[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 118 (Wednesday, June 21, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40266-40268]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-13091]


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FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM


Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records

AGENCY: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.

ACTION: Notice of a modified system of records.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the provisions of the Privacy Act of 1974, notice 
is given that the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System 
(Board) proposes to modify an existing system of records entitled 
BGFRS-20, ``FRB--Survey of Consumer Finances'' to account for changes 
necessitated by title III of the Foundations for Evidence-Based 
Policymaking Act of 2018 (Evidence Act). BGFRS-20 is a system of 
records that covers the Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF), which is a 
voluntary triennial survey of a representative sample of households 
that collects information on household finances, income, employment, 
attitudes and demographics.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before July 21, 2023. This 
modified system of records will become effective July 21, 2023, without 
further notice, unless comments dictate otherwise.
    The Office of Management and Budget (OMB), which has oversight 
responsibility under the Privacy Act, requires a 30-day period prior to 
publication in the Federal Register in which to review the system and 
to provide any comments to the agency. The public is then given a 30-
day period in which to comment, in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(4) 
and (11).

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by BGFRS-20 ``FRB--
Survey of Consumer Finances,'' by any of the following methods:
     Agency Website: https://www.federalreserve.gov. Follow the 
instructions for submitting comments at https://www.federalreserve.gov/apps/foia/proposedregs.aspx.
     Email: [email protected]. Include SORN name 
and number in the subject line of the message.
     Fax: (202) 452-3819 or (202) 452-3102.
     Mail: Ann E. Misback, Secretary, Board of Governors of the 
Federal Reserve System, 20th Street and Constitution Avenue NW, 
Washington, DC 20551.
    In general, all public comments will be made available on the 
Board's website at www.federalreserve.gov/generalinfo/foia/ProposedRegs.cfm as submitted, and will not be modified to remove 
confidential, contact or any identifiable information. Public comments 
may also be viewed electronically or in paper in Room M-4365A, 2001 C 
St. NW Washington, DC 20551, between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. during 
Federal business weekdays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David B. Husband, Senior Counsel, 
(202) 530-6270, or [email protected]; Legal Division, Board of 
Governors of the Federal Reserve System, 20th Street and Constitution 
Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20551. For users of telephone systems via 
text telephone (TTY) or any TTY-based Telecommunications Relay 
Services, please call 711 from any telephone, anywhere in the United 
States.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Board is modifying this system of 
records in response to the passage of title III of the Foundations for 
Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018 (Evidence Act), which 
reauthorized and expanded the Confidential Information Protection and 
Statistical Efficiency Act (CIPSEA). Under CIPSEA as amended, OMB is 
tasked with creating a Standard Application Process (SAP) to permit 
entities and individuals to apply to access confidential data assets 
accessed or acquired under CIPSEA by a statistical agency or unit for 
the purposes of developing evidence. The Board is therefore amending 
this SORN to permit access to information in the system of records for 
the purpose of developing evidence.
    Specifically, the Board is adding a new routine use to permit 
access to protected information (the Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF)) 
by individuals for the purpose of developing evidence, subject to 
appropriate control, supervision, and agreement to comply with all 
relevant legal provisions. These include requirements and standards 
issued by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in accordance with 
the Standard Application Process laid out in M-23-04 or any successor 
document. The Board is deleting the existing system-specific routine 
uses because the routine uses do not describe intended sharing of SCF 
data but rather describe administrative and technical safeguards and 
thus has moved that language to the administrative and technical 
safeguards section. The Board is also revising the administrative, 
technical, and physical safeguards to reflect that access may be 
granted to outside entities or individuals for the purposes of 
developing evidence, subject to appropriate controls, supervision, and 
agreement to comply with all relevant legal provisions. The Board is 
also adding Routine Use G to permit sharing with contractors and taking 
the opportunity to update the system location, the system manager, the 
authority for maintenance of the system, the purpose of the system, and 
the policies and practices for storage of records.
    The Board is also making technical changes to BGFRS-20 consistent 
with the template laid out in OMB Circular No. A-108. Accordingly, the 
Board has made technical corrections and non-substantive language 
revisions to the following sections: ``Policies and Practices for 
Storage of Records,'' ``Policies and Practices for Retrieval of 
Records,'' ``Policies and Practices for Retention and Disposal of 
Records,'' ``Administrative, Technical and Physical Safeguards,'' 
``Record Access Procedures,'' ``Contesting Record Procedures,'' and 
``Notification Procedures.'' The Board has also created and populated 
the following new sections: ``Security Classification'' and 
``History.''

SYSTEM NAME AND NUMBER:
    BGFRS-20, ``FRB--Survey of Consumer Finances''.

SECURITY CLASSIFICATION:
    Unclassified.

SYSTEM LOCATION:
    Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, 502 S Sharp 
Street, Baltimore, MD 21201 and U.S. Census

[[Page 40267]]

Bureau, Bowie Computer Center, 17101 Melford Boulevard, Bowie, MD 
20715. Information is also collected and maintained on behalf of the 
Board, by National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago 
(NORC) at 1808 Swift Drive, Oak Brook, IL 60523.

SYSTEM MANAGER(S):
    Alice H. Volz, Chief, Microeconomics Survey Section, Research and 
Statistics Division, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, 
20th Street and Constitution Ave NW, Washington, DC 20551, 202-452-
3080, or [email protected].

AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
    Section 2A and 12A of the Federal Reserve Act (12 U.S.C. 225a and 
263) and the Confidential Information Protection and Statistical 
Efficiency Act of 2018 (44 U.S.C. 3561-3583).

PURPOSE(S) OF THE SYSTEM:
    The Microeconomic Survey Section, a recognized statistical unit of 
the U.S. government, collects and maintains the Survey of Consumer 
Finance (SCF) records for statistical purposes only in accordance with 
CIPSEA. The SCF records are used to structure, conduct, and process the 
SCF. The SCF is a key part of the national statistical system and it 
provides a basis for a wide variety of government, academic, and other 
statistical research.

CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM:
    Individuals who voluntarily respond to the SCF.

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
    NORC, the independent contractor for survey data collection, holds 
three types of files for the SCF:
    (a) Answers given by survey participants in the course of the 
administration of the survey questionnaire. No identifying information 
is included in this category.
    (b) Answers given by interviewers to questions about the 
administration, or attempted administration, of the survey interview, 
and answers given by interviewers to questions about the area around 
the sample addresses. No identifying information is included in this 
category.
    (c) A control file containing the name, address, other identifying 
or locating characteristics of members of the survey sample, and 
technical information describing survey participation.
    The Board holds five types of files:
    (a) All information included in NORC (a) and NORC (b).
    (b) A control file containing general geographic characteristics 
and technical information describing survey participation. No 
identifying information is included in this category.
    (c) For a part of the survey sample, information from statistical 
records derived from individual tax returns, which includes a Social 
Security Number and date of birth, but otherwise contains no other 
identifying information.
    (d) Files of information matched to the survey data by high-level 
characteristics, such as general location, occupation, banking market, 
etc. No identifying information is included in this category.

RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
    Survey participants provide the information. Survey interviewers 
provide other information about the steps taken to obtain an interview, 
the progress of the interview, and the general characteristics of the 
neighborhood of the sample address. NORC provides technical sample 
design information for a geographically based part of the survey 
sample. Statistical records for sample members in the other part of the 
sample are derived from individual tax returns, which are obtained from 
the Statistics of Income Division of the Internal Revenue Service.

ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES 
OF USERS AND PURPOSES OF SUCH USES:
    Data collected as a part of the SCF are protected under the 
Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act of 
2018 (CIPSEA). To the extent that disclosure is permitted under CIPSEA, 
records may be disclosed for general routine uses C, G, I, and J. These 
general routine uses are located at https://www.federalreserve.gov/files/SORN-page-general-routine-uses-of-board-systems-of-records.pdf 
and are published in the Federal Register at 83 FR 43872 at 43873-74 
(August 28, 2018). In addition, records may also be disclosed to permit 
outside entities or individuals to access information for the purposes 
of developing evidence subject to appropriate controls, supervision, 
and agreement to comply with all relevant legal provisions. These 
include requirements and standards issued by the Office of Management 
and Budget in accordance with the Standard Application Process laid out 
in M-23-04 or any successor document.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORAGE OF RECORDS:
    Records are stored in electronic form and some historical records 
are kept in paper.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETRIEVAL OF RECORDS:
    Records of answers provided by survey participants or interviewers 
can be retrieved by an identification number (which is generated for 
administrative purposes). Control file records can be retrieved by all 
categories of identifying information and above noted identification 
number.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETENTION AND DISPOSAL OF RECORDS:
    All input information is retained at least six months after the 
accuracy of the database has been verified and destroyed when no longer 
needed for administrative or reference purposes. The final version of 
the SCF data set is one statistically altered to protect the identity 
of the survey participants; this data set is placed in the public 
domain. A data set without these alterations is retained as a 
restricted version within the Microeconomics Surveys Section at the 
Federal Reserve Board.

ADMINISTRATIVE, TECHNICAL, AND PHYSICAL SAFEGUARDS:
    Access to records is limited to those whose official duties, 
consistent with CIPSEA, require it, or to outside entities or 
individuals for the purposes of developing evidence, subject to 
appropriate controls, supervision, and agreement to comply with all 
relevant legal provisions. All records are secured by such controls as 
required to comply with CIPSEA. Electronic files are stored on secure 
servers. The system has the ability to track individual user actions 
within the system. The audit and accountability controls are based on 
NIST and Board standards which, in turn, are based on applicable laws 
and regulations. The controls assist in detecting security violations 
and performance or other issues in the system. Users are classified 
into different roles and common access and usage rights are established 
for each role. User roles are used to delineate between the different 
types of access requirements such that users are restricted to data 
that is required in the performance of their duties. Periodic 
assessments and reviews are conducted to evaluate the overall security 
of the system and data, determine whether users still require access, 
have the appropriate role, and whether there have been any unauthorized 
changes. The survey contractor uses information in the system to devise 
and execute a plan to request an interview with all members of the 
survey sample; access to such information is available only to those 
involved in the sample design and its implementation in the field. Upon

[[Page 40268]]

completion of the data collection, access by the contractor is limited 
to the specific information necessary to complete the initial 
processing of the data and to respond to requests from survey 
participants.

RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURES:
    The Privacy Act allows individuals the right to access records 
maintained about them in a Board system of records. Your request for 
access must: (1) contain a statement that the request is made pursuant 
to the Privacy Act of 1974; (2) provide either the name of the Board 
system of records expected to contain the record requested or a concise 
description of the system of records; (3) provide the information 
necessary to verify your identity; and (4) provide any other 
information that may assist in the rapid identification of the record 
you seek.
    The Board handles all Privacy Act requests as both a Privacy Act 
request and as a Freedom of Information Act request. The Board does not 
charge fees to a requestor seeking to access or amend his/her Privacy 
Act records.
    You may submit your Privacy Act request to the--Secretary of the 
Board, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, 20th Street 
and Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20551.
    You may also submit your Privacy Act request electronically by 
filling out the required information at: https://foia.federalreserve.gov/.

CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES:
    The Privacy Act allows individuals to seek amendment of information 
that is erroneous, irrelevant, untimely, or incomplete and is 
maintained in a system of records that pertains to them. To request an 
amendment to your record, you should clearly mark the request as a 
``Privacy Act Amendment Request.'' You have the burden of proof for 
demonstrating the appropriateness of the requested amendment and you 
must provide relevant and convincing evidence in support of your 
request.
    Your request for amendment must: (1) provide the name of the 
specific Board system of records containing the record you seek to 
amend; (2) identify the specific portion of the record you seek to 
amend; (3) describe the nature of and reasons for each requested 
amendment; (4) explain why you believe the record is not accurate, 
relevant, timely, or complete; and (5) unless you have already done so 
in a related Privacy Act request for access or amendment, provide the 
necessary information to verify your identity.

NOTIFICATION PROCEDURES:
    Same as ``Access procedures'' above. You may also follow this 
procedure in order to request an accounting of previous disclosures of 
records pertaining to you as provided for by 5 U.S.C. 552a(c).

EXEMPTIONS PROMULGATED FOR THE SYSTEM:
    None.

HISTORY:
    This SORN was previously published in the Federal Register at 73 FR 
24984 at 24987 (May 6, 2008). The SORN was also amended to incorporate 
two new routine uses required by OMB at 83 FR 43872 (August 28, 2018).

    Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.
Michele Taylor Fennell,
Deputy Secretary of the Board.
[FR Doc. 2023-13091 Filed 6-20-23; 8:45 am]
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