[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 221 (Friday, November 17, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 80300-80303]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-25371]
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FEDERAL HOUSING FINANCE AGENCY
[No. 2023-N-14]
Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records
AGENCY: Federal Housing Finance Agency.
ACTION: Notice of a modified system of records.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the requirements of the Privacy Act of
1974, as amended, (Privacy Act), the Federal Housing Finance Agency
(FHFA or Agency) is proposing to modify the current FHFA system of
records titled, ``FHFA-15, Payroll, Retirement, Time
[[Page 80301]]
and Attendance, and Leave Records'' (System). The system of records
allows FHFA to manage human resources and payroll functions for the
Agency. This modification is to: update the categories of records
collected to include information related to work agreements; update the
service provider used to maintain the payroll, retirement, and leave
records contained in the system; correct and update the authority for
maintaining the system; expand the system's purpose for the records
collection; add new record source categories to be compatible with the
new categories of records collected; revise and modify the routine uses
to be consistent with FHFA's standard routine uses and those specific
to this collection; and make other minor corrections and administrative
updates to the remaining sections in the notice in accordance with OMB
Circular A-108.
DATES: In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(4) and (11), this modified
system of records will go into effect without further notice on
November 17, 2023, unless otherwise revised pursuant to comments
received. Comments must be received on or before December 18, 2023.
FHFA will publish a new notice if the effective date is delayed in
order for the Agency to review the comments or if changes are made
based on comments received.
ADDRESSES: Submit comments to FHFA, identified by ``No. 2023-N-14,''
using any one of the following methods:
Agency Website: www.fhfa.gov/open-for-comment-or-input.
Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the instructions for submitting comments. If you submit your
comments to the Federal eRulemaking Portal, please also send it by
email to FHFA at [email protected] to ensure timely receipt by FHFA.
Please include ``Comments/No. 2023-N-14'' in the subject line of the
message.
Hand Delivered/Courier: The hand delivery address is:
Clinton Jones, General Counsel, Attention: Comments/No. 2023-N-14,
Federal Housing Finance Agency, 400 Seventh Street SW, Washington, DC
20219. The package should be delivered to the Seventh Street entrance
Guard Desk, First Floor, on business days between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.,
EST.
U.S. Mail, United Parcel Service, Federal Express, or
Other Mail Service: The mailing address for comments is: Clinton Jones,
General Counsel, Attention: Comments/No. 2023-N-14, Federal Housing
Finance Agency, 400 Seventh Street SW, Washington, DC 20219. Please
note that all mail sent to FHFA via the U.S. Postal Service is routed
through a national irradiation facility, a process that may delay
delivery by approximately two weeks. For any time-sensitive
correspondence, please plan accordingly.
See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for additional information on
submission and posting of comments.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stacy Easter, Privacy Act Officer,
[email protected] or (202) 649-3803; or Tasha Cooper, Senior Agency
Official for Privacy, [email protected] or (202) 649-3091 (not toll-free
numbers), Federal Housing Finance Agency, 400 Seventh Street SW,
Washington, DC 20219. For TTY/TRS users with hearing and speech
disabilities, dial 711 and ask to be connected to any of the contact
numbers above.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Comments
FHFA seeks public comments on the revisions to the system of
records and will take all comments into consideration. See 5 U.S.C.
552a(e)(4) and (11). In addition to referencing ``Comments/No. 2023-N-
14,'' please reference ``FHFA-15, Payroll, Retirement, Time and
Attendance, and Leave Records.''
FHFA will make all comments timely received available for
examination by the public through the electronic comment docket for
this notice, which is located on the FHFA website at https://www.fhfa.gov. All comments received will be posted without change and
will include any personal information you provide, such as name,
address (mailing and email), telephone numbers, and any other
information you provide.
II. Introduction
This notice informs the public of FHFA's proposed revisions to an
existing system of records. This notice satisfies the Privacy Act
requirement that an agency publishes a system of records notice in the
Federal Register when there is an addition or change to an agency's
system of records. Congress has recognized that application of all
requirements of the Privacy Act to certain categories of records may
have an undesirable and often unacceptable effect upon agencies in the
conduct of necessary public business. Consequently, Congress
established general exemptions and specific exemptions that could be
used to exempt records from provisions of the Privacy Act. Congress
also required that exempting records from provisions of the Privacy Act
would require the head of an agency to publish a determination to
exempt a record from the Privacy Act as a rule in accordance with the
Administrative Procedure Act. Records and information in this system of
records are not exempt from the requirements of the Privacy Act.
As required by the Privacy Act, 5 U.S.C. 552a(r), and pursuant to
section 7 of Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular No. A-108,
``Federal Agency Responsibilities for Review, Reporting, and
Publication under the Privacy Act,'' prior to publication of this
notice, FHFA submitted a report describing the system of records
covered by this notice to the OMB, the Committee on Oversight and
Government Reform of the House of Representatives, and the Committee on
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate.
III. Revised System of Records
The revised system of records notice is set out in its entirety and
described in detail below. The proposed modification to the System
makes the following substantive and non-substantive changes:
(1) Adds new categories of records collected in the system to allow
FHFA to collect and maintain information related to employee work
agreements.
(2) Updates the service provider used to maintain the payroll,
retirement, and leave records system from the National Finance Center
to the Interior Business Center.
(3) Adds a new authority, Telework Enhancement Act of 2010 (5
U.S.C. 6501-6506), to allow for the collection and maintenance of the
new proposed category, and corrects other authorities listed.
(4) Expands the system's purpose for collecting the information to
include the collection of employee work agreements.
(5) Expands the system's record source categories to include
employee work agreements.
(6) Revises the existing routine uses to be consistent with FHFA's
standard routine uses and those specific to this collection. Routine
use 1 has been revised but remains in the same numerical position; a
new routine use 2 has been added and the former routine use 2 has been
revised and is now routine use 3; former routine use 3 has been revised
and is now routine use 4; former routine uses 4-6 have been deleted;
new routine uses 6, 8-9 have been added; routine use 7 has been revised
but remains in the same numerical position; former routine use 8 has
been deleted; former routine use 9
[[Page 80302]]
has been revised and is now routine use 5; former routine uses 10-14
have been deleted; and former routine uses 15-24 remain unchanged in
text but are now numerically routine uses 10-19.
(7) Makes minor corrections and other administrative updates to the
remaining sections of the notice in accordance with OMB Circular A-108.
SYSTEM NAME AND NUMBER:
Payroll, Retirement, Time and Attendance, and Leave Records, FHFA-
15.
SECURITY CLASSIFICATION:
Sensitive but unclassified.
SYSTEM LOCATION:
Federal Housing Finance Agency, 400 Seventh Street SW, Washington,
DC 20219, and any alternate work site utilized by employees of FHFA,
including contractors assisting agency employees, and Department of the
Interior, Interior Business Center, 7301 W Mansfield Avenue, Lakewood,
CO 80235.
SYSTEM MANAGER(S):
Office of Human Resources Management, 400 Seventh Street SW,
Washington, DC 20219, and any alternate work site utilized by employees
of FHFA, including contractors assisting agency employees; General
Counsel, Office of General Counsel, (202) 649-3065, Federal Housing
Finance Agency; and Department of the Interior, Interior Business
Center, 7301 W Mansfield Avenue, Lakewood, CO 80235.
AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
5 U.S.C. 301; Telework Enhancement Act of 2010 (5 U.S.C. 6501-
6506); The Federal Home Loan Bank Act (12 U.S.C. 1421-1449) and Federal
Housing Enterprises Financial Safety and Soundness Act of 1992 (12
U.S.C. 4501, et seq.), as amended by the Housing and Economic Recovery
Act of 2008, Public Law 110-289, 122 Stat. 2654.
PURPOSE(S) OF THE SYSTEM:
The purpose of the system of records is for FHFA's operations for
payroll, time and attendance, leave, insurance, tax, retirement,
qualifications, and benefits; to prepare related reports to other
federal agencies including the Department of Treasury and the Office of
Personnel Management; and to locate FHFA employees and determine such
matters as their position, period of service, type of leave,
qualifications, benefits, pay, work history, and work agreements.
CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM:
The system contains records on current and former employees,
detailees, interns, fellows, political appointees, and other persons
who work at FHFA under the Intergovernmental Personnel Act. This system
may also include limited information regarding employees' spouses,
dependents, emergency contacts, beneficiaries, or estate trustees who
meet the definition of ``individual'' as defined in the Privacy Act.
CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
The records in the system include the individual's name; home
address and alternate work location; telephone numbers; Social Security
number; organization code; pay rate; salary; grade; length of service;
pay and leave records; source documents for posting time and leave
attendance; deductions for Medicare; Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability
Insurance (OASDI, also known as Social Security); bonds; Federal
Employee Group Life Insurance; union dues; taxes; allotments;
retirement; charities; Federal and commercial health benefits; Flexible
Spending Account; Long Term Care Insurance; Thrift Savings Plan
contributions; 401k plan contributions; award; shift schedules; pay
differential; tax lien data; wage garnishments; work agreements,
locations, and schedules; and any other information pertaining to
payroll, retirement, time and attendance, and leave. The payroll,
retirement, and leave records described in this notice form a part of
the information contained in the Federal Personnel and Payroll System
(FPPS) in the Interior Business Center (IBC). Personnel and payroll
records contained in IBC are covered under the government-wide system
of records notices published by the Office of Personnel Management
(OPM/GOVT-1 and OPM/GOVT-5).
RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
Records source is from individuals on whom the records are
maintained, official personnel and payroll records of individuals on
whom the records are maintained, work agreements, time and attendance
records, withholding certificates, third-party benefit providers, and
other pay-related records prepared by the individual or the Office of
Human Resources. Records and information covered by this SORN are
obtained directly from the individual and the individual's supervisor.
ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES
OF USERS AND PURPOSES OF SUCH USES:
In addition to those disclosures generally permitted under 5 U.S.C.
552a(b) of the Privacy Act, these records and information contained
therein may specifically be disclosed outside of FHFA as a routine use
pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(b)(3) as follows, to the extent such
disclosures are compatible with the purposes for which the information
was collected:
(1) To appropriate agencies, entities, and persons when--(a) FHFA
suspects or has confirmed that there has been a breach of the system of
records; (b) FHFA has determined that as a result of a suspected or
confirmed breach there is a risk of harm to individuals, FHFA
(including its information systems, programs, and operations), the
Federal Government, or national security; and (c) the disclosure made
to such agencies, entities, and persons as reasonably necessary to
assist with FHFA's efforts to (i) respond to a suspected or confirmed
breach or (ii) prevent, minimize, or remedy harm caused by such breach.
(2) To a federal agency or federal entity, when FHFA determines
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 to national security, resulting from a suspected or
confirmed breach.
(3) When there is an indication of a violation or potential
violation of law (whether civil, criminal, or regulatory in nature, and
whether arising by general statute or particular program statute or by
regulation, rule, or order issued pursuant thereto), the relevant
records in the system of records may be referred, as a routine use, to
the appropriate agency (e.g., federal, state, local, tribal, foreign,
or a financial regulatory organization) charged with the responsibility
of investigating or prosecuting such violation or charged with
enforcing or implementing a statute, rule, regulation, or order issued
pursuant thereto.
(4) To any individual during the course of any inquiry or
investigation conducted by FHFA, or in connection with civil
litigation, if FHFA has reason to believe the individual to whom the
record is disclosed may have further information about the matters
related thereto, and those matters appeared to
[[Page 80303]]
be relevant and necessary at the time to the subject matter of the
inquiry.
(5) To any contractor, agent, or other authorized individual
performing work on a contract, service, cooperative agreement, job, or
other activity on behalf of FHFA who has a need to access the
information in the performance of their official duties or activities.
(6) To appropriate third parties contracted by FHFA to facilitate
mediation or other dispute resolution procedures or programs.
(7) To outside counsel contracted by FHFA, the U.S. Department of
Justice (DOJ) (including United States Attorney Offices), or other
federal agencies conducting litigation or in proceedings before any
court, or adjudicative or administrative body, when it is relevant and
necessary to the litigation and one of the following is a party to the
litigation or has an interest in such litigation:
a. FHFA;
b. Any employee of FHFA in his/her official capacity;
c. Any employee of FHFA in his/her individual capacity where DOJ or
FHFA has agreed to represent the employee; or
d. The United States or any agency thereof that is a party to the
litigation or has an interest in such litigation, and FHFA determines
that the records are both relevant and necessary to the litigation.
(8) To the National Archives and Records Administration or other
federal agencies pursuant to records management inspections being
conducted under the authority of 44 U.S.C. 2904 and 2906.
(9) To an agency, organization, or individual for the purpose of
performing audit or oversight operations as authorized by law, but only
such information as is relevant and necessary to such audit or
oversight functions.
(10) To the Department of the Treasury, Bureau of the Public Debt
to provide financial management services and systems, including local
and temporary duty travel, involving FHFA employees.
(11) To the Internal Revenue Service and appropriate State and
local taxing authorities.
(12) To appropriate Federal agencies to effect salary or
administrative offsets, or for other purposes connected with the
collection of debts owed to the United States.
(13) To the Office of Child Support Enforcement, Administration for
Children and Families, Department of Health and Human Services for
purposes of locating individuals to establish paternity and establish
and modify orders of child support enforcement actions as required by
the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act,
the Federal Parent Locator System, and the Federal Tax Offset System.
(14) To the Office of Child Support Enforcement for release to the
Social Security Administration for verifying Social Security numbers in
connection with the operation of the Federal Parent Locator System by
the Office of Child Support Enforcement.
(15) To the Office of Child Support Enforcement for release to the
Department of Treasury for purposes of administering the Earned Income
Tax Credit Program and verifying a claim with respect to employment in
a tax return.
(16) To commercial benefit providers, carriers, vendors, contractor
personnel, and agents to process claims and provide related
administrative services involving FHFA employees.
(17) To any Federal, state, or local government agency compiling
tax withholding, retirement contributions, or allotments to charities,
labor unions, wage garnishments, and other authorized recipients.
(18) To any member of the public for employment verification at an
employee's written request.
(19) To any judgment creditor for the purpose of wage garnishment.
POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORAGE OF RECORDS:
The records are maintained in electronic format. Electronic records
are stored in computerized databases on FHFA's secured network. All
paper and magnetic disk or tape records previously collected in the
system have been moved offsite to Federal Records Centers.
POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETRIEVAL OF RECORDS:
The records are retrieved by the individual's name, Social Security
number, birthdate, or some other personal identifier.
POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETENTION AND DISPOSAL OF RECORDS:
The records are retained and managed in accordance with FHFA's
Comprehensive Records Schedule (CRS) Item 1.3a--Administrative Policies
for 30 years and the National Archives and Records Administration's
General Records Schedule (GRS) 2.4--Employee Compensation and Benefits
Records. Records are destroyed or deleted according to the retention
schedule associated with the GRS Item, but longer retention is
authorized for business use.
ADMINISTRATIVE, TECHNICAL, AND PHYSICAL SAFEGUARDS:
The electronic records are safeguarded in a secured environment and
protected by controlled access procedures through the use of access
codes and other information technology security measures. Buildings
where records and computerized systems are stored have security cameras
and 24-hour security guard service. Access to records is restricted to
only FHFA staff (and FHFA contractors assisting such staff) in the
performance of official duties related to the purposes for which the
system is maintained. The System Owner controls access to this System
and limits access in accordance with the above.
RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURES:
Individuals seeking access to and/or amendment of records about
themselves contained in this System should follow the ``Notification
Procedures'' below.
CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES:
Individuals seeking access to and/or amendment of records about
themselves contained in this System should follow the ``Notification
Procedures'' below.
NOTIFICATION PROCEDURES:
Individuals seeking notification of any records about themselves
contained in this System should address their inquiry to the Privacy
Act Officer via email to [email protected], by mail to the Federal
Housing Finance Agency, 400 Seventh Street SW, Washington, DC 20219, or
in accordance with the procedures set forth in 12 CFR part 1204. Please
note that all mail sent to FHFA via the U.S. Postal Service is routed
through a national irradiation facility, a process that may delay
delivery by approximately two weeks. For any time-sensitive
correspondence, please plan accordingly.
EXEMPTIONS PROMULGATED FOR THE SYSTEM:
None.
HISTORY:
The system of records was last published in full in the Federal
Register at 77 FR 499 (Jan. 5, 2012), revised at 80 FR 60900 (Oct. 8,
2015).
Clinton Jones,
General Counsel, Federal Housing Finance Agency.
[FR Doc. 2023-25371 Filed 11-16-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8070-01-P