Notice2024-07823
Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
April 12, 2024
Effective
April 12, 2024
Issuing agencies
Health and Human Services DepartmentChildren and Families Administration
Abstract
In accordance with the requirements of the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is modifying a system of records maintained by the Office of Family Assistance (OFA) within the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), 09-80-0375 OFA Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Data System. The modification will add Tribal TANF records from a separate system of records, 09-80-0373 OFA Tribal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (Tribal TANF), which is now being rescinded; and will change the name of the system of records 09-80-0375 to Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Data.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 72 (Friday, April 12, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 72 (Friday, April 12, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 25880-25883]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-07823]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Administration for Children and Families
Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records
AGENCY: Administration for Children and Families, Department of Health
and Human Services.
ACTION: Notice of a modified system of records and rescindment of a
system of records notice.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the requirements of the Privacy Act of
1974, as amended, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is
modifying a system of records maintained by the Office of Family
Assistance (OFA) within the Administration for Children and Families
(ACF), 09-80-0375 OFA Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
Data System. The modification will add Tribal TANF records from a
separate system of records, 09-80-0373 OFA Tribal Temporary Assistance
for Needy Families (Tribal TANF), which is now being rescinded; and
will change the name of the system of records 09-80-0375 to Temporary
Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Data.
DATES: In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(4), this notice is effective
April 12, 2024; however, the public may submit comments on the notice.
ADDRESSES: The public should submit written comments by mail or email
to Anita Alford, Senior Official for Privacy, Administration for
Children and Families, 330 C Street SW, Washington DC 20201, or
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#ebaa85829f8ac5aa878d84998fab8a888dc5838398c58c849d"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="c889a6a1bca9e689a4aea7baac88a9abaee6a0a0bbe6afa7be">[email protected]</span></a>. Please include ``09-80-0375'' in the subject
line. Comments received, if any, will be available for public
inspection at the above address during business hours, or otherwise
upon request; please contact Anita Alford at (202) 401-4628 or
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#ce8fa0a7baafe08fa2a8a1bcaa8eafada8e0a6a6bde0a9a1b8"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="88c9e6e1fce9a6c9e4eee7faecc8e9ebeea6e0e0fba6efe7fe">[email protected]</span></a> for an appointment or to request a copy. We do
not edit personal identifying information from submissions; therefore,
you should submit only information that you wish to make publicly
available.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: General questions about the systems of
records may be submitted by mail or email to TANF Data Division, Office
of Family Assistance, Administration for Children and Families, 330 C
Street SW, Washington, DC 20201, or <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#483c29262e2c293c2908292b2e6620203b662f273e"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="aadecbc4cccecbdecbeacbc9cc84c2c2d984cdc5dc">[email protected]</span></a>; or may be
submitted by telephone to Anita Alford, Senior Official for Privacy, at
(202) 401-4628.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
The Office of Family Assistance (OFA) oversees the cash welfare
block grant called the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
program. The TANF program provides assistance and work opportunities to
needy families through grants that provide states, certain U.S.
territories, and Tribes with federal funds and flexibility to develop
and implement their welfare programs. Each state and U.S. territory
that operates a program of cash assistance for low-income families
using TANF funding is required by statute to collect data about the
recipients of that cash assistance. Federally recognized tribes
administering TANF programs are also required to collect similar data.
Given the similar nature of the data collections for states,
territories, and Tribes, OFA determined that it is unnecessary to have
a separate System of Records Notice (SORN) for Tribal TANF data, hence
the recission of SORN 09-80-0373. Instead, Tribal TANF data will be
covered under the updated SORN 09-80-0375.
In addition, OFA is in the process of replacing the legacy TANF
Data Reporting System. With this development, OFA is updating SORN 09-
80-0375 to be IT system-agnostic, to no longer mention particular types
of electronic storage media, which can become outdated over time, to
describe the specific safeguards used to secure the data, and to cite
the sources of the retention periods applicable to the data.
II. Modifications to SORN 09-80-0375
The changes to SORN 90-80-0375 include:
<bullet> Reformatting the SORN to use the format prescribed in
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-108, issued December
23, 2016.
<bullet> Changing the name of the system of records from ``OFA
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Data System'' to
``Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Data.''
<bullet> Updating the System Location address and System Manager
contact information.
<bullet> In the Authority section, removing references to no longer
relevant statutory and regulatory provisions, i.e., ``42 U.S.C.
603(a)(4), 613(d) (secs. 403 and 413 of the Social Security Act); 45
CFR part 270 (collection of information for performance measures),''
and adding authorities for maintenance of Tribal TANF data, from SORN
09-80-0373.
<bullet> Revising the Purpose(s) section to refer to ``grantees''
instead of ``states'' (to encompass territories and Tribes); to change
``prescribed work'' to ``work participation'' in the first purpose
description; to change the third purpose description from computing
states' scores on work measures and ranking states' performance in
assisting TANF recipients to obtain and retain employment to
``perform[ing] research on the caseload dynamics and employment
trajectories of TANF recipients;'' and, in the paragraph at the end of
the section, inserting ``Tribal TANF programs'' and omitting statements
that data is pooled to create a national database and that some data
may be matched with records of individual employment information in the
National Directory of New Hires system of records but would be
transmitted back to OFA in a form that is not individually
identifiable.
<bullet> In the Categories of Records section, no longer including
lists of data elements, which were similar, but not identical, in the
two SORNs; but retaining the same three categories of
[[Page 25881]]
records that were listed in both SORNs: ``family-level data; adult-
level or minor-child-head-of-household data; and child data.''
<bullet> Changing the Record Source Categories description from
``states'' to ``TANF grantee agencies in the states, territories, and
Tribal organizations.''
<bullet> Removing or not including three unnecessary routine uses
(two of them were in only the Tribal TANF SORN, numbered as 3.
Disclosure Incident to Requesting Information and 4. Disclosure for
Employee Retention, Security Clearance, Contract, or Other Benefit; and
the other one was in both SORNs, formerly numbered in SORN 09-80-0375
as 9. Disclosure to Office of Personnel Management); and combining two
litigation-related routine uses that were in both SORNs into one
routine use, thereby removing the routine use that was formerly
numbered in SORN 09-80-0375 as 10. Disclosure in Connection with
Litigation. Former Tribal TANF routine uses 3 and 4 authorized
disclosures to aid personnel-related, procurement-related, and other
administrative decisions by HHS or another agency, and former routine
use 9 authorized disclosures to the Office of Personnel Management to
discharge its personnel management responsibilities, and such
disclosures are not, in fact made with records from this system of
records. Former routine use 10 authorized disclosures in connection
with litigation or settlement discussions, and such disclosures are now
adequately covered in revised routine use 5, which authorizes
disclosures to the Department of Justice or in proceedings.
<bullet> Revising three existing routine uses, as follows:
[cir] Routine use 1, Disclosure of Identifiable Data for Research,
has been reworded but not substantively changed except to remove
redundant wording requiring the disclosures to be compatible with the
original collection purpose (such wording is part of the definition of
a routine use).
[cir] Routine use 5, which was formerly captioned Disclosure to
Department of Justice (DOJ) or in Proceedings, has been revised to
change ``Proceedings'' to ``Litigation'' in the caption (to reflect the
combination with former routine use 10 which was captioned Disclosure
in Connection with Litigation); to change ``relevant and necessary to
the litigation'' to ``arguably relevant to the litigation''; and to
change ``deemed'' to ``determined.'' In addition, the proviso at the
end of the routine use that stated ``provided, however, that in each
case it has been determined that the disclosure is compatible with the
purpose for which the records were collected'' has been removed because
that is part of the definition of a routine use, so is redundant to
include in the wording of a routine use.
[cir] Routine use 7, Disclosure to Contractors, Grantees, and
Others, has been revised to require that the matters performed by
agency contractors, grantees, and others on behalf of HHS for which
they need access to records from this system of records, must be
``related to the purposes of this system of records,'' so that the
routine use wording is not overly broad.
<bullet> Changing ``State provided data'' to ``grantee-provided
data'' in the Note about matching at the end of the Routine Uses
section.
<bullet> Updating the Storage section to state that records are
``stored in electronic media'' without describing particular types of
electronic storage media, which could become outdated over time.
<bullet> Updating the Retrieval section to state how records
``are'' (not ``may be'') retrieved; to omit ``name'' as a personal
identifier used for retrieval; to change ``assigned case or family
identification-number'' to ``assigned case number;'' and to change
``state-assigned'' to ``grantee-assigned'' to reflect that identifiers
may be assigned by territories and Tribes, not just states.
<bullet> Updating the Retention section to cite the disposition
schedule which applies to the data (no schedules were cited in either
SORN) and provide a shorter summary of the applicable retention
periods.
<bullet> Improving the Safeguards section by identifying the
specific administrative, technical, and physical safeguards used to
protect the data from unauthorized disclosure.
<bullet> Improving the sections describing procedures for making
access, amendment, and notification requests, so that:
[cir] the requirements (including identity verification
requirements) that apply to all three types of requests are now
directly included in the Access procedures section and then
incorporated by reference in the Contesting Records and Notification
procedures sections;
[cir] the information that ``must'' be included in a request now
includes ``telephone number and/or email address'' and ``date of
birth;'' and
[cir] the procedures now state that ``the state, Tribe, or
territory where the requester participated in the TANF program'' should
be identified in the request.
III. Rescindment of SORN 09-80-0373
HHS is rescinding SORN 09-80-0373 OFA Tribal Temporary Assistance
for Needy Families (Tribal TANF) as duplicative of modified SORN 09-80-
0375. The records that were covered in SORN 09-80-0373 are still
maintained by ACF/OFA but are now covered in SORN 09-80-0375.
Beth Kramer,
HHS Privacy Act Officer, FOIA--Privacy Act Division, Office of the
Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs.
SYSTEM NAME AND NUMBER:
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Data, 09-80-0375.
SECURITY CLASSIFICATION:
Unclassified.
SYSTEM LOCATION:
Office of Family Assistance, Administration for Children and
Families, 330 C St. SW, Washington, DC 20201.
SYSTEM MANAGER(S):
The System Manager is the Deputy Director of the TANF Data
Division, Office of Family Assistance, Administration for Children and
Families, 330 C Street SW--3rd Floor, Washington, DC 20201; Email:
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#0f7b6e61696b6e7b6e4f6e6c692167677c21686079"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="9eeafff0f8faffeaffdefffdf8b0f6f6edb0f9f1e8">[email protected]</span></a>.
AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
TANF: 42 U.S.C. 601 through 619 (Title IV-A of the Social Security
Act); 45 CFR part 265 (TANF data collection and reporting regulations);
Tribal TANF: 42 U.S.C. 612 (sec. 412 of the Social Security Act).
Tribal TANF data collection and reporting regulations are found in 45
CFR part 286.
PURPOSE(S) OF THE SYSTEM:
The purposes for which TANF data are used are:
1. to determine whether grantees are meeting certain requirements
prescribed by the Social Security Act, including work participation and
time-limit requirements;
2. to compile information used to report to Congress on the TANF
program; and
3. to perform research on the caseload dynamics and employment
trajectories of TANF recipients.
The monthly TANF data are reported by the individual grantees for
each Federal fiscal quarter. (The term ``grantees'' is used in this
notice to refer to the Tribal TANF programs, 50 states, the District of
Columbia, and the jurisdictions of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin
Islands, and Guam.)
[[Page 25882]]
CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM:
The records are about the following categories of individuals:
1. Members of families (as defined at 45 CFR 265.2) who received
assistance under the TANF program in any month. For data collection and
reporting purposes only, family means:
a. all individuals receiving assistance as part of a family under
the State's TANF or separate State program (including noncustodial
parents, where required under 45 CFR 265.3(f)); and
b. the following additional persons living in the household, if not
otherwise included:
[cir] parent(s) or caretaker relative(s) of any minor child
receiving assistance;
[cir] minor siblings of any child receiving assistance; and
[cir] any person whose income or resources would be counted in
determining the family's eligibility for or amount of assistance.
2. Members of families no longer receiving assistance under the
TANF program.
CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
There are three distinct categories of TANF data: family-level
data; adult-level or minor-child-head-of-household data; and child
data.
RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
All information is obtained from TANF grantee agencies in the
states, territories, and Tribal organizations.
ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES
OF USERS AND PURPOSES OF SUCH USES:
These routine uses specify circumstances, in addition to those
provided by statute in the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, at 5 U.S.C.
552a(b), under which ACF may release information from this system of
records without the consent of the data subject. Each proposed
disclosure of information under these routine uses will be evaluated to
ensure that the disclosure is legally permissible.
1. Disclosure of Identifiable Data for Research. Information from
this system of records may be disclosed with personal identifiers
included for use solely as a statistical, research, or reporting record
in response to specific requests from public or private entities. No
data will be disclosed until the requester has agreed in writing not to
use such data to identify any individuals and has provided advance
adequate written assurance that the records will be used solely as a
statistical, research, or reporting record.
2. Disclosure for Law Enforcement Purpose. Information may be
disclosed to the appropriate federal, state, local, Tribal, or foreign
agency responsible for investigating, prosecuting, enforcing, or
implementing a statute, rule, regulation, or order, if the information
is relevant to a violation or potential violation of civil or criminal
law or regulation within the jurisdiction of the receiving entity.
3. Disclosure for Private Relief Legislation. Information may be
disclosed to the Office of Management and Budget at any stage in the
legislative coordination and clearance process in connection with
private relief legislation as set forth in OMB Circular No. A-19.
4. Disclosure to Congressional Office. Information may be disclosed
to a congressional office from the record of an individual in response
to a written inquiry from the congressional office made at the request
of the individual.
5. Disclosure to Department of Justice (DOJ) or in Litigation.
Information may be disclosed to DOJ, or in a proceeding before a court,
adjudicative body, or other administrative body before which HHS is
authorized to appear, or in proceedings arguably relevant to the
litigation, when: HHS, or any component thereof; or any employee of HHS
in his or her official capacity; or any employee of HHS in his or her
individual capacity where DOJ or HHS has agreed to represent the
employee; or the United States, if HHS determines that litigation is
likely to affect HHS or any of its components, is a party to the
proceedings or has an interest in such proceedings, and the use of such
records by DOJ or HHS is determined by HHS to be arguably relevant to
the litigation.
6. Disclosure to the National Archives and Records Administration
(NARA). Information may be disclosed to NARA in records management
inspections.
7. Disclosure to Contractors, Grantees, and Others. Information may
be disclosed to contractors, grantees, consultants, or volunteers
performing or working on a contract, service, grant, cooperative
agreement, job, or other activity for HHS related to the purposes of
this system of records and who have a need to have access to the
information in the performance of their duties or activities for HHS.
8. Disclosure in the Event of a Security Breach Experienced by HHS.
Records may be disclosed to appropriate agencies, entities, and persons
when (1) HHS suspects or has confirmed that there has been a breach of
the system of records, (2) HHS has determined that as a result of the
suspected or confirmed breach there is a risk of harm to individuals,
HHS (including 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 HHS's efforts to respond to the suspected of
confirmed breach or to prevent, minimize, or remedy such harm.
9. Disclosure to Assist Another Agency Experiencing a Security
Breach. Records may be disclosed to another federal agency or federal
entity, when HHS determines that information from this system of
records is reasonably necessary to assist the recipient agency or
entity in (1) responding to a 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.
Note: Data produced by matching grantee-provided data in this
system of records with data from the Office of Child Support
Enforcement's National Directory of New Hires system of records will
only be disclosed in accordance with applicable routine use disclosures
set forth in SORN 09-80-0381 OCSE National Directory of New Hires.
POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORAGE OF RECORDS:
Records are stored in electronic media.
POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETRIEVAL OF RECORDS:
Records are retrieved by a grantee-defined unique identifier (which
may be an SSN) or assigned case number.
POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETENTION AND DISPOSAL OF RECORDS:
The records (family-level data; adult-level or minor-child-head-of-
household data; and child data) are retained for administrative, audit,
legal, or operational purposes, and in accordance with records schedule
DAA-292-2016-0006, Item 7.1 Data, Reports and Tables and Item 7.2 Other
Reports, approved by the National Archives and Records Administration
(NARA).
<bullet> Item 7.1 Data, Reports and Tables provides for records
related to cash assistance caseloads, work participation data, and
caseload characteristics to be cut off at the end of the fiscal year
and transferred to NARA 20 years after cutoff, for permanent retention,
due to its significant research value.
<bullet> Item 7.2 Other Reports provides for routine administrative
supporting documents for the National Directory of New Hires (NDNH)
match reports, and
[[Page 25883]]
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and maintenance of effort
reports submitted by states, territories, and tribes, to be cut off at
the end of the fiscal year the reports are completed and destroyed
three years after cutoff.
ADMINISTRATIVE, TECHNICAL, AND PHYSICAL SAFEGUARDS:
Safeguards conform to the HHS Information Security and Privacy
Program, <a href="https://www.hhs.gov/ocio/securityprivacy/index.html">https://www.hhs.gov/ocio/securityprivacy/index.html</a>. The
information technology system used to store the records leverages cloud
service providers that maintain an authority to operate in accordance
with applicable laws, rules, and policies, including Federal Risk and
Authorization Management Program (FedRamp) requirements.
Information is safeguarded in accordance with applicable laws,
rules and policies, including the HHS information security policies,
the E-Government Act of 2002, which includes the Federal Information
Security Management Act of 2002 (FISMA), 44 U.S.C. 3541 through 3549,
as amended by the Federal Information Security Modernization Act of
2014, 44 U.S.C. 3551 through 3558, all pertinent National Institutes of
Standards and Technology (NIST) publications, and OMB Circular A-130,
Managing Information as a Strategic Resource. Records are protected
from unauthorized access through appropriate administrative, physical,
and technical safeguards. Agency personnel, contractors, and grantees
who have access to the records are required to maintain confidentiality
by assuring that case records are kept in a safe, secure environment
within agency, contractor, or grantee facilities. They are also
required to sign a confidentiality agreement and to receive annual
training on records management, cybersecurity, privacy, and
confidentiality policies and procedures, including methods of
protecting client confidentiality.
Case records are filed electronically according to OFA protocols,
and access to records is controlled through log-in/out processes for
computer logs. The records are accessible only to authorized users
using two-factor authentication through a secured system that is
protected by encryption, firewalls, and intrusion detection systems and
requires additional encryption for any records stored on removable
media. Records that become eligible for destruction are disposed of in
alignment with the secure destruction methods prescribed by the NIST
Special Publication (SP) 800-88. The associated information technology
(IT) system(s) receive Authority to Operate (ATO) under the guidance of
NIST SP 800-53.
RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURES:
Individuals seeking access to records about them in this system of
records must submit a written access request to the relevant System
Manager identified in the ``System Manager(s)'' section of this SORN.
The request must contain the requester's full name, Social Security
Number, address, telephone number and/or email address, date of birth,
and signature, and should identify the state, Tribe, or territory where
the requestor participated in the TANF program.
So that HHS may verify the requester's identity, the requester's
signature must be notarized or the request must include the requester's
written certification that the requester is the individual who the
requester claims to be and that the requester understands that the
knowing and willful request for or acquisition of a record pertaining
to an individual under false pretenses is a criminal offense subject to
a fine of up to $5,000.
You may also request an accounting of disclosures that have been
made of records about you, if any.
CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES:
Individuals seeking to amend records about them in this system of
records must submit a written amendment request to the relevant System
Manager identified in the ``System Manager(s)'' section of this SORN,
containing the same information required for an access request. The
request must include verification of the requester's identity in the
same manner required for an access request; must reasonably identify
the record and specify the information contested, the corrective action
sought, and the reasons for requesting the correction; and should
include supporting information to show how the record is inaccurate,
incomplete, untimely, or irrelevant.
NOTIFICATION PROCEDURES:
Individuals who wish to know if this system of records contains
records about them must submit a written notification request to the
relevant System Manager identified in the ``System Manager(s)'' section
of this SORN. The request must contain the same information required
for an access request and must include verification of the requester's
identity in the same manner required for an access request.
EXEMPTIONS PROMULGATED FOR THE SYSTEM:
None.
HISTORY:
80 FR 17903 (Apr. 2, 2015), 83 FR 6591 (Feb. 14, 2018).
NOTICE OF RESCINDMENT:
For the reasons explained in the Supplementary Information section
at III., the following system of records is rescinded:
SYSTEM NAME AND NUMBER:
OFA Tribal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (Tribal TANF),
09-80-0373.
HISTORY:
80 FR 17901 (Apr. 2, 2015), 83 FR 6591 (Feb. 14, 2018).
[FR Doc. 2024-07823 Filed 4-11-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184-42-P
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