant data in TRACS and 
IMS/PIC to its systems of records known as
    1. SSA's Master Files of Social Security Number (SSN) Holders and 
SSN Applications (Enumeration System), 60-0058; last fully published 
December 29, 2010 (75 FR 82121) and amended on July 5, 2013 (78 FR 
40542), February 13, 2014 (79 FR 8780), July 3, 2018 (83 FR 31250 and 
83 FR 31251), and November 1, 2018 (83 FR 54969);
    2. Supplemental Security Income Record and Special Veterans 
Benefits, 60-0103, last fully published on January 11, 2006 (71 FR 
1830) and amended December 10, 2007 (72 FR 69723), July 3, 2018 (83 FR 
31250 and 83 FR 31251) and November 1, 2018 (83 FR 64969); and
    3. Master Beneficiary Record (MBR), 60-0090, last fully published 
on January 11, 2006 (71 FR 1826) and amended on December 10, 2007 (72 
FR 69723), July 5, 2013 (78 FR 40542), July 3, 2018 (83 FR 31250 and 83 
FR 31251), and November 1, 2018 (83 FR 54969).

    Dated: January 11, 2022.
Nancy Corsiglia,
Senior Agency Official for Privacy.
[FR Doc. 2022-05438 Filed 3-14-22; 8:45 am]
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