SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION NOTICE OF SYSTEM OF RECORDS REQUIRED BY THE PRIVACY ACT OF 1974
System number: 60-0273
System Name:
Social Security Title VIII Special Veterans Benefits Claims Development and Management Information System, SSA/RO/San Francisco
Security Classification:
None
System Location:
Social Security Administration
San Francisco Regional Office
Center for Infrastructure
Systems Support Staff
Frank Hagel Federal Building
1221 Nevin Ave.
Richmond, California 94801
Categories of Individuals covered by the System:
All applicants and beneficiaries for SVB under title VIII of the Social Security Act (Act). Records also contain information on applicants whose claims have been denied.
Categories of records in the system:
The information maintained in this system of records is collected from the applicants for title VIII SVB and other systems of records maintained by SSA. The information maintained includes: identifying information such as the applicant’s name, Social Security number (SSN) and date of birth (DOB); telephone number (if any); foreign and domestic addresses; the applicant’s sex; and other information provided by the applicant relative to his or her entitlement for SVB.
In cases where an applicant’s claim for SVB is denied, this system of records includes the denial reason and date and information relative to the appellate process.
There are also a number of data elements in the proposed system pertinent to the beneficiary's continued eligibility. These include payment, foreign residence information and other elements that help regional and local offices maintain the tracking and management information required to administer the title VIII program efficiently.
If the beneficiary has a representative payee, this system of records includes data about the representative payee such as the payee’s SSN; employer identification number, if applicable; mailing address/residence address; DOB; and place of birth.
Authority for maintenance of the system:
Title VIII of the Social Security Act, Special Benefits for Certain World War II Veterans.
Purpose(s):
All information in this system of records is maintained under the claimant/beneficiary's name and SSN. The system of records is designed to permit electronic entry and retrieval of claims development and tracking and management information about title VIII SVB claims. This electronic record contains data applicable to the special veterans' eligibility to title VIII SVB and facilitates efforts to control and track this workload from the initial inquiry and application to further development. The system of records also maintains information about the implementation of title VIII to permit allocation of resources, budget projection and workload management. The information contained in this system of records will be centralized on a website allowing access by the regional and field offices to nationally consolidated data.
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 third party contacts in situations where the party to be contacted has, or is expected to have, information relating to the individual’s capability to manage his/her affairs or his/her eligibility for or entitlement to benefits under the Social Security program when:
a) The individual is unable to provide information being sought. An individual is considered to be unable to provide certain types of information when:
i) he/she is incapable or of questionable mental capability;
ii) he/she cannot read or write;
iii) he/she cannot afford the cost of obtaining the information;
i) he/she has a hearing impairment, and is contacting SSA by telephone through a telecommunications relay system operator;
ii) a language barrier exists; or
iii) the custodian of the information will not, as a matter of policy, provide it to the individual; or
b) The data are needed to establish the validity of evidence or to verify the accuracy of information presented by the individual, and it concerns one or more of the following:
iv) his/her eligibility for benefits under the Social Security program;
v) the amount of his/her benefit payment; or
vi) any case in which the evidence is being reviewed as a result of suspected abuse or fraud, concern for program integrity, or for quality appraisal, or evaluation and measurement activities.
1. To the Office of the President for the purpose of responding to an individual pursuant to an inquiry received from that individual or from a third party on his or her behalf.
2. To a congressional office in response to an inquiry from that office made at the request of the subject of a record.
3. To DOJ, a court, or other tribunal (either foreign or domestic), or another party before such tribunal when,
b) SSA, or any component thereof; or
c) any SSA employee in his/her official capacity; or
d) 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
e) the
is a party to litigation or has an interest in such litigation, and SSA determines that the use of such records by DOJ, the court, or other 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.
4. To student volunteers and other workers, who technically do not have the status of Federal employees, when they are performing work for SSA as authorized by law, and they need access to personally identifiable information in SSA records in order to perform their assigned Agency functions.
5. Disclosure to Federal, State, local, or foreign agencies (or agents acting on their behalf) for administrating Social Security affairs under the Act, including but not limited to the title VIII SVB.
7. Disclosure to the Department of
Veterans Affairs (DVA),
8. To the Department of State and its agents for administering the Act in foreign countries through services and facilities of that agency.
9. To the
American Institute of
10. To the
Department of Interior and its agents for administering the Act in the
11. To representative payees, when the information pertains to individuals for whom they serve as representative payees, for the purpose of assisting SSA in administering its representative payment responsibilities under title VIII and assisting the representative payees in performing their duties as payees, including receiving and accounting for benefits for individuals for whom they serve as payees.
12. Disclosure to contractors, as necessary, for the purpose of assisting SSA in the efficient administration of its programs.
13. Non-tax return information which is not restricted from disclosure by federal law may be disclosed to GSA and NARA for the purpose of conducting records management studies with respect to their duties and responsibilities under 44 U.S.C. 2904 and 2906, as amended by NARA Act of 1984.
14. To third party contacts (including private collection agencies under contract with SSA) for the purpose of their assisting SSA in recovering overpayments.
Policies and practices for storing, retrieving, accessing, retaining and disposing of records in the system:
Storage:
Data are stored in electronic and paper form.
Retrievability:
Records in this system are indexed and retrieved both numerically by SSN and alphabetically by name.
Safeguards:
This system of records is a data base that is accessible via an SSA intranet website. Security measures include the use of access codes to enter the data base, and storage of the electronic records in secured areas which are accessible only to employees who require the information in performing their official duties. The paper records that result from the electronic site are kept in locked cabinets or in otherwise secure areas. SSA, foreign site and contractor personnel having access to data in the system of records are required to adhere to SSA rules concerning safeguards, access, and use of the data. They also are informed of the criminal penalties of the Privacy Act for unauthorized access to or disclosure of information maintained in this system of records.
Retention and disposal:
Claims development and tracking and management information maintained in this system are retained indefinitely or when it is determined that they are no longer needed. Means of disposal is appropriate to storage medium (e.g., deletion of individual records from the electronic site when appropriate or shredding of paper records that are produced from the system).
System manager and address:
Social Security Administration
San Francisco Regional Office
Center for Infrastructure
Manager
Systems Support Staff
Frank Hagel Federal Building
1221 Nevin Ave.
Richmond, California 94801
Notification procedure:
An individual can determine if this system contains a record about him/her by writing to the systems 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, such as a voter registration card, credit card, etc. 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 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).
Record access procedures:
Same as notification procedures. Requesters should also reasonably specify the record contents being sought. These procedures are in accordance with SSA Regulations 20 CFR Section 401.50.
Contesting record procedures:
Same as notification procedures. Requesters should also reasonably identify the record, specify the information they are contesting, and state the corrective action sought and the reasons for the correction with supporting justification showing how the record is untimely, incomplete, inaccurate, or irrelevant. These procedures are in accordance with SSA Regulations 20 CFR Section 401.65.
Record source categories:
Data for the system are obtained primarily from individual claimants/beneficiaries (or their representative payees if applicable) who claim benefits under title VIII. Records in this system may also be derived in part from other SSA systems of records (e.g., Claims Folders System, (60-0089) and the Supplemental Security Income Record and Special Veterans Benefits, (60-0103)).
Systems exempted from certain provisions of the Privacy Act:
None.