Document

Privacy Act of 1974; Matching Program

In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) guidance on computer matching, the Department of Justice ("Department") is prov...

Department of Justice
  1. [CPCLO Order No. 007-2026]

AGENCY:

United States Department of Justice.

ACTION:

Notice of a new matching program.

SUMMARY:

In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) guidance on computer matching, the Department of Justice (“Department”) is providing notice of the establishment of a new matching program. Pursuant to the Payment Integrity Information Act of 2019, the Department, including its components and program offices, is establishing a new matching program consisting of the computerized comparison of systems of records for benefits programs at the Department with the Do Not Pay (DNP) Working System, which is administered by Treasury's Bureau of the Fiscal Service. This matching program will ( printed page 56475) enable the Department programs listed in the appendix of this notice to compare records maintained in their respective systems of records with records maintained in the DNP Working System for the purposes of identifying and preventing improper payments and conducting any related recovery activities by verifying through DNP prepayment or pre-award eligibility.

DATES:

In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(4) and (11), this notice is subject to a 30-day notice and comment period. Please submit any comments by October 2, 2026. This new matching program will be effective 30 days after publication of this notice through September 10, 2029.

ADDRESSES:

The public is invited to submit any comments to the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Privacy and Civil Liberties, ATTN: Privacy Analyst, Two Constitution Square, 145 N St. NE, Suite 8W-300, Washington, DC 20530; by facsimile at 202-307-0693; or by email at . To ensure proper handling, please reference the above CPCLO Order No. on your correspondence.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Kameron Cox, Counsel, Office of Privacy and Civil Liberties, Two Constitution Square, 145 N St. NE, Suite 8W-300, Washington, DC 20530; by facsimile at 202-307-0693; or by email at . To ensure proper handling, please reference the above CPCLO Order No. on your correspondence.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

On March 25, 2025, the President issued Executive Order (E.O.) 14249, Protecting America's Bank Account Against Fraud, Waste, and Abuse (90 FR 14011), to promote the financial integrity and operational efficiency of the Federal Government. The Computer Matching and Privacy Protection Act of 1988 (Pub. L. 100-503) amended the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a ( www.govinfo.gov/​link/​uscode/​5/​552a)) by establishing procedural safeguards related to agencies' use of records when performing certain types of computerized matching. Section 7201 of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990 (Pub. L. 101-508) further amended the Privacy Act regarding protections for individuals when agencies perform these functions. Additionally, the Payment Integrity Information Act of 2019 (31 U.S.C. 3351 ( www.govinfo.gov/​link/​uscode/​31/​3351) et seq.) provides the head of the agency operating the DNP Working System with the authority, in consultation with OMB, to waive the requirements in 5 U.S.C. 552a(o) ( www.govinfo.gov/​link/​uscode/​5/​552a) in any case or class of cases for matching activities conducted under the DNP Initiative (31 U.S.C. 3354 ( www.govinfo.gov/​link/​uscode/​31/​3354)). Pursuant to this authority, the Secretary of the Treasury, after consulting with the OMB Director, authorized the issuance of a four-year waiver of the requirement for entering into a matching agreement under 5 U.S.C. 552a(o) ( www.govinfo.gov/​link/​uscode/​5/​552a ) for the class of matching programs that meet all of the criteria defined in OMB Memorandum M-25-32, Preventing Improper Payments and Protecting Privacy through Do Not Pay. The Department, in coordination with Treasury has determined that the DNP matching program described in this notice is eligible for the waiver described in OMB Memorandum M-25-32, which is effective from September 10, 2025, through September 10, 2029. For purposes of this notice, matching activities conducted between the Federal benefit programs listed in this document and the DNP Working System constitute a single agency-wide matching program implementing DNP for the Department's listed programs.[1]

Participating Agencies

The U.S. Department of Justice and U.S. Department of the Treasury, Bureau of the Fiscal Service.

Authority for Conducting the Matching Program

The Payment Integrity Information Act of 2019 (31 U.S.C. 3351 et seq.) establishes the DNP Initiative and requires, for the purposes of identifying and preventing improper payments, each executive agency to have access to, and use of, the relevant databases in DNP to verify payment or award eligibility. Additional applicable authorities for this matching program include Executive Order 13520, Reducing Improper Payments (74 FR 62201); Executive Order 14249, Protecting America's Bank Account Against Fraud, Waste, and Abuse (90 FR 14011); and OMB Memorandum M-25-32, Preventing Improper Payments and Protecting Privacy Through Do Not Pay. Additional information regarding the statutory authorities for the collection and maintenance of information for each of the Department's programs that will conduct matches with the DNP Working System are contained within the systems of records notices listed below.

Purpose(s)

The purposes of the matching program are identifying and preventing improper payments and conducting any related recovery activities by verifying through Do Not Pay prepayment or pre-award eligibility. Data elements that are necessary for eligibility determinations for a relevant Department program that are contained in records from the Department systems of records will be compared with records in the DNP Working System. When there is a match between a record provided by the Department program and a record in the DNP Working System, the DNP Working System will notify the submitting the Department program of a potentially matching record and will identify the database(s) that contain the potentially matching record(s). The Department program will then review the information to determine whether additional action is needed. If no matches are identified, the DNP Working System will provide a “no match” response to the submitting the Department program.

Purposes of the Relevant Department Programs

RECA: The Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) established a non-adversarial administrative claims program to provide financial relief for illnesses presumed to have been caused by U.S. Government atmospheric nuclear testing, domestic uranium extraction, and waste created during the Manhattan Project. RECA is codified by Radiation Exposure Compensation Act U.S.C. 2210 note, Sec. 6 & 42 U.S.C. 2210 note, as amended by Public Law 119-21, Sections 100201-100205 (July 4, 2025).

9/11 VCF: The September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 File System is a system of records established to support the administration of the program to compensate individuals who were physically injured or the personal representatives of those who were killed as a result of the terrorist-related aircraft crashes of September 11, 2001.

Categories of Individuals

RECA: Individuals/entities applying for or receiving benefits under the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act ( printed page 56476) (“RECA”) ( i.e., individuals claiming or eligible surviving beneficiaries of an individual who developed a covered presumptive illness as a result of the U.S. Government atmospheric nuclear testing, domestic uranium extraction, and waste created during the Manhattan Project.)

9/11 VCF: Individuals who claim benefits under the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 (“9/11 VCF”) ( i.e., individuals claiming to have suffered physical injury or the personal representatives of individuals who were killed as a result of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001).

Categories of Records

Data elements (derived from claimants or beneficiaries) that will be used for the matching activity include:

RECA:

1. First and Last Name.

2. Social Security Number.

3. Date of Birth (Note that “Date of Birth” is not transmitted by the Department to DNP. Date of Birth is used to validate results from Do Not Pay).

9/11 VCF:

1. First and Last Name.

2. Social Security Number.

3. Date of Birth (Note that “Date of Birth” is not transmitted by the Department to DNP. Date of Birth is used to validate results from Do Not Pay).

System(s) of Records

United States Department of Justice System of Records Notices and citations follow. An asterisk (*) designates the last full Federal Register notice that includes all of the elements that are required to be in a System of Records Notice.

System No. and name Federal Register, citations Applicable program
JUSTICE/DOJ-001, Accounting Systems for the Department of Justice 69 FR 31406*, 71 FR 142, 72 FR 3410, 75 FR 13575, 82 FR 24147; 91 FR 27085 RECA, 9/11 VCF.
JUSTICE/CIV-001, Civil Division Case File System 63 FR 8659, 665*, 66 FR 8425, 66 FR 17200, 66 FR 36593, 72 FR 3410, 82 FR 24147, 91 FR 27085 RECA, 9/11 VCF.
JUSTICE/CIV-008, September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 File System 66 FR 65991*, 66 FR 8425, 72 FR 3410, 82 FR 24147, 91 FR 27085 9/11 VCF.

Dated: August 28, 2026.

Laurence E. Rothenberg,

Chief Privacy and Civil Liberties Officer, United States Department of Justice.

Footnotes

1.  The statutory definition of the term “matching program” means “any computerized comparison of—(i) two or more automated systems of records or a system of records with non-Federal records” for certain enumerated purposes. 5 U.S.C. 552a(a)(8) (emphasis added). There is a separate statutory definition for “Federal benefit program.” See OMB Memorandum M-25-32 at Appendix II, page 2, sec. a.3.iii.1 (recognizing that a single agency matching program may consist of multiple systems of records). Thus, this notice applies to the Do Not Pay matching program for multiple Federal benefits programs and associated systems of records within the Department.

Back to Citation

[FR Doc. 2026-17963 Filed 9-1-26; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4410-NW-P

Legal Citation

Federal Register Citation

Use this for formal legal and research references to the published document.

91 FR 56474

Web Citation

Suggested Web Citation

Use this when citing the archival web version of the document.

“Privacy Act of 1974; Matching Program,” thefederalregister.org (September 2, 2026), https://thefederalregister.org/documents/2026-17963/privacy-act-of-1974-matching-program.