[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 84 (Wednesday, April 30, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23409-23412]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-9418]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Office of the Secretary
[Docket No. APHIS-2008-0039]
Privacy Act Systems of Records; APHIS Emergency Management
Response System
AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of a proposed new system of records; request for
comment.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Agriculture proposes to add a system of
records to its inventory of records systems subject to the Privacy Act
of 1974, as amended. The system of records being proposed is the APHIS
Emergency Management Response System. This notice is necessary to meet
the requirements of the Privacy Act to publish in the Federal Register
notice of the existence and character of record systems maintained by
the agency.
Although the Privacy Act requires only that the portion of the
system which describes the ``routine uses'' of the system be published
for comment, we invite comment on all portions of this notice.
DATES: Effective Date: This system will be adopted without further
notice on June 9, 2008 unless modified to respond to comments received
from the public and published in a subsequent notice.
Comment date: Comments must be received, in writing, on or before
May 30, 2008.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to: http://
www.regulations.gov/fdmspublic/component/main?main=
DocketDetail&d=APHIS-2008-0039 and follow the instructions for
submitting comments.
Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Docket No. APHIS-2008-
0039, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS, Station 3A-03.8,
4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238.
Docket: You may view any comments we receive at the Federal
eRulemaking Portal (Web address above) or in our reading room. The
reading room is located in room 1141 of the USDA South Building, 14th
Street and Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC. Normal reading
room hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except
holidays. To be sure someone is there to help you, please call (202)
690-2817 before coming.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Jose R. Diez, Associate Deputy
Administrator-Emergency Management and Diagnostics, VS, APHIS, 4700
River Road Unit 41, Riverdale, MD 20737; (301) 734-8073.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Privacy Act of 1974, as amended (5
U.S.C. 552a), requires agencies to publish in the Federal Register
notice of new or revised systems of records maintained by the agency. A
system of records is a group of any records under the control of any
agency, from which information is retrieved by the name of an
individual or by some identifying number, symbol, or other identifying
particular assigned to an individual.
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) of the U.S.
Department of Agriculture (USDA) is proposing to add a new system of
records, entitled Emergency Management Response System (EMRS), that
will be used to maintain records of activities conducted by the agency
pursuant to its mission and responsibilities authorized by the Animal
Health Protection Act (7 U.S.C. 8301 et seq.).
APHIS's Veterinary Services (VS) program uses the EMRS to help
manage and investigate incidents of foreign animal diseases in the
United States. If a foreign animal disease were to be detected in the
United States, VS would activate its Incident Command System (ICS). ICS
team members are trained to control and eradicate foreign animal
diseases. As necessary and appropriate for the specific incident, team
members would confirm the presence of the disease, inspect infected and
exposed animals, appraise the value of animals that may have to be
destroyed, conduct vaccination programs and epidemiological studies,
dispose of animal carcasses, and clean and disinfect premises, among
other things. Records of these activities would be maintained in the
EMRS.
[[Page 23410]]
The EMRS contains personally identifiable information about the
owner or operator of the premises where the animal(s) subject to
investigation are located. Such information includes name; address,
including city, county, State, postal code, and latitude/longitude
coordinates; premises identification number; and telephone number. The
EMRS may also contain the name and telephone number of the person(s)
who provided the initial report concerning the premises, and the name,
telephone number, and e-mail address of the person responsible for the
investigation of the premises.
The EMRS also contains information about APHIS employees who may be
deployed as members of ICS teams. Such information may include
encrypted social security number; home address; home e-mail; emergency
contact information; supervisor contact information; skills,
experience, and training; position certifications; and medical
clearance information.
Routine Uses of Records Maintained in the System, Including Categories
of Users and the Purposes of Such Uses
APHIS may routinely share data in the EMRS with certain Federal and
State animal health officials to monitor the status of an animal
disease investigation, document the actions taken relating to an animal
disease investigation, track the status of animals susceptible to
foreign animal diseases, determine the costs of an animal disease
investigation, monitor the usage and availability of assets and
personnel relating to an animal disease investigation, or perform
epidemiological and geospatial analyses of such investigations. APHIS
may disseminate information to Federal and State animal health
officials within the system for educational purposes and to obtain
feedback regarding the EMRS program and emergency preparedness
guidelines. APHIS may share data with the National Biosurveillance
Integration System and the Offshore Pest Information System to aid in
monitoring an animal disease investigation. Other routine uses of this
information include releases related to investigations pertaining to
violations of law or related to litigation. A complete listing of the
routine uses for this system is included in the accompanying document
that is published along with this notice.
The proposed information collection requests associated with this
system have been approved by the Office of Management and Budget under
the Paperwork Reduction Act.
Title and Business Address of the Agency Official Responsible for the
System of Record
Chief Information Officer, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1400
Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20250.
Report on New System
A report on the new system of records, required by 5 U.S.C.
552a(r), as implemented by Office of Management and Budget Circular A-
130, was sent to the Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs, United States Senate; the Chairman, Committee on
Oversight and Government Reform, U.S. House of Representatives; and the
Administrator, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of
Management and Budget.
Dated: April 21, 2008.
Edward T. Schafer,
Secretary.
System name:
Emergency Management Response System (EMRS), USDA-APHIS-11.
Security classification:
None.
System location:
All EMRS data is maintained on three servers, located in APHIS
offices in Riverdale, MD, and at the APHIS Centers for Epidemiology and
Animal Health in Ft. Collins, CO.
Categories of individuals covered by the system:
Customers, including the owner or operator of the premises where
the animals subject to investigation are located and the referring
contact who provided initial premises information; and certain APHIS
employees.
Categories of records in the system:
For the owner or operator of the premises where the animals subject
to investigation are located, the following information will be
retained: Name; address, including city, county, State, postal code,
and latitude/longitude coordinates; premises identification number; and
telephone number. Information retained about the referring contact
includes name and telephone number. For the case coordinator of the
premises investigation the following information will be retained:
Name, phone number, and e-mail address.
The information retained for APHIS employees includes name; agency,
program, and group; current duty assignment; encrypted social security
number; grade, series, and step; duty city and state; home address,
including latitude/longitude coordinates; home telephone number; home
e-mail address; emergency contact information; work and field
addresses, e-mail addresses and telephone numbers; supervisor contact
information; personal protective equipment type, size, and model;
existing and desired skills, experience and training; position
certifications; AgLearn training classes; medical clearance
information; and a description of property or fleet vehicle assigned to
the employee.
Authority for maintenance of the system:
Animal Health Protection Act (7 U.S.C. 8301 et seq.).
Purpose(s):
APHIS Veterinary Services (VS) program uses the EMRS to help manage
and investigate incidents of foreign animal diseases in the United
States.
Routine uses of records maintained in the system, including categories
of users and the purposes of such uses:
In addition to those disclosures generally permitted under 5 U.S.C.
552a(b) of the Privacy Act, records maintained in the system may be
disclosed outside USDA as follows:
(1) To certain Federal and State animal health officials to monitor
the status of an animal disease investigation, document actions taken
relating to an animal disease investigation, track the status of
animals susceptible to foreign animal diseases, determine the costs of
an animal disease investigation, monitor the usage and availability of
assets and personnel relating to animal disease investigations, or
perform epidemiological and geospatial analyses of such investigations;
(2) To Federal and State animal health officials within the system
to obtain feedback regarding the EMRS system and emergency preparedness
guidelines, and to educate and involve them in program development,
program requirements, and standards of conduct;
(3) To the National Biosurveillance Integration System and the
Offshore Pest Information System to aid in monitoring an animal disease
investigation;
(4) To the appropriate agency, whether Federal, State, local, or
foreign, charged with responsibility of investigating or prosecuting a
violation of law or of enforcing, implementing, or complying with a
statute, rule, regulation, or order issued pursuant thereto, of any
record within this system
[[Page 23411]]
when information available indicates a violation or potential violation
of law, whether civil, criminal, or regulatory in nature, and either
arising by general statute or particular program statute, or by rule,
regulation, or court order issued pursuant thereto;
(5) To the Department of Justice when the agency, or any component
thereof, or any employee of the agency in his or her official capacity,
or any employee of the agency in his or her individual capacity where
the Department of Justice has agreed to represent the employee, or the
United States, in litigation, where the agency determines that
litigation is likely to affect the agency or any of its components, is
a party to litigation or has an interest in such litigation, and the
use of such records by the Department of Justice is deemed by the
agency to be relevant and necessary to the litigation; provided,
however, that in each case, the agency determines that disclosure of
the records to the Department of Justice is a use of the information
contained in the records that is compatible with the purpose for which
the records were collected;
(6) For use in a proceeding before a court or adjudicative body
before which the agency is authorized to appear, when the agency, or
any component thereof, or any employee of the agency in his or her
official capacity, or any employee of the agency in his or her
individual capacity where the agency has agreed to represent the
employee, or the United States, where the agency determines that
litigation is likely to affect the agency or any of its components, is
a party to litigation or has an interest in such litigation, and the
agency determines that use of such records is relevant and necessary to
the litigation; provided, however, that in each case, the agency
determines that disclosure of the records to the court is a use of the
information contained in the records that is compatible with the
purpose for which the records were collected;
(7) To appropriate agencies, entities, and persons when the agency
suspects or has confirmed that the security or confidentiality of
information in the system of records has been compromised; the agency
has determined that as a result of the suspected or confirmed
compromise there is a risk of harm to economic or property interests, a
risk of identity theft or fraud, or a risk of harm to the security or
integrity of this system or other systems or programs (whether
maintained by the agency or another agency or entity) that rely upon
the compromised information; and the disclosure made to such agencies,
entities, and persons is reasonably necessary to assist in connection
with the agency's efforts to respond to the suspected or confirmed
compromise and prevent, minimize, or remedy such harm;
(8) To contractors and other parties engaged to assist in
administering the program. Such contractors and other parties will be
bound by the nondisclosure provisions of the Privacy Act. This routine
use assists the agency in carrying out the program, and thus is
compatible with the purpose for which the records are created and
maintained;
(9) To USDA contractors, partner agency employees or contractors,
or private industry employed to identify patterns, trends or anomalies
indicative of fraud, waste, or abuse; and
(10) To the National Archives and Records Administration or to the
General Services Administration for records management inspections
conducted under 44 U.S.C. 2904 and 2906.
Disclosure to consumer reporting agencies:
None.
Policies and practices for storing, retrieving, accessing, retaining,
and disposing of records in the system:
Storage:
The electronic master data for the EMRS is stored on servers.
Following an animal disease outbreak, data from the investigation may
be burned onto compact discs.
Retrievability:
Data regarding an investigation can be retrieved by premises
identification number, reference control number, premises name,
incident group, or incident site. Data regarding an employee can be
retrieved by name, employee identification number, title, organization,
property, or fleet vehicle.
Safeguards:
The EMRS security plan includes management, operational, and
technical controls to prevent misuse of data by system users. These
controls include role-based access. Most individuals have access
limited to data from their State or area. Social security number
(employee only) and home contact information is viewable and may be
updated only by the individual to whom it applies or by individuals
with specific roles to view or update these fields.
Retention and disposal:
Routine investigational EMRS data will be retained in the server
indefinitely. After an animal disease outbreak, data will be burned
onto a compact disc for use by outbreak management personnel and
retained indefinitely. Employee data is maintained as long as the
individual is employed and may be maintained for up to 5 years after
employment ceases in case the employee is reemployed during
emergencies.
System managers(s) and address:
Center Leader--Center for Animal Disease Information, Centers for
Epidemiology and Animal Health, Veterinary Services, APHIS, USDA, 2150
Centre Avenue, Building B, Fort Collins, CO 80526.
Notification procedure:
Any individual may request general information regarding this
system of records or information as to whether the system contains
records pertaining to him/her from the system manager at the address
above. All inquiries pertaining to this system should be in writing,
must name the system of records as set forth in the system notice, and
must contain the individual's name, telephone number, address, and e-
mail address.
Record access procedures:
Any individual may obtain information from a record in the system
that pertains to him or her. Requests for hard copies of records should
be in writing, and the request must contain the requesting individual's
name, address, name of the system of records, timeframe for the records
in question, any other pertinent information to help identify the file,
and a copy of his/her photo identification containing a current address
for verification of identification. All inquiries should be addressed
to the Freedom of Information and Privacy Act Staff, Legislative and
Public Affairs, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 50, Riverdale, MD 20737-
1232.
Contesting record procedures:
Any individual may contest information contained within a record in
the system that pertains to him/her by submitting a written request to
the system manager at the address above. Include the reason for
contesting the record and the proposed amendment to the information
with supporting documentation to show how the record is inaccurate.
Record source categories:
Information in this system comes primarily from the customers,
including the owner or operator of the premises where the animals
subject to investigation are located, and the
[[Page 23412]]
referring contact who provided initial premises information. Such
information may be supplemented by information from an address-
validation database, by APHIS personnel during an on-site
investigation, by State veterinarian offices, or by APHIS's National
Veterinary Services Laboratories.
Employee information is obtained primarily from the employee.
Additionally, employee data may be obtained from the USDA's National
Finance Center and AgLearn database, and from Federal Occupational
Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Exemptions claimed for the system:
None.
[FR Doc. E8-9418 Filed 4-29-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P