Employee Suggestion Program Records, Social Security Administration, Deputy Commissioner for Human Resources, Office of Personnel, Center for Employee Services
Effective Date: January 11, 2006
(71 F.R. 1861)
SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION NOTICE OF SYSTEM OF RECORDS REQUIRED BY THE PRIVACY ACT OF 1974
SYSTEM NUMBER: 60-0241
System name:
Employee Suggestion Program Records, Social Security Administration, Deputy Commissioner for Human Resources, Office of Personnel, Center for Employee Services.
Security classification:
None.
System Location:
Social Security Administration
Office of Human Resources
Office of Personnel
Center for Employee Services
Central Suggestion Team
Categories of individuals covered by the system:
Individuals who have made suggestions in the Social Security Administration (SSA); and/or suggestions made by individuals in other Federal agencies requiring an SSA evaluation.
Categories of records in the system:
Suggestions, evaluations of suggestions, name and address of individual submitting suggestions and evaluating the suggestions, other identifying information such as pay plan and grade, position title, Social Security number (SSN), timekeeper number and telephone number.
Authority for maintenance of the system:
5 U.S.C. 4501 et seq.
Purpose(s):
Records in this system are used to control, evaluate, and make award determinations on employee suggestions. The Central Suggestion Team maintains these records in SSA's Office of Personnel.
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 Office of Personnel Management information related to a suggestion award when approval from that office is needed in order to grant an award.
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 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.
4. 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.
5. 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.
6. We may disclose information to appropriate Federal, State, and local agencies, entities, and persons when (1) we suspect or confirm that the security or confidentiality of information in this system of records has been compromised; (2) we determine that as a result of the suspected or confirmed compromise there is a risk of harm to economic or property interests, identity theft or fraud, or harm to the security or integrity of this system or other systems or programs of SSA that rely upon the compromised information; and (3) we determine that disclosing the information to such agencies, entities, and persons is necessary to assist in our efforts to respond to the suspected or confirmed compromise and prevent, minimize, or remedy such harm. SSA will use this routine use to respond only to those incidents involving an unintentional release of its records.
Policies and practices for storing, accessing, retaining, and disposing of records in the system:
Storage:
The records are
maintained in paper form (e.g., file folders) in locked file cabinets and in an
electronic system on a server housed in the
Retrievability:
The records are retrieved by suggestion number or by the name of the employee.
Safeguards:
Access is restricted to authorized staff and evaluators. Component evaluators are given a copy of suggestions. Access http://www.socialsecurity.gov/foia/bluebook/app_g.htm for additional information relating to SSA data security measures.
Retention and disposal:
After final action to make or deny an award, suggestion records are maintained for two more years and then destroyed.
System manager(s) and address(es):
Director
Center for Employee Services
Office of Personnel
Office of Human Resources
Social Security Administration
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 procedure:
Same as Notification procedures. Requesters should also reasonably specify the record contents being sought. These procedures are in accordance with SSA Regulations (20 CFR 401.40(c)).
Contesting record procedures:
Same as Notification procedures. Also, requester 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. These procedures are in accordance with SSA Regulations (20 CFR 401.65(a)).
Record source categories:
Incoming suggestion, responses, evaluations and other material obtained during course of deciding to make an award.
System exempted from certain provisions of the Privacy Act:
None.