[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 73 (Tuesday, April 15, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20311-20314]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-7987]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Office of Inspector General
Privacy Act of 1974, New OIG Privacy Act System of Records:
Litigation Files
AGENCY: Office of Inspector General (OIG), HHS.
ACTION: Notice of proposed new Privacy Act systems of records.
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SUMMARY: The Office of Inspector General (OIG) is proposing a new
system of records, entitled Litigation Files, Administrative
Complaints, and Personnel Actions, HHS/OS/OIG/OCIG (09-90-0077). This
proposed notice is in accordance with the Privacy Act
[[Page 20312]]
requirement that agencies publish their systems of records in the
Federal Register when there is a revision, change, or addition. This
new system will replicate the existing system of records, entitled
Litigation Files, Administrative Complaints, and Adverse Personnel
Actions, HHS/OS/OGC (09-90-0064), to reflect that responsibility for
providing legal services to the Inspector General has transferred to
OIG's Office of Counsel to the Inspector General (OCIG). The existing
Litigation Files system of records (09-90-0064) remains with the
Department's Office of General Counsel and will be unchanged. This
notice specifically covers that portion of the records that transferred
to, or have been since created and maintained by, OCIG. The Litigation
Files, Administrative Complaints, and Personnel Actions, HHS/OS/OIG/
OCIG system of records will be maintained for the purposes of
representing OIG and its components in court cases and administrative
proceedings, in accordance with the Inspector General Act of 1978 (5
U.S.C. App.).
DATES: Effective Date: This system of records will become effective
without further notice on June 16, 2008, unless comments received on or
before that date result in a contrary determination.
Comment Date: Comments on this new system of records will be
considered if we receive them at the addresses provided below no later
than 5 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on May 15, 2008.
ADDRESSES: In commenting, please reference file code OIG-796-PN.
Because of staff and resource limitations, we cannot accept comments by
facsimile (Fax) transmission. However, you may submit comments using
one of the following three ways (no duplicates, please):
1. Electronically. You may submit electronically through the
Federal eRulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov. (Attachments
should be in Microsoft Word, if possible.)
2. By regular, express, or overnight mail. You may mail your
printed or written submissions to the following address: Office of
Inspector General, Department of Health and Human Services, Attention:
OIG-796-PN, Room 5246, Cohen Building, 330 Independence Avenue, SW.,
Washington, DC 20201. Please allow sufficient time for mailed comments
to be received before the close of the comment period.
3. By hand or courier. You may deliver, by hand or courier, before
the close of the comment period, your printed or written comments to
the Office of Inspector General, Department of Health and Human
Services, Cohen Building, 330 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC
20201. Because access to the interior of the Cohen Building is not
readily available to persons without Federal Government identification,
commenters are encouraged to schedule their delivery with one of our
staff members at (202) 358-3141. Inspection of Public Comments: All
comments received before the end of the comment period will be posted
on http://www.regulations.gov for public viewing. Hard copies will also
be available for public inspection at the Office of Inspector General,
Department of Health and Human Services, Cohen Building, 330
Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20201, Monday through Friday
from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. To schedule an appointment to view public
comments, phone (202) 619-0089.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Melissa McCurdy, Office of Counsel to
the Inspector General, (202) 619-0335.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Office of Inspector General (OIG)
proposes to establish a new Privacy Act system of records, 09-90-0077,
Litigation Files, Administrative Complaints, and Personnel Actions,
HHS/OS/OIG/OCIG. The new system will duplicate an existing Privacy Act
system of Records--Litigation Files, Administrative Complaints, and
Adverse Personnel Actions HHS/OS/OGC (09-90-0064)--which was last
revised and updated in the Federal Register on November 9, 1994 (59 FR
55845), by adding a new routine use to permit the disclosure of
information from this system to certain individuals working in various
offices within the Office of the Secretary, but who do not have the
status of agency employees and, in many instances, do not receive pay
for their work.
The new system of records--Litigation Files, Administrative
Complaints, and Personnel Actions, HHS/OS/OIG/OCIG (09-90-0077)--will
replicate the 09-90-0064 system of records, but will modify the
``System Name,'' ``System Location,'' ``Categories of Individuals
Covered by the System,'' ``Authority for Maintenance of the System,''
``Routine Uses,'' ``Purposes,'' ``System Safeguards,'' and ``System
Manager(s) and Address'' sections. Records in the system have been
located and maintained in OIG's headquarters. The modification of the
``System Name,'' ``System Location,'' ``Authority for Maintenance of
the System,'' ``Routine Uses,'' ``Purposes,'' ``Storage,'' ``System
Safeguards,'' and ``System Manager(s) and Address'' sections are to
reflect that responsibility for providing legal services to the
Inspector General transferred to the Office of Counsel to the Inspector
General (OCIG).
The Inspector General Act of 1978 established OIG ``to conduct and
supervise audits and investigations relating to the programs and
operations'' of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
Within OIG, OCIG (1) provides general legal services to OIG including,
among other things, advice and representation on HHS programs and
operations, administrative law issues, and criminal procedure; (2)
imposes program exclusions and civil money penalties on health care
providers and litigates those actions within the Department; (3)
represents OIG in the global settlement of cases arising under the
False Claims Act; and (4) represents OIG in personnel actions.
Description of the Proposed System of Records
The Litigation Files, Administrative Complaints, and Personnel
Actions, HHS/OS/OIG/OCIG system will enable OCIG to access and maintain
records for the purpose of representing OIG and its components in court
cases and administrative proceedings. The system will house records
pertaining to litigation, administrative complaints, and personnel
actions in which OIG is, or was, involved.
Agency Policies, Procedures, and Restrictions on the Routine Use
The Privacy Act permits OIG to disclose information without an
individual's consent if the information is to be used for a purpose
that is compatible with the purposes for which the information was
collected. Any such disclosure of data is known as a routine use. We
are proposing to establish the following routine use disclosures of
records maintained in the system:
1. Disclosure may be made to a congressional office from the record
of an individual in response to an inquiry from the congressional
office made at the request of that individual.
2. In the event of litigation, information from the system of
records may be disclosed to the Department of Justice, to a judicial or
administrative tribunal, opposing counsel, and witnesses, in the course
of proceedings involving HHS, any HHS employee (where the matter
pertains to the employee's official duties), or the United States, or
any agency thereof where the litigation is likely to affect
[[Page 20313]]
HHS, or HHS is a party or has an interest in the litigation and the use
of the information is relevant and necessary to the litigation.
3. In the event that a system of records maintained by this agency
to carry out its functions indicates 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, whether Federal, or foreign, charged with the
responsibility of investigating or prosecuting such violation or
charged with enforcing or implementing the statute or rule, regulation,
or order issued pursuant thereto.
4. In the event the Department deems it desirable or necessary, in
determining whether particular records are required to be disclosed
under the Freedom of Information Act, disclosure may be made to the
Department of Justice for the purpose of obtaining its advice.
5. A record from this system of records may be disclosed as a
``routine use'' to a Federal, State, or local agency maintaining civil,
criminal, or other relevant enforcement records or other pertinent
records, such as current licenses, if necessary to obtain a record
relevant to an agency decision concerning the hiring or retention of an
employee, the issuance of a security clearance, the letting of a
contract, or the issuance of a license, grant, or other benefit.
6. A record from this system of records may be disclosed to a
Federal agency in response to its request, in connection with the
hiring or retention of an employee, the issuance of a security
clearance, the reporting of an investigation of an employee, the
letting of a contract, or the issuance of a license, grant, or other
benefit by the requesting agency, to the extent that the record is
relevant and necessary to the requesting agency's decision on the
matter.
7. Information in this system of records may be disclosed to a
Federal, State, or local agency maintaining civil, criminal, or other
relevant enforcement records, or other pertinent records, such as
current licenses, if necessary to obtain a record relevant to an agency
concerning the hiring or retention of an employee, the issuance of a
license, grant, or other benefit.
8. To student volunteers and other individuals performing functions
for the Department, but technically not having the status of agency
employees, if they need access to the records in order to perform their
assigned agency functions.
9. A record may be disclosed to appropriate Federal agencies and
Department contractors that have a need to know the information for the
purpose of assisting the Department's efforts to respond to a suspected
or confirmed breach of the security or confidentiality of information
maintained in this system of records, and the information disclosed is
relevant and necessary for that assistance.
Safeguards
OIG has safeguards in place for authorized users and monitors users
to ensure against unauthorized use. The system will conform to all
applicable Federal laws and regulations and Federal, HHS, and OIG
policies and standards as they relate to information security and data
privacy.
Effects of the Proposed System of Records on Individual Rights
This system is established in accordance with the principles and
requirements of the Privacy Act and will collect, use, and disseminate
information only as prescribed therein. Data in this system will be
subject to the authorized releases in accordance with the routine uses
identified in this system of records notice.
OIG will take precautionary measures to minimize the risks of
unauthorized access to the records and the potential harm to individual
privacy or other personal or property rights of applicants whose data
are maintained in the system. OCIG will make disclosures from the
proposed system in accordance with the Privacy Act. OCIG does not
anticipate an unfavorable effect on individual privacy as a result of
the disclosure of information relating to individuals.
This proposed change will not otherwise increase access to these
records.
Dated: April 10, 2008.
Daniel R. Levinson,
Inspector General.
09-90-0077
SYSTEM NAME:
Litigation Files, Administrative Complaints, and Personnel Actions,
HS/OS/OIG/OCIG.
SECURITY CLASSIFICATION:
None.
SYSTEM LOCATION:
Office of Counsel to the Inspector General (OCIG), Department of
Health and Human Services, Room 5527, Wilbur J. Cohen Building, 330
Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20201.
CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM:
The individuals on whom records are maintained in this system are
individuals who are involved in civil, criminal, or administrative
litigation with the Department or the United States (regarding matters
within the jurisdiction of the Department) either as plaintiffs or as
defendants, and individuals who either file administrative complaints
with the Department or are the subjects of administrative complaints
initiated by the Department.
CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
These records contain information pertaining to the subject matter
of the litigation, administrative complaint, or personnel action. Such
records would include complaints, litigation reports, administrative
transcripts, various litigation documents, investigative materials,
correspondence, briefs, court orders, and judgments.
AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
The authority for maintaining this system is found in the various
statutes, regulations, rules, or orders pertaining to the subject
matter of the litigation, administrative complaint, or adverse
personnel action, (e.g., Inspector General Act and the Social Security
Act).
PURPOSE(S):
To advise and represent the Office of Inspector General and its
components in court cases and administrative proceedings.
ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM INCLUDING CATEGORIES
OF USERS AND THE PURPOSES OF SUCH USES:
a. Disclosure may be made to a congressional office from the record
of an individual in response to an inquiry from the congressional
office made at the request of that individual.
b. In the event of litigation, information from the system of
records may be disclosed to the Department of Justice, to a judicial or
administrative tribunal, opposing counsel, and witnesses, in the course
of proceedings involving HHS, any HHS employee (where the matter
pertains to the employee's official duties), or the United States, or
any agency thereof where the litigation is likely to affect HHS, or HHS
is a party or has an interest in the litigation and the use of the
information is relevant and necessary to the litigation.
[[Page 20314]]
c. In the event that a system of records maintained by this agency
to carry out its functions indicates 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, whether Federal or foreign, charged with the
responsibility of investigating or prosecuting such violation or
charged with enforcing or implementing the statute or rule, regulation
or order issued pursuant thereto.
d. In the event the Department deems it desirable or necessary, in
determining whether particular records are required to be disclosed
under the Freedom of Information Act, disclosure may be made to the
Department of Justice for the purpose of obtaining its advice.
e. A record from this system of records may be disclosed as a
``routine use'' to a Federal, State, or local agency maintaining civil,
criminal, or other relevant enforcement records or other pertinent
records, such as current licenses, if necessary to obtain a record
relevant to an agency decision concerning the hiring or retention of an
employee, the issuance of a security clearance, the letting of a
contract, or the issuance of a license, grant, or other benefit.
f. A record from this system of records may be disclosed to a
Federal agency, response to its request, in connection with the hiring
or retention of an employee, the issuance of a security clearance, the
reporting of an investigation of an employee, the letting of a
contract, or the issuance of a license, grant, or other benefit by the
requesting agency, to the extent that the record is relevant and
necessary to the requesting agency's decision on the matter.
g. Information in this system of records may be disclosed to a
Federal, State, or local agency maintaining civil, criminal, or other
relevant enforcement records, or other pertinent records, such as
current licenses, if necessary to obtain a record relevant to an agency
concerning the hiring or retention of an employee, the issuance of a
license, grant, or other benefit.
h. To student volunteers and other individuals performing functions
for the Department, but technically not having the status of agency
employees, if they need access to the records in order to perform their
assigned agency functions.
i. A record may be disclosed to appropriate Federal agencies and
Department contractors that have a need to know the information for the
purpose of assisting the Department's efforts to respond to a suspected
or confirmed breach of the security or confidentiality of information
maintained in this system of records, and the information disclosed is
relevant and necessary for that assistance.
POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORING, RETRIEVING, ACCESSING, RETAINING,
AND DISPOSING OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
STORAGE:
Records are stored in electronic form and paper files are stored in
locked file cabinets.
RETRIEVABILITY:
These records are retrievable by name of the plaintiff or the first
plaintiff if there is more than one, or by the name of the first
defendant if the plaintiff is the United States. In the case of
personnel actions, records are retrievable by name of the individual
involved.
SAFEGUARDS:
Office buildings in which these records are maintained are secured
by a variety of security systems. The computer terminals used to access
the records are secured with passwords, encryptions, and other security
devices, comply with all relevant computer security procedures, and are
kept in rooms that are locked at the close of the business day, and are
generally accessible only to OCIG staff.
RETENTION AND DISPOSAL:
These records are maintained for an indefinite duration.
SYSTEM MANAGER(S) AND ADDRESS:
The agency official responsible for the system policies and
practices outlined above is: The Chief Counsel, Office of Counsel to
the Inspector General, Department of Health and Human Services, Wilbur
J. Cohen Building, Room 5527, 330 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington,
DC 20201.
NOTIFICATION PROCEDURES:
Any inquiries regarding these systems of records should be
addressed to the System Manager. An individual who requests
notification of or access to a medical record shall, at the time the
request is made, designate in writing a responsible representative who
will be willing to review the record and inform the subject individual
of its contents at the representative's discretion. (These notification
and access procedures are in accordance with Department regulations (45
CFR 5b.6).)
RECORDS ACCESS PROCEDURES:
Same as notification procedures. Requesters should also reasonably
specify the record contents being sought. (These access procedures are
in accordance with Department regulations (45 CFR 5b.5 (a)(2).)
CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES:
Contact the official at the address System Manager(s) and Address
above, and reasonably identify the record and specify the information
to be contested and corrective action sought with supporting
justification. (These procedures are in accordance with Department
regulations (45 CFR 5b.7).)
RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
The information for this system is obtained through a number of
sources including the exchange of legal pleadings, documents, formal
and informal discovery, program offices and component agencies, private
attorneys, State and local governments, their agencies and
instrumentalities, and officers of other Federal agencies and the
individuals involved.
SYSTEMS EXEMPTED FROM CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF THE ACT:
None.
[FR Doc. E8-7987 Filed 4-14-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4152-01-P