[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 117 (Friday, June 17, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36477-36481]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-13057]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[Docket ID ED-OFO-0004-2022]


Privacy Act Of 1974; System of Records

AGENCY: Office of Finance and Operations, U.S. Department of Education.

ACTION: Notice of a new system of records.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended 
(Privacy Act), the U.S. Department of Education (Department) is 
publishing this notice of a new system of records titled ``Reasonable 
Accommodation Program Files'' (RAPF) (18-17-01). This system contains 
records concerning reasonable accommodation requests on the basis of 
disability and religion under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as 
amended (Rehabilitation Act), Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, 
as amended (ADA), and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as 
amended (Title VII), as applicable, that are submitted to the 
Department by covered individuals.

DATES: Submit your comments on this new system of records notice on or 
before July 18, 2022.
    This new system of records will become effective upon publication 
in the Federal Register on June 17, 2022 unless the new system of 
records notice needs to be changed as a result of public comment. The 
routine uses listed in the paragraph titled ``ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS 
MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES OF USERS AND PURPOSES OF 
SUCH USES'' will become effective on July 18, 2022, unless the new 
system of records notice needs to be changed as a result of public 
comment. The Department will publish any significant changes to the 
system of records or routine uses resulting from public comment.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments through the Federal eRulemaking Portal 
or via postal mail, commercial delivery, or hand delivery. We will not 
accept comments submitted by fax or by email or those submitted after 
the comment

[[Page 36478]]

period. To ensure that we do not receive duplicate copies, please 
submit your comments only once. In addition, please include the Docket 
ID at the top of your comments.
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to www.regulations.gov to 
submit your comments electronically. Information on using 
Regulations.gov, including instructions for accessing agency documents, 
submitting comments, and viewing the docket, is available on the site 
under the ``Help'' tab.
     Postal Mail, Commercial Delivery, or Hand Delivery: If you 
mail or deliver your comments about this new system of records notice, 
address them to: Michael Chew, Director, Office of Equal Employment 
Opportunity Services, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue 
SW, Washington, DC 20202.
    Privacy Note: The Department's policy is to make all comments 
received from members of the public available for public viewing in 
their entirety on the Federal eRulemaking Portal at 
www.regulations.gov. Therefore, commenters should be careful to include 
in their comments only information that they wish to make publicly 
available.
    Assistance to Individuals with Disabilities in Reviewing the 
Rulemaking Record: On request, we will supply an appropriate 
accommodation or auxiliary aid to an individual with a disability who 
needs assistance to review the comments or other documents in the 
public rulemaking record for this notice. If you want to schedule an 
appointment for this type of accommodation or auxiliary aid, please 
contact the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michael Chew, Director, Office of 
Equal Employment Opportunity Services, U.S. Department of Education, 
400 Maryland Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20202.
    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) or a text 
telephone (TTY), you may call the Federal Relay Service at 1-800-877-
8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This system of records contains records 
concerning reasonable accommodation requests on the basis of disability 
and religion under the Rehabilitation Act, ADA, and Title VII, as 
applicable, submitted to the Department by covered individuals. 
Individuals covered by this system of records are: current and former 
Department employees; applicants for employment at the Department; 
authorized representatives of the foregoing covered employees and 
applicants (e.g., a family member or an attorney who is representing 
them); and the foregoing covered employees' and applicants' medical 
providers.
    The system will be used to, among other things, process, track the 
processing of, provide, and make decisions about these reasonable 
accommodation requests to the extent necessary to ensure Department-
wide compliance with applicable laws and regulations while preserving 
and maintaining the confidentiality of all information (e.g., medical 
and religious information) submitted in support of such requests, to 
the extent required by law.
    Accessible Format: On request to the program contact person listed 
under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, individuals with disabilities 
can obtain this document in an accessible format. The Department will 
provide the requestor with an accessible format that may include Rich 
Text Format (RTF) or text format (txt), a thumb drive, an MP3 file, 
braille, large print, audiotape, or compact disc, or other accessible 
format.
    Electronic Access to This Document: The official version of this 
document is the document published in the Federal Register. You may 
access the official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of 
Federal Regulations at www.govinfo.gov. At this site you can view this 
document, as well as all other documents of this Department published 
in the Federal Register, in text or Portable Document Format (PDF). To 
use PDF, you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at 
the site.
    You may also access documents of the Department published in the 
Federal Register by using the article search feature at 
www.federalregister.gov. Specifically, through the advanced search 
feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published 
by the Department.

Denise Carter,
Acting Assistant Secretary, Office of Finance and Operations.

    For the reasons discussed in the preamble, the U.S. Department of 
Education (Department) publishes a notice of a new system of records to 
read as follows:

SYSTEM NAME AND NUMBER:
    Reasonable Accommodation Program Files (RAPF) (18-17-01).

SECURITY CLASSIFICATION:
    Unclassified.

SYSTEM LOCATION:
    Office of Equal Employment Opportunity Services (OEEOS), U.S. 
Department of Education (Department), 400 Maryland Avenue SW, 
Washington, DC 20202.
    Federal Student Aid (FSA), U.S. Department of Education, 830 1st 
Street NE, Washington, DC 20002.
    Office of Inspector General (OIG), U.S. Department of Education, 
550 12th Street SW, Potomac Center Plaza, Washington, DC 20202.
    Clinical Health Services, Federal Occupational Health Program 
Support Center (FOH), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 
(HHS), 7700 Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 7201, Bethesda, MD 20814 
(contractor).

SYSTEM MANAGER(S):
    Reasonable Accommodation Program Manager (RAPM), OEEOS, U.S. 
Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20202.
    RAPM, FSA, U.S. Department of Education, 830 1st Street NE, 
Washington, DC 20002.
    RAPM, OIG, U.S. Department of Education, 550 12th Street SW, 
Potomac Center Plaza, Washington, DC 20202
    Occupational Medicine Consultant, Clinical Health Services, FOH, 
HHS, 7700 Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 7201, Bethesda, MD 20814 
(contractor).

AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
    Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (29 U.S.C. 791 et seq.) 
(Rehabilitation Act); Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as 
amended (ADA) (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.); 29 CFR parts 1614, 1630, and 
1640; Executive Order 13164 of July 26, 2000; Equal Employment 
Opportunity Commission's Policy Guidance on Executive Order 13164: 
Establishing Procedures to Facilitate the Provision of Reasonable 
Accommodation, Directives Transmittal Number 915.003, issued October 
20, 2000; Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended (42 
U.S.C. 2000e et seq.) (Title VII); Equal Employment Opportunity 
Commission's Compliance Manual on Religious Discrimination, Directives 
Transmittal Number 915.063, issued January 15, 2021; and, Executive 
Order 14043 of September 9, 2021 (requiring, with certain exceptions, 
COVID-19 vaccinations for all Federal employees).

PURPOSE(S) OF THE SYSTEM:
    This system of records is maintained for the purposes of: (1) 
processing, tracking the processing of, providing, and making decisions 
about reasonable accommodation requests on the basis of disability and 
religion under the Rehabilitation Act, ADA, and Title VII, as 
applicable, submitted to the Department by covered individuals, to

[[Page 36479]]

the extent that maintaining such records is necessary to ensure 
Department-wide compliance with applicable laws and regulations while 
preserving and maintaining the confidentiality of information (e.g., 
medical and religious information) submitted in support of such 
requests, to the extent required by law; and (2) the Department's RAPMs 
and OEEOS staff developing cumulative records, without individual 
identifiers, to track the Department's performance concerning the 
provision of reasonable accommodations.

CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM:
    This system contains records on the following categories of 
individuals who request a reasonable accommodation from the Department 
on the basis of a disability or religion under the Rehabilitation Act, 
ADA, or Title VII, as applicable, including individuals who obtain 
leave under the Family Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA) as a reasonable 
accommodation:
    (1) Current and former Department employees;
    (2) Applicants for employment at the Department;
    (3) Persons authorized to represent the foregoing covered employees 
and applicants (e.g., a family member or an attorney who is 
representing them); and
    (4) The medical providers of the foregoing covered employees and 
applicants.

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
    This system of records contains the following records pertaining to 
reasonable accommodation requests on the basis of disability and 
religion under the Rehabilitation Act, ADA, and Title VII, as 
applicable, made to the Department:
    (1) Requestor's full name and contact information;
    (2) Requestor's status vis-[agrave]-vis the Department (e.g., 
employee, employment applicant);
    (3) Date of the request;
    (4) If applicable, the date, time, location, and/or description or 
title of the event, meeting, program, or activity conducted by the 
Department for which the request is made;
    (5) If applicable, the job or jobs (i.e., occupational series, 
grade level, program office, and/or position description) for which the 
request is made;
    (6) Information concerning the nature of the disability or 
religious belief and the need for a reasonable accommodation;
    (7) Amount of time taken to process the request;
    (8) Whether the request was granted, denied, or partially granted 
and denied, the identity of the deciding official, and the reason(s) 
for any denial or partial denial;
    (9) Information about whether providing the requested accommodation 
would present an undue hardship for the Department; and
    (10) Sources of technical assistance consulted in identifying a 
reasonable accommodation, including interim or alternative 
accommodations.
    Information concerning the nature of the disability or religious 
belief and the need for the requested reasonable accommodation 
includes:
    (1) Documentation submitted to the Department by the requestor or 
the requestor's representative in support of their reasonable 
accommodation request;
    (2) Type(s) and description(s) of the accommodation(s) requested;
    (3) Cost(s) and expense(s) associated with the requested 
accommodation; and
    (4) How the requested reasonable accommodation would assist in a 
requesting employee's or applicant's performance of their essential job 
duties; otherwise eliminate a barrier to equal employment opportunity 
caused by the disability or religious belief; and/or enable 
participation in a meeting, event, program, or activity conducted by 
the Department.

RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
    Information in this system is provided by covered individuals, 
including current and former Department employees; applicants for 
employment at the Department; covered employees' and applicants' 
authorized representatives (e.g., a family member or an attorney who is 
representing them); and the covered employees' and applicants' medical 
providers. Information in this system also may be obtained from other 
persons or entities from which data is obtained under routine uses set 
forth below.

ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES 
OF USERS AND PURPOSES OF SUCH USES:
    Under the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended (Privacy Act), the 
Department may disclose individually identifiable information contained 
in a record in this system of records under the routine uses listed in 
this system of records without the consent of the individual if the 
disclosure is compatible with the purpose(s) for which the record was 
collected. Under the Privacy Act, the Department may make these 
disclosures on a case-by-case basis or, if the Department has complied 
with the computer matching requirements of the Privacy Act, under a 
computer matching agreement. However, any disclosure made by the 
Department of information from these records must also comply with any 
confidentiality provision that is contained in any other applicable 
Federal law, which may include Section 501 of the Rehabilitation Act 
(Section 501), the ADA, or title II of the Genetic Information 
Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA), 42 U.S.C. 2000ff et seq., and 29 
CFR 1635.9. Section 501 prohibits the Department from discriminating 
against qualified applicants or employees on the basis of disability 
and further restricts how the Department must collect and maintain 
information about the medical condition or history of applicants and 
employees. Section 501 requires the Department to maintain such 
information on separate forms and in separate medical files, to treat 
it as a confidential medical record, and to disclose it only in very 
limited circumstances that do not include all of the routine uses 
listed below. 29 CFR 1630.14(b)(1), (c)(1), and (d)(1). See also 29 
U.S.C. 791(f) (in part applying the standards under title I of the 
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 to Section 501). GINA prohibits 
the Department from discriminating on the basis of genetic information 
in its employment decisions, requires that genetic information about 
applicants, current employees, and former employees be maintained on 
separate forms and in separate medical files, treated as confidential 
medical records, and disclosed only in very limited circumstances that 
do not include all of the routine uses listed below. The disclosure by 
the Department of any information that is protected by the 
confidentiality provision of another Federal law, such as Section 501 
or the GINA, may only be made where the disclosure would be permissible 
under both the Privacy Act and the confidentiality provision of such 
other Federal law.
    (1) Congressional Member Disclosure. The Department may disclose 
information to a member of Congress and to their staff from the records 
of an individual in response to an inquiry from the member made at the 
written request of and on behalf of that individual. The member's right 
to the information is no greater than the right of the individual who 
requested the inquiry.
    (2) Litigation and Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Disclosure.
    (a) Introduction. In the event that one of the parties listed in 
sub-paragraphs (i) through (v) is involved in judicial or 
administrative litigation or ADR, or has

[[Page 36480]]

an interest in judicial or administrative litigation or ADR, the 
Department may disclose certain records to the parties described in 
paragraphs (b), (c), and (d) of this routine use under the conditions 
specified in those paragraphs:
    (i) The Department or any of its components;
    (ii) Any Department employee in their official capacity;
    (iii) Any Department employee in their individual capacity if the 
U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) agrees to or has been requested to 
provide or arrange for representation for the employee;
    (iv) Any Department employee in their individual capacity where the 
Department has agreed to represent the employee; or
    (v) The United States where the Department determines that the 
litigation is likely to affect the Department or any of its components.
    (b) Disclosure to the DOJ. If the Department determines that 
disclosure of certain records to the DOJ is relevant and necessary to 
judicial or administrative litigation or ADR, the Department may 
disclose those records as a routine use to the DOJ.
    (c) Adjudicative Disclosure. If the Department determines that 
disclosure of certain records to an adjudicative body before which the 
Department is authorized to appear, or to a person or entity designated 
by the Department or otherwise empowered to resolve or mediate 
disputes, is relevant and necessary to judicial or administrative 
litigation or ADR, the Department may disclose those records as a 
routine use to the adjudicative body, person, or entity.
    (d) Disclosure to Parties, Counsel, Representatives, or Witnesses. 
If the Department determines that disclosure of certain records is 
relevant and necessary to judicial or administrative litigation or ADR, 
the Department may disclose those records as a routine use to a party, 
counsel, representative, or witness to the judicial or administrative 
litigation or ADR.
    (3) Enforcement Disclosure. If information in this system of 
records, alone or in connection with other information, indicates a 
violation or potential violation of any statutory, regulatory, or 
legally binding requirement, the Department may disclose records to an 
entity charged with investigating or prosecuting such violation or 
potential violation.
    (4) Employee Grievance, Complaint, or Conduct Disclosure. If a 
record is relevant and necessary to an employee grievance, complaint, 
or disciplinary action involving a present or former employee of the 
Department, the Department may disclose a record in this system of 
records in the course of investigation, fact-finding, or adjudication, 
to any party to the grievance, complaint, or action; to the party's 
counsel or representative; to a witness; or to a designated fact-
finder, mediator, or other person or entity designated to resolve 
issues or decide the matter.
    (5) Labor Organization Disclosure. The Department may disclose 
records from this system of records to an arbitrator to resolve 
disputes under a negotiated grievance procedure or to officials of 
labor organizations recognized under 5 U.S.C. chapter 71 when relevant 
and necessary to their duties of exclusive representation.
    (6) Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) or Privacy Act Advice 
Disclosure. The Department may disclose records to the DOJ or the 
Office of Management and Budget if the Department concludes that 
disclosure is desirable or necessary in determining whether particular 
records are required to be disclosed under FOIA or the Privacy Act.
    (7) Contract Disclosure. If the Department contracts with an entity 
for the purposes of performing any function that requires disclosure of 
records in this system to the employees of the contractor, the 
Department may disclose the records to those employees. As part of such 
a contract, the Department shall require the contractor to agree to 
establish and maintain safeguards to protect the security and 
confidentiality of the disclosed records.
    (8) Disclosure in the Course of Responding to a Breach of Data. The 
Department may disclose records from this system to appropriate 
agencies, entities, and persons when (a) the Department suspects or has 
confirmed that there has been a breach of the system of records; (b) 
the Department has determined that as a result of the suspected or 
confirmed breach there is a risk of harm to individuals, the Department 
(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 Department's efforts to respond to the 
suspected or confirmed breach or to prevent, minimize, or remedy such 
harm.
    (9) Disclosure in Assisting Another Agency in Responding to a 
Breach of Data. The Department may disclose records from this system to 
another Federal agency or Federal entity when the Department determines 
that information from this system of records 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, programs, and operations), the Federal 
Government, or national security, resulting from a suspected or 
confirmed breach.
    (10) Investigative Disclosure. The Department may make disclosures 
to officials of the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), the Office 
of the Special Counsel (OSC), and the Equal Employment Opportunity 
Commission (EEOC) in connection with investigations of alleged or 
possible discriminatory practices in the Federal Sector, examination of 
Federal affirmative employment programs, or compliance by Federal 
agencies with functions vested in the MSPB, OSC, or EEOC.
    (11) National Archives and Records Administration Disclosure. The 
Department may disclose records to the National Archives and Records 
Administration for the purpose of records management inspections 
conducted under authority of 44 U.S.C. 2904 and 2906.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORAGE OF RECORDS:
    Records in this system are in hard copy (i.e., paper) and digital 
or other electronic form. Digital and other electronic images are 
stored on a storage area network on an encrypted server within a 
secured and controlled environment. Records, whether paper or 
electronic, may be stored in a separate, secure location at the 
Department's headquarters or at the program office level.
    If a Department employee requests a reasonable accommodation for a 
disability, then medical documentation supporting their reasonable 
accommodation request is kept in a confidential file, separate and 
apart from the requesting employee's Official Personnel Folder and the 
employee performance file.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETRIEVAL OF RECORDS:
    Records are retrieved by the reasonable accommodation requestor's 
name, reasonable accommodation request date, description or type of 
reasonable accommodation requested, the Department program office's 
name, and/or date or title of the meeting, event, program, or activity 
conducted by the Department for which a reasonable accommodation was 
requested.

[[Page 36481]]

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETENTION AND DISPOSAL OF RECORDS:
    Records are retained and disposed of in accordance with General 
Records Schedule (GRS) 2.3, Item 010 (DAA-GRS-2018-0002-0001) and Item 
020 (DAA-GRS-2018-0002-0002). GRS 2.3, Item 010, requires destruction 
of records when three (3) years old, with longer retention authorized 
if records are required for business use. GRS 2.3, Item 020, requires 
destruction of records three (3) years after a Department employee 
separates from the Department or all appeals of a reasonable 
accommodation decision have been concluded, whichever occurs later, 
with longer retention authorized if records are required for business 
use.

ADMINISTRATIVE, TECHNICAL, AND PHYSICAL SAFEGUARDS:
    All physical access to the Department's sites, and the site of the 
Department's contractor, where this system of records is also 
maintained, is controlled and monitored by security personnel who check 
each individual entering the building for the individual's employee or 
visitor badge. The computer systems employed by the Department offer a 
high degree of resistance to tampering and circumvention. These 
security systems limit data access to Department and contract staff on 
a ``need to know'' basis and control individual users' ability to 
access and alter records within the system. Direct access to this 
system of records is limited to Reasonable Accommodation Program staff 
or Department employees who have a need to know the data for the 
performance of their official duties, and who have appropriate 
clearances and permissions.

RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURES:
    If you wish to gain access to a record regarding you in this system 
of records, contact the system manager at the address listed above. You 
must provide the system manager with the necessary particulars such as 
your full, legal name, date of birth, work address, and any other 
identifying information requested by the Department while processing 
the request in order to distinguish between individuals with the same 
name. Requesters must also specify, among other things, the records 
sought. Your request must meet the requirements of the regulations at 
34 CFR 5b.5, including proof of identity.

CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES:
    If you wish to contest the content of a record regarding you in 
this system of records, contact the system manager at the address 
listed above. You must provide your full, legal name, and any other 
identifying information requested by the Department while processing 
the request to distinguish between individuals with the same name. You 
must also specify, among other things, the particular records being 
contested. Your request must meet the requirements of the regulations 
at 34 CFR 5b.7.

NOTIFICATION PROCEDURES:
    If you wish to determine whether a record exists regarding you in 
this system of records, contact the system manager at the address 
listed above. You must provide the system manager with the necessary 
particulars such as your full, legal name, date of birth, work address, 
and any other identifying information requested by the Department while 
processing the request to distinguish between individuals with the same 
name. Your request must meet the requirements of the regulations at 34 
CFR 5b.5, including proof of identity.

EXEMPTIONS PROMULGATED FOR THE SYSTEM:
    None.

HISTORY:
    None.

[FR Doc. 2022-13057 Filed 6-16-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P