Effective Date: January 11, 2006
(71 F.R. 1856)
SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION NOTICE OF SYSTEM OF RECORDS REQUIRED BY THE PRIVACY ACT OF 1974
SYSTEM NUMBER: 60-0238
System name:
Pay, Leave and Attendance Records, Social Security Administration, Deputy Commissioner for Human Resources, Office of Personnel.
Security classification:
None.
System Location:
For Time and Attendance:
Deputy Commissioner for Human Resources
Office of Personnel
Director
Center for Personnel Management Information Systems and Payroll
For Federal Personnel and Payroll Systems (FPPS):
Director
Payroll Operations Division
Department of the Interior
7301
Categories of individuals covered by the system:
All paid employees of the Social Security Administration (SSA).
Categories of records in the system:
This system consists of a variety of records relating to pay and leave determinations made about each employee of SSA. In addition to the name of the employee, the system includes information such as the employee's date of birth, Social Security number (SSN), home address, grade or rank, employing organization, timekeeper number, salary, civil service retirement fund contributions, pay plan, number of hours worked, annual and sick leave accrual rate and usage, administrative leave usage, annual and sick leave balance, deductions for Medicare and/or FICA, Federal, State and city tax withholdings, Federal Employees Governmental Life Insurance withholdings, Federal Employees Health Benefits withholdings, awards, commercial garnishments, child support and/or alimony wage assignments, savings allotments, union and management association dues withholdings allotments, savings bonds allotments; Combined Federal Campaign allotments; and Thrift Savings Plan contributions.
Authority for maintenance of the system:
5 U.S.C. Chapter 55, Sec. 5501 et seq., Chapter 61, Sec. 6101, et seq. and Chapter 63 Sec. 6301 et seq.
Purpose(s):
Records in this system are used to insure that each employee receives the proper pay and allowances; that proper deductions and authorized allotments are made from employees' pay; and that employees are credited and charged with the proper amount of leave. Records are also used to produce summary descriptive statistics and analytical studies in support of the functions for which the records are collected and maintained and for related personnel management functions or pay studies, and for other purposes compatible with the intent for which the records system was created.
Routine uses of records maintained in the system, including categories of users and the purposes of such uses:
Disclosure may be made for routine uses as indicated below:
1. To the Internal Revenue Service and to State and local government tax agencies: Records relating to employees' income including name, home address, Social Security number, earned income, and amount of taxes withheld.
2. To Federal, State, Foreign and local law enforcement agencies in the event that this system of records indicates a violation or potential violation of law, whether civil, criminal or regulatory in nature.
3. 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.
4. 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.
5. To a Federal agency having the power to subpoena records, for example, the Internal Revenue Service or the Civil Rights Commission, in response to a subpoena for information contained in this system of records.
6. To officials of labor organizations recognized under 5 U.S.C. Chapter 71 when relevant and necessary to their duties of exclusive representation concerning personnel policies, practices, and matters affecting conditions of employment.
7. To contractors or another Federal agency when the Social Security Administration contracts with a private firm or makes an arrangement with a Federal agency for the purpose of performing payroll related processing, in addition to collating, analyzing, aggregating or otherwise refining records in this system. The contractor shall be required to maintain Privacy Act safeguards with respect to such records.
8. To the Office of Personnel Management, the Merit Systems Protection Board, or the Office of the Special Counsel when information is requested in connection with appeals, special studies of the civil service and other merit systems, review of those agencies' rules and regulations, investigation of alleged or possible prohibited personnel practices, and for such other function of these agencies as may be authorized by law, e.g., 5 U.S.C. 1205 and 1206.
9. To the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission when requested in connection with investigations into alleged or possible discriminatory practices in the Federal sector, examination of Federal affirmative employment programs, compliance by Federal agencies with the Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures, or other functions vested in the Commission.
10. To the Federal Labor Relations Authority, its General Counsel, the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, the Federal Service Impasses Panel, or an arbitrator when information is requested in connection with investigations of allegations of unfair practices, matters before an arbitrator or the Federal Service Impasses Panel.
11. To the Department of Labor in connection with a claim filed by the employee for compensation on account of a job-connected injury or disease.
12. To respond to court orders for garnishment of an employee's pay for alimony or child support or commercial debt.
13. To respond to orders from Internal Revenue Service for garnishment of an employee's pay for Federal income tax purposes.
14. To the Department of the Treasury for the purposes of preparing and issuing employee salary and compensation checks and United States Savings Bonds.
15. To State offices of unemployment compensation in connection with claims filed by current or former Social Security Administration employees for unemployment compensation.
16. To a congressional office in response to an inquiry from the congressional office made at the request of that individual.
17. To the Department of Justice (DOJ), a court or other tribunal, or another party before such tribunal, when
(a) The Social Security Administration (SSA), or any component thereof; or
(b) Any SSA employee in his/her official capacity; or
(c) Any SSA employee in his/her individual capacity where DOJ (or SSA, where it is authorized to do so) has agreed to represent the employee; or
(d) The United States or any agency thereof where SSA determines that the litigation is likely to affect SSA or any of its components, is a party to the litigation or has an interest in such litigation, and SSA determines that the use of such records by DOJ, a court or other tribunal, or another party before the tribunal is relevant and necessary to the litigation, provided, however, that in each case, SSA determines that such disclosure is compatible with the purpose for which the records were collected.
18. To financial organizations designated to receive labor organization or management association dues withheld from employees' pay, in order to account for the amounts of such withheld dues which they receive.
19. To a State or local agency for the purpose of conducting computer matching programs designed to reduce fraud, waste and abuse in Federal, State and local public assistance programs and operations.
20. To a Federal agency for the purpose of conducting computer matching programs designed to reduce fraud, waste and abuse using loan or benefit records of a Federal, State or local agency to identify employee's improperly receiving loans or benefits and to facilitate the collection of debts owed the
21. To a Federal agency in response to a written request from that agency, personally signed by a supervisor, specifying the particular portion desired and the law enforcement activity for which the record is sought. The request for the record must be connected with the agency's auditing and investigative functions designed to reduce waste, fraud, and abuse. It must be based on information which raises questions about an individual's eligibility for benefits or payments, and it must be made reasonably soon after the information is received.
22. To the General Services Administration and the National Archives Records Administration (NARA) under 44 U.S.C. 2904 and 2906, as amended by the NARA Act of 1984, information which is not restricted from disclosure by Federal law for the use of those agencies in conducting records management studies.
23. To student volunteers, individuals working under a personal services contract, and other workers who technically do not have the status of Federal employees, when they are performing work for the Social Security Administration (SSA), as authorized by law, and they need access to personally identifiable information in SSA records in order to perform their assigned Agency functions.
24. To the Secretary of Health and Human Services or to any State, the Commissioner shall disclose any record or information requested in writing by the Secretary for the purpose of administering any program administered by the Secretary, if records or information of such type were so disclosed under applicable rules, regulations and procedures in effect before the date of enactment of the Social Security Independence and Program Improvements Act of 1994.
Policies and practices for storing, retrieving, accessing, retaining and disposing of records in the system:
Storage:
Records are maintained in manual, microfilm, microfiche, imaged and printout form in the Payroll Office. Currently, applicable records are stored on magnetic media at the
Retrievability:
Records are retrievable by name and SSN from NBC, DOI and by name, SSN and timekeeper number at SSA.
Safeguards:
Access to, and use of, these records is limited to personnel whose official duties require such access. Personnel screening is employed to prevent unauthorized disclosure. Access http://www.socialsecurity.gov/foia/bluebook/app_g.htm for additional information relating to SSA data security measures.
Retention and disposal:
Records submitted by the individual, such as allotment authorization forms, home address forms, and tax withholding forms, are retained until superseded by new forms or until the individual leaves SSA. Most of these records are then destroyed. Some of these records must be retained for an additional period, or forwarded to the new employing agency. Time and attendance records are retained for six years and are then destroyed. The automated payroll master record, established when the individual is first employed and continually updated throughout the period of his or her employment, is retained until the individual leaves SSA.
System manager(s) and address:
In both the field and Headquarters:
Deputy Commissioner for Human Resources
Office of Personnel
Director, CPMISP
Notification procedures:
An individual can determine if this system contains a record about him/her by writing to the system manager(s) at the above address and providing his/her name, SSN or other information that may be in the system of records that will identify him/her. An individual requesting notification of records in person should provide the same information, as well as provide an identity document, preferably with a photograph, such as a driver's license or some other means of identification. If an individual does not have any identification documents sufficient to establish his/her identity, the individual must certify in writing that he/she is the person claimed to be and that he/she understands that the knowing and willful request for, or acquisition of, a record pertaining to another individual under false pretenses is a criminal offense.
If notification is requested by telephone, an individual must verify his/her identity by providing identifying information that parallels information in the record to which notification is being requested. If it is determined that the identifying information provided by telephone is insufficient, the individual will be required to submit a request in writing or in person. If an individual is requesting information by telephone on behalf of another individual, the subject individual must be connected with SSA and the requesting individual in the same phone call. SSA will establish the subject individual's identity (his/her name, SSN, address, date of birth and place of birth, along with one other piece of information, such as mother's maiden name) and ask for his/her consent in providing information to the requesting individual.
If a request for notification is submitted by mail, an individual must include a notarized statement to SSA to verify his/her identity or must certify in the request that he/she is the person claimed to be and that he/she understands that the knowing and willful request for, or acquisition of, a record pertaining to another individual under false pretenses is a criminal offense. These procedures are in accordance with SSA Regulations (20 CFR 401.40(c)).
Record access procedures:
Same as Notification procedures. Requesters should also reasonably specify the record contents being sought. This procedure is in accordance with SSA Regulations (20 CFR 401.40(c)).
Contesting record procedures:
Same as Notification procedures. Also, requesters should reasonably identify the record, specify the information they are contesting and the corrective action sought, and the reasons for the correction, with supporting justification showing how the record is incomplete, untimely, inaccurate or irrelevant. This procedure is in accordance with SSA Regulations (20 CFR 401.65(a)).
Record source categories:
Information in this system of records is (1) supplied directly by the individual, or (2) derived from information supplied by the individual, or (3) supplied by timekeepers and other SSA officials.
System exempted from certain provisions of the Privacy Act:
None.