[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 61 (Wednesday, March 31, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16171-16173]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-7220]
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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
[Docket No. FR-5386-N-01]
Privacy Act of 1974; Notice of Modification of Existing Computer
Matching Program Between the Department of Housing and Urban
Development (HUD) and the Social Security Administration (SSA):
Matching Tenant Data in Assisted Housing Programs
AGENCY: Office of the Chief Information Officer, HUD.
ACTION: Notice of modification of Existing Computer Matching Program.
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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the Computer Matching and Privacy Protection Act
of 1988, as amended, and the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB)
Guidance on the statute (5 U.S.C. 552a, as amended), HUD is providing
notice of its intent to modify an existing computer matching program
with SSA to include the Disaster Housing Assistance Program (DHAP) as a
covered HUD rental assistance program for the purpose of income
verifications and computer matching.
DATES: Effective Date: The modification to the existing computer
matching program and its matching activities may commence after the
respective Data Integrity Boards (DIBs) of both agencies approve and
sign the agreement modification, and after, the later of the following:
(1) 30 days after HUD publishes notice of the modification in the
Federal Register; (2) at least 40 days after HUD files a report of the
modification with the Office of Management and Budge (OMB), and the
Congressional committees, unless comments are received, which result in
a contrary determination
Comments Due Date: April 30, 2010.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments regarding
this notice to the Rules Docket Clerk, Office of General Counsel,
Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 Seventh Street, SW.,
Room 10276, Washington, DC 20410-0500. Communications should refer to
the above docket number and title. Comments sent by facsimile are not
acceptable. A copy of each communication submitted will be available
for public inspection and copying between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays at
the above address.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For Privacy Act inquires: Office of
the Chief Information Officer, contact Donna Robinson-Staton,
Departmental Privacy Act Officer, HUD, 451 Seventh Street, SW., Room
2256, Washington, DC 20410, telephone number (202) 402-8073. For
program information: Office of Public and Indian Housing, contact
Nicole Faison, Program Advisor for the Office of Public Housing and
Voucher Programs, Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451
Seventh Street, SW., Room 4214, Washington, DC 20410, telephone number
(202) 402-4267; Office of Housing, contact Gail Williamson, Director of
the Housing Assistance Policy Division, Department of Housing and Urban
Development, 451 Seventh Street, SW., Room 6138, Washington, DC 20410,
telephone number (202) 402-2473. (These are not toll free telephone
numbers). A telecommunications device for hearing- and speech-impaired
individuals (TTY) is available at (800) 877-8339 (Federal Information
Relay Service).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This Notice supersedes a similar notice
published in the Federal Register (FR) on March 11, 2009 at 74 FR
10605. On March 11, 2009, Section 239 of HUD's 2009 Appropriations Act
modified Section 904 of the Stewart B. McKinney Act of 1988, as
amended, to include the Disaster Housing Assistance Program (DHAP).
Computer matching for participants of the Disaster Housing Assistance
Program is expected to begin no sooner than April 2010. HUD will
continue to obtain SSA data and make the results available to (1)
program administrators such as public housing agencies (PHAs) and
private owners and management agents (O/As) to enable them to verify
the accuracy of income reported by the tenants (participants) of HUD
rental assistance programs and (2) contract administrators (CAs)
overseeing and monitoring O/A operations as well as independent public
auditors (IPAs) that audit both PHAs and O/As. SSA data will also
continue to be used to validate information provided by borrowers and
co-borrowers applying for and obtaining insurance for Federal Housing
Administration (FHA) mortgages. The HUD-SSA computer matching program
will be modified to now include program participants of HUD's new
Disaster Housing Assistance Program (DHAP).
Administrators of HUD rental assistance programs rely upon the
accuracy of tenant-reported income to determine participant eligibility
for and level of, rental assistance. The computer matching program will
provide indicators of potential under-reported tenant income that will
require additional verification to identify inappropriate (excess or
insufficient) rental assistance, and perhaps administrative or legal
actions. The matching program will be carried out to detect
inappropriate (excessive or insufficient) rental assistance under
sections 221(3), 221(d)(5), and 236 of the National Housing Act, the
United States Housing Act of 1937, section 101 of the Housing and
Community Development Act of 1965, section 202 of the Housing Act of
1959, section 811 of the Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing
Act, the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act
of 1996, and the Quality Housing and Work Responsibility Act (QHWRA) of
1998. The program will also provide for verification of Social Security
numbers (SSNs) for tenants participating in covered rental assistance
programs, and borrowers and co-borrowers applying for mortgage
insurance for FHA loans through HUD. This Notice provides an overview
of computer matching for HUD's rental assistance programs.
Specifically, the Notice describes HUD's program for computer matching
of its tenant data to SSA's death data, Social
[[Page 16172]]
Security (SS) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits data.
The Computer Matching and Privacy Protection Act (CMPPA) of 1988,
an amendment to the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a), OMB's guidance
on this statute entitled ``Final Guidance Interpreting the Provisions
of Public Law 100-503, the CMPPA of 1988'' (OMB Guidance), and OMB
Circular No. A-130 requires publication of notices of computer matching
programs. Appendix I to OMB's Revision of Circular No. A-130,
``Transmittal Memorandum No. 4, Management of Federal Information
Resources,'' prescribes Federal agency responsibilities for maintaining
records about individuals. In compliance with the CMPPA and Appendix I
to OMB Circular No. A-130, copies of this notice are being provided to
the Committee on Government Reform and Oversight of the House of
Representatives, the Committee of Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs of the Senate, and OMB's Office of Information and Regulatory
Affairs.
I. Authority
This matching program is being conducted pursuant to the Privacy
Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a); 542(b) of the 1998 Appropriations Act
(Pub. L. 105-65); section 904 of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless
Assistance Amendments Act of 1988, as amended (42 U.S.C. 3544); section
165 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1987 (42 U.S.C.
3543); the National Housing Act (12 U.S.C. 1701-1750g); the United
States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437-1437z); section 101 of the
Housing and Community Development Act of 1965 (12 U.S.C. 1701s); the
Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996
(25 U.S.C. 4101 et seq.); and the QHWRA Act of 1998 (42 U.S.C.
1437a(f)). The Housing and Community Development Act of 1987 authorizes
HUD to require participants (and applicants) in HUD-administered
programs involving loan and rental assistance to disclose to HUD their
social security numbers (SSNs) as a condition of continuing (or
initial) eligibility for participation in the programs. The QHWRA of
1998, section 508(d), 42 U.S.C. 1437a(f) authorizes the Secretary of
HUD to require disclosure by the tenant to the PHA of income
information received by the tenant from HUD as part of the income
verification procedures of HUD. The QHWRA was amended by Public Law
106-74, which extended the disclosure requirements to participants in
section 8, section 202, and section 811 assistance programs. The
participants are required to disclose the HUD-provided income
information to owners responsible for determining the participant's
eligibility or level of benefits.
II. Covered Programs
This Notice of computer matching program applies to the following
rental assistance programs:
A. Disaster Housing Assistance Program (DHAP)
B. Public Housing
C. Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV)
D. Project-Based Voucher
E. Section 8 Moderate Rehabilitation
F. Project-Based Section 8
1. New Construction
2. State Agency Financed
3. Substantial Rehabilitation
4. Section 202/8
5. Rural Housing Services Section 515/8
6. Loan Management Set-Aside (LMSA)
7. Property Disposition Set-Aside (PDSA)
G. Section 101 Rent Supplement
H. Section 202/162 Project Assistance Contract (PAC)
I. Section 202 Project Rental Assistance Contract (PRAC)
J. Section 811 Project Rental Assistance Contract (PRAC)
K. Section 236
L. Section 236 Rental Assistance Program
M. Section 221(d)(3) Below Market Interest Rate (BMIR)
Note: This Notice does not apply to the Low Income Housing Tax
Credit (LIHTC) or the Rural Housing Services Section 515 without
Section 8 programs.
III. Objectives To Be Met by the Matching Program
HUD's primary objective in implementing the computer matching
program is to verify the income of individuals participating in the
rental assistance programs identified in section II above to determine
the appropriate level of rental assistance, and to detect, deter,
reduce and correct fraud and abuse in rental assistance programs. In
meeting this objective, HUD also is carrying out its responsibility
under 42 U.S.C. 1437f(K) to ensure that income data provided to POAs by
household members is complete and accurate. HUD's various assisted
housing programs, administered through POAs, require that applicants
and participants meet certain income and other criteria to be eligible
for rental assistance. In addition, tenants generally are required to
report the amounts and sources of their income at least annually.
However, under the QHWRA of 1998, PHAs must offer public housing
tenants the option to pay a flat rent, or an income-based rent
annually. Those tenants who select a flat rent will be required to
recertify income at least every three years. In addition, the Changes
to the Admissions and Occupancy Final Rule (March 29, 2000; 65 FR
16692) specified that household composition must be recertified
annually for tenants who select a flat rent or income-based rent.
Other objectives of this computer matching program include: (1)
Increasing the availability of rental assistance to individuals who
meet the requirements of the rental assistance programs; (2) after
removal of personal identifiers, conducting analyses of the Social
Security death data and benefit information, and income reporting of
program participants; and (3) measure improper payments due to under-
reporting of income and/or overpayment of subsidy on behalf of deceased
program participants (single member households).
IV. Program Description
In this computer matching program, tenant-provided information
included in HUD's automated systems of records known as Tenant Rental
Assistance Certification System (TRACS) (HUD/H-11) and the Inventory
Management System (IMS), formerly known as the Public and Indian
Housing Information Center (PIC) (HUD/PIH-4), will be compared to data
from SSA databases. The notices for these systems were published at 62
FR 11909 and 73 FR 58256, respectively. HUD will disclose to SSA only
tenant personal identifiers, i.e., full name, Social Security number,
and date of birth. SSA will match the HUD-provided personal identifiers
to personal identifiers included in their various systems of records
identified in Section IV of this notice. SSA will validate HUD-provided
personal identifiers and provide income data to HUD only for
individuals with matched personal identifiers. SSA will also provide
the date of death or indication of death for any program participant
whose HUD-supplied personal identifiers are successfully matched
against SSA databases. For any individual whose personal identifiers do
not match the personal identifiers in the SSA database, SSA will
provide HUD with an error message, which will describe the reason(s)
for no match (i.e. incorrect date of birth or surname, or invalid
Social Security number).
[[Page 16173]]
A. Income Verification
Any match (i.e., a ``hit'') will be further reviewed by HUD, the
POAs, or the HUD Office of Inspector General (OIG) to determine whether
the income reported by tenants to the program administrator is correct
and complies with HUD and program administrator requirements.
Specifically, current or prior SS and SSI benefit information and other
data will be sought directly from tenants. For public housing and
Section 8 tenant-based HCV programs, tenants will be required to
provide PHAs with original SSA benefit verification letters dated
within the last 60 days for comparison to computer matching results for
accuracy. For multifamily housing programs, tenants must provide O/As
with SSA benefit verification letters dated within the last 120 days.
For SS and SSI benefit information for prior years, the tenant may be
required to provide POAs with an original benefit history document from
SSA if there is a dispute regarding historical income information
obtained through the computer matching program.
B. Administrative or Legal Actions
Regarding all the matching described in this notice, POAs will take
appropriate action in consultation with tenants to: (1) Resolve income
disparities between tenant-reported and SSA-reported data; and (2) Use
correct income amounts in determining rental assistance.
POAs must compute the rent in full compliance with all applicable
statutes, regulations and administrator policies. POAs must ensure that
they use the correct income and correctly compute the rent. In order to
protect any individual whose records are used in this matching program,
POAs may not suspend, terminate, reduce, or make a final denial of any
rental assistance to any tenant, or take other adverse action against
the tenant as a result of information produced by this matching program
until: (a) The tenant has received notice from the POA of its findings
and has been informed of the opportunity to contest such findings; (b)
The POA has independently verified the information; and (c) either the
notice period provided in applicable regulations of the program, or 30
days, whichever is later, has expired. ``Independently verified'' in
item (b) means the specific information relating to the tenant that is
used as a basis for an adverse action has been investigated and
confirmed by the POA. (5 U.S.C. 552a) As such, POAs must resolve income
discrepancies in consultation with tenants. Additionally, serious
violations, which POAs, HUD Program staff, or the HUD OIG verify,
should be referred for full investigation and appropriate civil and/or
criminal proceedings.
With respect to SSA-provided error messages regarding HUD-provided
tenant, and matched borrower or co-borrower personal identifiers, the
POA and FHA administrator/agent will confirm its file and system
documentation to confirm accuracy of data elements, and make any
necessary corrections. If there is no error in the documentation, the
POAs and FHA administrators/agents will notify the individual of the
error and request that the individual contact the SSA to correct any
SSA data errors. POAs and FHA administrators/agents cannot correct such
errors.
V. Records To Be Matched
SSA will conduct the matching of tenant SSNs and additional
identifiers (surnames and dates of birth) to tenant data that HUD
supplies from its systems of records known as the Tenant Rental
Assistance Certification System (TRACS) (HUD/H-11) and the Inventory
Management System (IMS), formerly the Public and Indian Housing
Information Center (PIC) (HUD/PIH-4). Program administrators utilize
the form HUD-50058 module within the IMS system and the form HUD-50059
module within the TRACS to provide HUD with the tenant data.
SSA will match the tenant records included in HUD/H-11 and HUD/PIH-
4 to their systems of records known as SSA's Master Files of Social
Security Number Holders, and SSN Applications (60-0058), Master
Beneficiary Record (60-0090), and Supplemental Security Income Record
(60-103). The notice for these systems was published at 71 FR 1795 on
January 11, 2006. HUD will place the resulting matched data into its
Enterprise Income Verification (EIV) system (HUD/PIH-5). The notice for
this system was initially published at 70 FR 41780 on July 20, 2005,
and amended on September 1, 2009 (74 FR 45235) to reflect changes in
the following categories (sections): Categories of Individuals Covered
by the System, Categories of Records in the System, Purposes of the
System, and Routine Uses of Records Maintained in the System, Including
Categories of Users and Purposes of Such Users. The tenant records (one
record for each family member) include these data elements: full name,
SSN, and date of birth.
HUD data will also be matched to the SSA's Master Files of Social
Security Number Holders, and SSN Applications (60-0058) for the purpose
of validating SSNs of borrowers and co-borrowers of FHA mortgages and
participants of HUD rental assistance programs to identify
noncompliance with program eligibility requirements. The Computerized
Homes Underwriting Management System (HUD/H-5), published at 57 FR
62142 on December 29, 1997 is the HUD FHA system of records used to
match data transferred from SSA's Master Files of Social Security
Number Holder and SSN Applications (60-0058) to the HUD mainframe.
Mortgagees enter SSN data and review the returning verification/failure
data through the FHA Connection. HUD will compare tenant SSNs provided
by POAs to reveal duplicate SSNs and potential duplicate rental
assistance.
VI. Period of the Match
The computer matching program will be conducted according to the
computer matching agreement between HUD and the SSA. The computer
matching agreement for the planned matches will terminate either when
the purpose of the computer matching program is accomplished, or 18
months from the date the original agreement was signed, whichever comes
first. The agreement may be extended for one 12-month period, with the
mutual agreement of all involved parties, if the following conditions
are met:
(1) Within three months of the expiration date, all Data Integrity
Boards review the agreement, find that the program will be conducted
without change, and find a continued favorable examination of benefit/
cost results; and (2) All parties certify that the program has been
conducted in compliance with the agreement.
The agreement may be terminated, prior to accomplishment of the
computer matching purpose or 18 months from the date the agreement is
signed (whichever comes first), by the mutual agreement of all involved
parties within 30 days of written notice.
Dated: March 25, 2010.
Jerry E. Williams,
Chief Information Officer.
[FR Doc. 2010-7220 Filed 3-30-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210-67-P