[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 43 (Monday, March 4, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15603-15605]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-04474]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

[Docket No. FR-7092-N-17]


Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records

AGENCY: Office of General Counsel, HUD.

ACTION: Notice of a modified system of records.

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SUMMARY: Under the provisions of the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, 
the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of 
General Counsel (OGC), is issuing a public notice of its intent to 
modify a system of records entitled, ``eDiscovery Management System'' 
(EDMS). This System of Records Notice (SORN) covers two systems: the 
eDiscovery Management System (EDMS) and Relativity. Both systems will 
exist simultaneously as part of the eDiscovery process. These systems 
are cloud and client-server based, respectively and rely on workflow 
management from the EDMS SharePoint instance hosted in the HUD 
SharePoint environment. The modification makes updates to the 
Categories of Individuals, Record Source Categories, and Routine Use. 
The updates are explained in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of 
this notice. Specific modification includes the following: changes to 
record source categories, and updated routine use sections.

DATES: Comments will be accepted on or before April 3, 2024. The 
proposed new routine use actions will be effective on the date 
following the end of the comment period unless comments are received 
which result in a contrary determination.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by docket number by one 
method:
    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].
    Mail: Attention: Privacy Office; Mr. LaDonne White, Chief Privacy 
Officer; The Executive Secretariat; 451 Seventh Street SW, Room 10139; 
Washington, DC 20410-0001.
    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: LaDonne White, 451 Seventh Street SW, 
Room 10139; Washington, DC 20410-0001; telephone number 202-708-3054 
(this is not a toll-free number). HUD welcomes and is prepared to 
receive calls from individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing, as well 
as individuals with speech or communication disabilities. To learn more 
about how to make an accessible telephone call, please visit https://www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/telecommunications-relay-service-trs.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: HUD, Office of General Counsel in 
conjunction with the eDiscovery contractor maintains the eDiscovery 
Management System (EDMS) and Relativity system of records. eDiscovery 
is the process in which attorneys overseeing court-ordered discovery or 
litigation may request electronically stored information (ESI), 
tangible data, and other evidence relevant to the case for specified 
individuals for litigation purposes. The eDiscovery process consists of 
two systems that are closely interrelated, and both are consistently 
used in the eDiscovery process. EDMS is the system utilized to issue 
and track various eDiscovery templates and allows users to submit data 
preservation/collection and keyword search requests, and for specific 
data (email, G:drive/One Drive, J:drive, C:drive, SharePoint, Teams 
data, etc.) to be preserved or collected in accordance with the user 
request. EDMS provides the Department with a method to initiate, track, 
preserve, collect to produce data in response to discovery requests, 
court-ordered discovery/litigation, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 
requests, Officer of Inspector General (OIG) investigations, Office of 
Special Counsel (OSC) and Congressional Oversight Committee requests. 
EDMS also includes secure folders to create and store various 
eDiscovery templates, including Litigation Hold memoranda, eDiscovery 
Certifications, Closure Letters, and any other documents related to the 
discovery process as well as a workflow for users to submit ESI data 
collection requests and ESI search requests. EDMS relies on tracking 
and workflow management from the EDMS SharePoint instance hosted in the 
HUD SharePoint environment. The Relativity system is the litigation 
review tool portion of the eDiscovery process that allows users to 
review data for relevance and privilege before producing data to a 
court or other outside party. The two systems are closely interrelated; 
if a case proceeds to discovery/litigation, the data that was 
previously collected in a network storage location by the HUD 
eDiscovery contractor via the EDMS system is processed and provided to 
the user for review in Relativity. The user can then request an export 
from Relativity to produce the data for a court or other outside party 
in response to discovery/litigation obligations. The following are 
updates since the previous SORN publication:
    Records Source Categories: Updated to cover all electronic record 
sources for internal and external systems to HUD.
    Routine Use of Records: Updated to cover routine uses that are new, 
modified, or removed. Routine Use 1 has not changed. Routine Use 2 has 
been rewritten to avoid duplicating permissible disclosures under 5 
U.S.C. 552a(b)(6) and to permit disclosures to the Office of Government 
Information Services (OGIS), National Archives and Records 
Administration (NARA), in connection with OGIS's responsibilities under 
the Freedom of Information Act. Former Routine Use 3 has been split 
into two distinct routine uses and rewritten to reflect OMB guidance. 
Specifically, Routine Use 3 was modified to reflect OMB's guidance from 
May 24, 1985. The second half of former Routine Use 3 was renumbered as 
Routine Use 5 and modified to reflect OMB's guidance from July 9, 1975 
(40 FR 28948). Former Routine Uses 4 and 6 have been removed as 
unnecessary for

[[Page 15604]]

this system. Former Routine Use 5 has been renumbered to Routine Use 4 
and modified to clarify that contractors are subjected by statute to 
the Privacy Act's requirements. Former Routine Use 7 has been 
renumbered to Routine Use 6 and modified to reflect OMB's guidance from 
May 24, 1985. Former Routine Use 8 has been renumbered to Routine Use 
7. Former Routine Use 9 has been removed and replaced by Routine Uses 8 
and 9 to comply with OMB Memorandum 17-12. Routine Use 10 has been 
removed as unnecessary for this system. Routine Use 11 has been removed 
as unnecessary for this system.

SYSTEM NAME AND NUMBER:
    eDiscovery Management System (EDMS), HUD/OGC-01.

SECURITY CLASSIFICATION:
    Unclassified.

SYSTEM LOCATION:
    Records are maintained on servers at the National Center for 
Critical Information Processing and Storage (NCCIPS), 9325 Cypress Loop 
RD., Stennis Space Center, MS 39529 and on HUD Azure Cloud managed by 
HUD's Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) at 451 Seventh 
Street SW, Room 4160, Washington, DC 20410-0001.

SYSTEM MANAGER(S):
    Tenille Washburn, Assistant General Counsel, Office of General 
Counsel Field Management, and IT Division, HUD, 451 Seventh Street SW, 
Room 10286, Washington, DC 20410-0001; Telephone number (202) 402-6536.

AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
    40 U.S.C. 11315 and 44 U.S.C. 3506. In addition, the federal 
statutes that authorize the collection and storage of ESI for other 
purposes including FOIA, OIG investigations, and Congressional requests 
include: The Freedom of Information Act. 5 U.S.C 552 for responses to 
the FOIA requests. The Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970 (Pub. L. 
91-510) and implied in the Constitution of the Unites States for 
responses to Congressional Oversight Committee requests; and The 
Inspector General Act of 1978 as amended, 5 U.S.C app. (Pub. L. 95-452, 
sec. 1, Oct. 12, 1978, 92 Stat. 1101) (sec. 6(a)(1) authorizes OIG to 
have access to records and other documentation).

PURPOSE(S) OF THE SYSTEM:
    The purpose of the eDiscovery process and systems are in direct 
response to the eDiscovery legal and business requirements stated in 
the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP) and case law. The 
eDiscovery obligations require the preservation/collection and possible 
production of electronically stored information (ESI) related to any 
individual who may have data or other records related to ``reasonably 
anticipated'' litigation. The individuals subject to the eDiscovery 
requirements include employees across all HUD offices nationwide as 
well as contractors. The eDiscovery systems and process assist HUD to 
preserve, collect, and review ESI and data of any individual who is, or 
will be, in discovery or litigation with HUD. Relativity facilitates 
data analysis, review (relevance, privilege etc.), tagging, redaction, 
privilege log, and production of ESI and data to respond to litigation 
discovery requirements.

CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM:
    All persons subject to a litigation hold due to a ``reasonable 
anticipation of litigation'' as determined by HUD's OGC based on 
anticipated litigation trigger dates for the various types of 
litigation across the Department; all persons deemed a participant of 
past or present litigation or anticipated litigation where HUD is 
involved; and specified individuals impacted by FOIA requests, 
discovery/litigation, OIG investigations, Congressional Oversight 
Committee requests and other cases in HUD.

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
    Individual(s) name; Individual(s) work address; Individual(s) work 
email address; Individual(s) work phone number; HUD Submitter Office 
Location; Case name; Case number; Case Type (Litigation, FOIA, OIG, 
Congressional) Date Range for requested Electronically Stored 
Information (ESI) collection; and Requested Data Sources for ESI (e.g., 
email data, C:drive, G:drive, One Drive, J:drive, SharePoint, Teams 
data).

RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
    HUD employees and contractors.

ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES 
OF USERS AND PURPOSES OF SUCH USES:
    1. To a Congressional office from the record of an individual in 
response to an inquiry from that Congressional office made at the 
request of the individual to whom the records pertain.
    2. To the National Archives and Records Administration, Office of 
Government Information Services (OGIS), to the extent necessary to 
fulfill its responsibilities in 5 U.S.C. 552(h), to review 
administrative agency policies, procedures, and compliance with the 
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), and to facilitate OGIS' offering of 
mediation services to resolve disputes between persons making FOIA 
requests and administrative agencies.
    3. To any component of the Department of Justice or other Federal 
agency conducting litigation or in proceedings before any court, 
adjudicative, or administrative body, when HUD determines that the use 
of such records is relevant and necessary to the litigation and when 
any of the following is a party to the litigation or have an interest 
in such litigation: (1) HUD, or any component thereof; or (2) any HUD 
employee in his or her official capacity; or (3) any HUD employee in 
his or her individual capacity where the Department of Justice or 
agency conducting the litigation has agreed to represent the employee; 
or (4) the United States, or any agency thereof, where HUD determines 
that litigation is likely to affect HUD or any of its components.
    4. To contractors, grantees, experts, consultants, and the agents 
thereof, and others performing or working on a contract, service, 
grant, cooperative agreement, or other assignment for HUD, when 
necessary, to accomplish an agency function related to its system of 
records. Disclosure is limited to only those data elements considered 
relevant to accomplish an agency function. Contractors provided 
information under this routine use are subject to the same Privacy Act 
requirements and limitations on disclosure as are applicable to HUD 
officers and employees.
    5. To appropriate Federal, State, local, Tribal, or other 
governmental agencies or multilateral governmental organizations 
responsible for investigating or prosecuting the violations of, or for 
enforcing or implementing, a statute, rule, regulation, order, or 
license, where HUD determines that the information would assist in the 
enforcement of civil or criminal laws and when such records, either 
alone or in conjunction with other information, indicate a violation or 
potential violation of law.
    6. To a court, magistrate, administrative tribunal, or arbitrator 
in the course of presenting evidence, including disclosures to opposing 
counsel or witnesses in the course of civil discovery, litigation, 
mediation, or settlement negotiations, or in connection with criminal 
law proceedings; when HUD determines that use of such records is 
relevant and necessary to the litigation and when any of the following 
is a party to the litigation or have an interest in such litigation: 
(1) HUD, or any component thereof; or (2) any HUD employee in his

[[Page 15605]]

or her official capacity; or (3) any HUD employee in his or her 
individual capacity where HUD has agreed to represent the employee; or 
(4) the United States, or any agency thereof, where HUD determines that 
litigation is likely to affect HUD or any of its components.
    7. To a grand jury agent pursuant either to a federal or state 
grand jury subpoena, or to a prosecution request that such record be 
released for the purpose of its introduction to a grand jury, where the 
subpoena or request has been specifically approved by a court.
    8. To appropriate agencies, entities, and persons when (1) HUD 
suspects or has confirmed that there has been a breach of the system of 
records,[middot] (2) [the agency] has determined that as a result of 
the suspected or confirmed breach there is a risk of harm to 
individuals, HUD (including its information systems, programs, and 
operations), the Federal Government, or national security; and (3) the 
disclosure made to such agencies, entities, and persons is reasonably 
necessary to assist in connection with [the agency's] efforts to 
respond to the suspected or confirmed breach or to prevent, minimize, 
or remedy such harm.
    9. To another Federal agency or Federal entity, when HUD determines 
that information from this system of records is reasonably necessary to 
assist the recipient agency or entity in (1) responding to suspected or 
confirmed breach, or (2) 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.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORAGE OF RECORDS:
    Electronic.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETRIEVAL OF RECORDS:
    Individual(s) name and work email address.

POLICIES AND PRACTICIES FOR RETENTION AND DISPOSAL OF RECORDS:
    Temporary. Data and paper records subject to a litigation hold are 
preserved for the duration of the litigation hold. Litigation files 
having an unusual significance to the Department are kept for seven 
years after entry of order or last appeal. Other litigation files are 
kept for four years after entry of order or last appeal. Files kept on 
administrative adjudications are kept for six years after entry of 
order or last appeal.

ADMINISTRATIVE, TECHNICAL, AND PHYSICAL SAFEGUARDS:
    Strict quality and access controls have been imposed to minimize 
the risk of compromising the information that is being stored. Access 
to the computer system containing the data/records in EDMS is limited 
to those individuals who are authorized to access by appropriate 
security clearances and user ID/password permissions. Only assigned 
users with a need-to-know are allowed access, on a case-by-case basis, 
after going through HUD's background investigation process.

RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURES:
    Individuals requesting records of themselves should address written 
inquiries to the Department of Housing Urban and Development 451 7th 
Street, SW Washington, DC 20410-0001. For verification, individuals 
should provide their full name, current address, and telephone number. 
In addition, the requester must provide either a notarized statement or 
an unsworn declaration made under 24 CFR 16.4.

CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES:
    The HUD rule for contesting the content of any record pertaining to 
the individual by the individual concerned is published in 24 CFR 16.8 
or may be obtained from the system manager.

NOTIFICATION PROCEDURES:
    Individuals requesting notification of records of themselves should 
address written inquiries to the Department of Housing Urban 
Development, 451 7th street SW, Washington, DC 20410-0001. For 
verification purposes, individuals should provide their full name, 
office or organization where assigned, if applicable, and current 
address and telephone number. In addition, the requester must provide 
either a notarized statement or an unsworn declaration made under 24 
CFR 16.4.

EXEMPTIONS PROMULGATED FOR THE SYSTEM:
    For those records within the system collected and maintained 
pursuant to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and/or for the purpose 
of civil discovery, action or proceeding, 5 U.S.C. 552a(d)(5) will 
apply, which states ``nothing in this [Act] shall allow an individual 
access to any information compiled in reasonable anticipation of a 
civil action or proceeding.''.

HISTORY:
    Docket No. FR-5613-N-06-C published on February 11, 2013 at 78 FR 
9721.

LaDonne White,
Chief Privacy Officer, Office of Administration.
[FR Doc. 2024-04474 Filed 3-1-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210-67-P