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Chief Privacy Officer Hugo Teufel III

Chief Privacy Officer Hugo Teufel III onLoad=

Hugo Teufel III was appointed Chief Privacy Officer of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security by Secretary Michael Chertoff on July 23, 2006. In this capacity and pursuant to Section 222 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, Teufel has primary responsibility for privacy policy at the Department, to include: assuring that the technologies used by the Department to protect the United States sustain, and do not erode, privacy protections relating to the use, collection, and disclosure of personal information; assuring that the Department complies with fair information practices as set out in the Privacy Act of 1974; conducting privacy impact assessments of proposed rules at the Department; evaluating legislative and regulatory proposals involving collection, use, and disclosure of personal information by the Federal Government; and preparing an annual report to Congress on the activities of the Department that affect privacy.

Further, Teufel serves as the Department's Chief Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Officer. Teufel's responsibilities as Chief FOIA Officer include assuring consistent and appropriate Department-wide statutory compliance and harmonized program and policy implementation.

Before joining the Privacy Office, Teufel served as the first Associate General Counsel for General Law at the Department of Homeland Security. Previously, Teufel served as the Associate Solicitor for General Law at the Department of the Interior. In each position, Teufel oversaw the provision of legal advice and counsel to a cabinet-level agency on privacy and FOIA matters. Before joining the Administration, Teufel practiced law at Hall and Evans, in Denver, Colorado; served as Deputy Solicitor General for the State of Colorado; was an associate at McKenna & Cuneo, in Denver, Colorado; and was a clerk to Chief Judge Loren A. Smith of the U.S. Claims Court.

Teufel graduated from the Washington College of Law of the American University and was the Senior Articles Editor of The Administrative Law Journal. He is currently pursuing a master's degree in national security and strategic studies from the Naval War College. He is a member of the bars of Colorado and Maryland (inactive).

This page was last modified on April 25, 2008