83 FR 57517 - Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records

SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION

Federal Register Volume 83, Issue 221 (November 15, 2018)

In accordance with the Privacy Act, we are issuing public notice of our intent to establish a new system of records entitled, Requests for Waiver of Employee Salary Overpayments (60-0271). This notice publishes details of the system as set forth below under the caption, SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 221 (Thursday, November 15, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57517-57520]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2018-24908]


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SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION

[Docket No. SSA-2018-0064]


Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records

AGENCY: Office of the General Counsel, Social Security Administration 
(SSA).

[[Page 57518]]


ACTION: Notice of a new system of records.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Privacy Act, we are issuing public 
notice of our intent to establish a new system of records entitled, 
Requests for Waiver of Employee Salary Overpayments (60-0271). This 
notice publishes details of the system as set forth below under the 
caption, SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

DATES: The system of records notice (SORN) is applicable upon its 
publication in today's Federal Register, with the exception of the 
routine uses which are effective December 17, 2018. We invite public 
comment on the routine uses or other aspects of this SORN. In 
accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(4) and (e)(11), the public is given a 
30-day period in which to submit comments. Therefore, please submit any 
comments by December 17, 2018.

ADDRESSES: The public, Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and 
Congress may comment on this publication by writing to the Executive 
Director, Office of Privacy and Disclosure, Office of the General 
Counsel, SSA, Room G-401 West High Rise, 6401 Security Boulevard, 
Baltimore, Maryland 21235-6401, or through the Federal e-Rulemaking 
Portal at http://www.regulations.gov, please reference docket number 
SSA-2018-0064. All comments we receive will be available for public 
inspection at the above address and we will post them to http://www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Corey Smith, Government Information 
Specialist, Privacy Implementation Division, Office of Privacy and 
Disclosure, Office of the General Counsel, SSA, G-401 West High Rise, 
6401 Security Boulevard, Baltimore, Maryland 21235-6401, telephone: 
(410) 966-1768, email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: We are establishing a new system of records 
to record agency decisions for requests for waivers of employee 
overpayments and requests for employee hearings contesting the validity 
of the debt. Title 31 Section 3711 of the United States Code provides 
that the head of an executive agency shall try to collect a claim of 
the United States Government for money or property arising out of the 
activities of, or referred to, the agency after providing proper notice 
and explanation of the right to dispute the agency's information 
regarding the claim or for administrative review of the claim. Title 5 
Section 5584 of the United States Code provides that a claim of the 
United States against a person arising out of an erroneous payment of 
pay or allowances made on or after July 1, 1960, or arising out of an 
erroneous payment of travel, transportation or relocation expenses and 
allowances, to an employee of the agency, the collection of which would 
be against equity and good conscience and not in the best interests of 
the United States, may be waived in whole or in part by the authorized 
official, the head of the agency and the Director of the Administrative 
Office of the United States Courts. The authority to waive employee 
salary overpayments has been delegated to the heads of Federal 
agencies, thus we are establishing this system of records.
    In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552a(r), we have provided a report to 
OMB and Congress on this new system of records.

    Dated: November 5, 2018.
Mary Zimmerman,
Acting Executive Director, Office of Privacy and Disclosure, Office of 
the General Counsel.
SYSTEM NAME AND NUMBER:
    Requests for Waiver of Employee Salary Overpayments, 60-0271.

SECURITY CLASSIFICATION:
    Unclassified.

SYSTEM LOCATION:
    Social Security Administration, Office of the General Counsel, 
Office of General Law, West High Rise Building, 6401 Security 
Boulevard, Baltimore, MD 21235.

SYSTEM MANAGER(S):
    Associate General Counsel, Social Security Administration, Office 
of the General Counsel, Office of General Law, West High Rise Building, 
6401 Security Boulevard, Baltimore, MD 21235, 
[email protected].

AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
    Title 5 Sections 5514 and 5584 and Title 31 Section 3711 of the 
United States Code and 20 CFR part 422.

PURPOSE(S) OF THE SYSTEM:
    We will use the information we collect to make administrative 
decisions on employee salary overpayment waiver, requests and appeals.

CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM:
    Individuals who are current or former SSA employees who file 
administrative requests and appeals with SSA, for waiver of their 
salary and travel reimbursement overpayments.

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
    This system maintains information that we collect for the 
administrative request and appeals process. This may include contact 
information; information pertaining to the requestor/employee debtor 
and appeals, initial request or appeal, personnel records, reports of 
investigation, recommendations and waiver decision letters.

RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
    We obtain information in this system from employees and former 
employees, personnel, program and component offices, and other Federal 
agencies as necessary, including our payroll provider.

ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES 
OF USERS AND PURPOSES OF SUCH USES:
    We will disclose records pursuant to the following routine uses, 
however, we will not disclose any information defined as ``return or 
return information'' under 26 U.S.C. 6103 of the Internal Revenue 
Service Code, unless authorized by statute, the Internal Revenue 
Service (IRS), or IRS regulations.
    1. To a congressional office in response to an inquiry from that 
office made on behalf of, and at the request of, the subject of the 
record or a third party acting on the subject's behalf.
    2. To the Office of the President in response to an inquiry from 
that office made on behalf of, and at the request of, the subject of 
the record or a third party acting on the subject's behalf.
    3. To Federal, State and local government agencies, private 
individuals, private attorneys, or other representatives or individuals 
working on behalf of the employee or former employee in seeking waiver 
of the overpayment, and other persons or entities with relevant 
information for the purpose of investigating, settling, or adjudicating 
claims.
    4. To student volunteers, individuals working under a personal 
services contract, and other workers who technically do not have the 
status of Federal employees, when they are performing work for SSA, as 
authorized by law, and they need access to personally identifiable 
information (PII) in SSA records in order to perform their assigned 
agency duties.
    5. To the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) under 
44 U.S.C. 2904 and 2906.
    6. To appropriate agencies, entities, and persons when:
    (a) SSA suspects or has confirmed that there has been a breach of 
the system of records;

[[Page 57519]]

    (b) SSA has determined that as a result of the suspected or 
confirmed breach, there is a risk of harm to individuals, SSA 
(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 SSA's efforts to 
respond to the suspected or confirmed breach or to prevent, minimize, 
or remedy such harm.
    7. To the Department of Justice (DOJ), a court or other tribunal, 
or another party before such court or tribunal, when:
    (a) SSA, or any component thereof; or
    (b) any SSA employee in his/her official capacity; or
    (c) any SSA employee in his/her individual capacity where DOJ (or 
SSA when it is authorized to do so) has agreed to represent the 
employee; or
    (d) the United States, or any agency thereof, when SSA determines 
the litigation is likely to affect the operations of SSA or any of its 
components,
    is a party to the litigation or has an interest in such litigation, 
and SSA determines that the use of such records by DOJ, a court or 
other tribunal, or another party before the court or tribunal is 
relevant and necessary to the litigation, provided, however, that in 
each case, the agency determines that disclosure of the records to DOJ, 
court or other tribunal, or another party is a use of the information 
contained in the records that is compatible with the purpose for which 
the records were collected.
    8. To contractors and other Federal agencies, as necessary, for the 
purpose of assisting SSA in the efficient administration of its 
programs. We will disclose information under this routine use only in 
situations in which SSA may enter into a contractual or similar 
agreement with a third party to assist in accomplishing an agency 
function relating to this system of records.
    9. To Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies and 
private security contractors, as appropriate, information necessary:
    (a) to enable them to protect the safety of SSA employees and 
customers, the security of the SSA workplace, and the operation of SSA 
facilities, or
    (b) to assist in investigations or prosecutions with respect to 
activities that affect such safety and security or activities that 
disrupt the operation of SSA facilities.
    10. To third parties when an individual involved with the claim 
needs assistance to communicate because a hearing impairment or a 
language barrier exists (e.g., interpreters, telecommunications relays 
system operators, etc.).
    11. To the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission when requested 
in connection with investigation into alleged or possible 
discriminatory practices in the Federal sector, examination of Federal 
affirmative employment programs, compliance by Federal agencies with 
the Uniform Guidelines on Employee Procedures, or other functions 
vested in the Commission.
    12. To the Office of Personnel Management, Merit Systems Protection 
Board, or the Office of Special Counsel in connection with appeals, 
special studies of the civil service and other merit systems, review of 
rules and regulations, investigations of alleged or possible prohibited 
personnel practices, and other such functions promulgated in 5 U.S.C. 
Chapter 12, or as may be required by law.
    13. To the Federal Labor Relations Authority, the Office of the 
Special Counsel, the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, the 
Federal Service Impasses Panel, or an arbitrator requesting information 
in connection with the investigations of allegations of unfair 
practices, matters before an arbitrator or the Federal Service Impasses 
Panel.
    14. To another Federal agency or Federal entity, when SSA 
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.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORAGE OF RECORDS:
    We maintain records in this system in paper and electronic form.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETRIEVAL OF RECORDS:
    We retrieve records by the name of the employee, former employee, 
or individual requesting the waiver of overpayment.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETENTION AND DISPOSAL OF RECORDS:
    We retain the records for a period of six years in accordance with 
the approved National Archives and Records Schedule N1-47-10-4. The 
Office of the General Counsel reserves the right to retain for an 
indefinite period certain records that, in the judgment of that office 
are of precedential value.

ADMINISTRATIVE, TECHNICAL, AND PHYSICAL SAFEGUARDS:
    We retain electronic and paper files containing personal 
identifiers in secure storage areas accessible only by our authorized 
employees and contractors who have a need for the information when 
performing their official duties. Security measures include, but are 
not limited to, the use of codes and profiles, personal identification 
number and password, and personal identification verification cards. We 
restrict access to specific correspondence within the system based on 
assigned roles and authorized users. We use audit mechanisms to record 
sensitive transactions as an additional measure to protect information 
from unauthorized disclosure or modification. We keep paper records in 
locked cabinets within secure areas, with access limited to only those 
employees who have an official need for access in order to perform 
their duties.
    We annually provide our employees and contractors with appropriate 
security awareness training that includes reminders about the need to 
protect PII and the criminal penalties that apply to unauthorized 
access to, or disclosure of, PII (5 U.S.C. 552a(i)(1)). Furthermore, 
employees and contractors with access to databases maintaining PII must 
sign a sanctions document annually, acknowledging their accountability 
for inappropriately accessing or disclosing such information.

RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURES:
    Individuals may submit requests for information about whether this 
system contains a record about them by submitting a written request to 
the system manager at the above address, which includes their name, 
SSN, or other information that may be in this system of records that 
will identify them. Individuals requesting notification of, or access 
to, a record by mail must include: (1) A notarized statement to us to 
verify their identity; or (2) must certify in the request that they are 
the individual they claim to be and that they understand that the 
knowing and willful request for, or acquisition of, a record pertaining 
to another individual under false pretenses is a criminal offense.
    Individuals requesting notification of or access to, records in 
person must

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provide their name, SSN, or other information that may be in this 
system of records that will identify them, as well as provide an 
identity document, preferably with a photograph, such as a driver's 
license. Individuals lacking identification documents sufficient to 
establish their identity must certify in writing that they are the 
individual they claim to be and that they understand that the knowing 
and willful request for, or acquisition of, a record pertaining to 
another individual under false pretenses is a criminal offense.
    These procedures are in accordance with our regulations at 20 CFR 
401.40 and 401.45.

CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES:
    Same as record access procedures. Individuals should also 
reasonably identify the record, specify the information they are 
contesting, and state the corrective action sought and the reasons for 
the correction with supporting justification showing how the record is 
incomplete, untimely, inaccurate, or irrelevant. These procedures are 
in accordance with our regulations at 20 CFR 401.65(a).

NOTIFICATION PROCEDURES:
    Same as record access procedures. These procedures are in 
accordance with our regulations at 20 CFR 401.40 and 401.45.

EXEMPTIONS PROMULGATED FOR THE SYSTEM:
    None.

HISTORY:
    None.

[FR Doc. 2018-24908 Filed 11-14-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE P