This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains documents other than rules or

proposed rules that are applicable to the

public. Notices of hearings and investigations,

committee meetings, agency decisions and

rulings, delegations of authority, filing of

petitions and applications and agency

statements of organization and functions are

examples of documents appearing in this

section.

Notices Federal Register

47622

Vol. 62, No. 175

Wednesday, September 10, 1997

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Office of the Secretary

Privacy Act of 1974; Revision of

System of Records

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of revision of an existing

Privacy Act system of records.

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that

USDA proposes to redesignate its

Privacy Act system of records, USDA/

OFM–3, entitled ‘‘Administrative

Billings and Collections, USDA/OFM’’

to USDA/OCFO–3, ‘‘Administrative

Billings and Collections, USDA/OCFO’’

to reflect reorganization in the USDA;

and to add a new routine use to the

system.

EFFECTIVE DATE: This notice will be

adopted without further publication in

the Federal Register on November 10,

1997, unless modified by a subsequent

notice to incorporate comments

received from the public. Comments

must be received by the contact person

listed below on or before October 10,

1997.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John

W. Hall, Director, National Finance

Center, OCFO, USDA, New Orleans,

Louisiana 70160.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant

to the Privacy Act, 5 U.S.C. 552a, USDA

is redesignating this system as USDAS/

OCFO–3, ‘‘Administrative Billings and

Collections, USDA/OCFO’’ and adding a

new routine use implementing the

Treasury Offset provisions of the Debt

Collection Improvements Act of 1996

(‘‘DCIA’’), Public Law No. 104–134. The

DCIA requires Federal agencies to

forward debts over 180 days delinquent

to the Secretary of the Treasury or to

other Federal agencies designated by the

Secretary of the Treasury for the

purpose of offsetting Federal payments

to collect delinquent debts owed to the

Federal Government. This system of

records is maintained by the National

Finance Center (NFC). The purpose of

this notice is to announce the creation

and character of this new routine use of

records maintained by the NFC. The

system contains data on debtor’s name,

address, Social Security Number or

assigned vendor number, amount of

indebtedness, amount of current

collection, and amount of total billing,

Eventually, these records are transferred

to a history file for inquiry use.

A ‘‘Report on New System,’’ required

by 5 U.S.C. 552a(o), as implemented by

Transmittal Memoranda 1 and 3 to OMB

Circular A–108, was sent to the

Chairman, Committee on Governmental

Affairs, United States Senate, the

Chairman, Committee on Government

Reform and Oversight, House of

Representatives, and the Administrator,

Office of Information and Regulatory

Affairs, Office of Management and

Budget on August 29, 1997.

Signed at Washington, DC, on August 29,

1997.

Dan Glickman,

Secretary of Agriculture.

USDA/OCFO–3

SYSTEM NAME:

Billings and Collections Systems,

USDA/OCFO.

SYSTEM LOCATION:

National Finance Center, OCFO,

USDA, New Orleans, Louisiana 70160.

CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE

SYSTEM:

Individuals who are indebted to the

Federal Government and whose debts

are serviced by the National Finance

Center.

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:

This automated system established a

master file containing the debtor’s

name, address, Social Security Number

or assigned vendor number, amount of

indebtedness, amount of current

collection, and amount of total billing.

Eventually, these records are transferred

to a history file for inquiry use.

Information regarding debts subject to

IRS offset, claims on travel advances,

and delinquent debtor names and Social

Security Numbers used in computer

matches with the Department of Defense

and the United States Postal Service are

kept separate from the administrative

billings and collections data base in a

manually updated claims data base.

AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:

31 U.S.C. 3711 through 3719.

The records in this system are used to

issue bills and collect funds due to the

Government in compliance with the

Debt Collection Act of 1982, Public Law

97–365, 96 Stat. 1749, as amended by

Public Law 98–167, 97 Stat. 1104, and

the Debt Collection Improvements Act

of 1996, Public Law 104–134, 110 Stat.

1321.

ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE

SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES OF USERS AND

THE PURPOSES OF SUCH USES:

(1) Referral to the appropriate agency,

whether Federal, State, local, or foreign,

charged with the responsibility of

investigating or prosecuting a violation

of law, or of enforcing or implementing

a statute, rule, regulation, or order

issued pursuant thereto, of any record

within this system when information

available indicates a violation or

potential violation of law, whether civil,

criminal, or regulatory in nature, and

whether arising by general statute or

particular program statute, or by rule,

regulation or order issued pursuant

thereto.

(2) Referral to the Department of

Justice when (a) the agency, or any

component, thereof; or (b) any employee

of the agency in his or her official

capacity; or (c) any employee of the

agency in his or her individual capacity

where the Department of Justice has

agreed to represent the employee; or (d)

the United States, where the agency

determines that litigation is likely to

affect the agency or any of its

components, is a party to the 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, providing, however, that

in each case, the agency determines that

disclosure of the records to the

Department of Justice is a use of the

information that is compatible with the

purpose for which the records were

collected.

(3) Disclosure in a proceeding before

a court or adjudicative body before

which the agency is authorized to

appear, when (a) the agency, or any

component thereof; or (b) any employee

of the agency in his or her official

capacity; or (c) any employee of the

agency in his or her individual capacity

where the Department of Justice has

agreed to represent the employee; or (d)
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 175 / Wednesday, September 10, 1997 / Notices 47623

the United States, where the agency

determines that litigation is likely to

affect the agency or any of its

components, is a party to the 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, providing, however, that

in each case, the agency determines that

disclosure of the records to the

Department of Justice is a use of the

information that is compatible with the

purpose for which the records were

collected.

(4) Disclosure may be made to a

congressional office from the record of

an individual in response to an inquiry

from the congressional office made on

behalf of the individual.

(5) Information will be forwarded to

another Federal agency when a Federal

employee accepts employment with

another Federal agency.

(6) Referral of information regarding

indebtedness to the Defense Manpower

Data Center, Department of Defense, and

the United States Postal Service for the

purpose of conducting computer

matching programs to identify and

locate individuals receiving Federal

salary or benefit payments and who are

delinquent in their payments of debts

owed to the U.S. Government in order

to collect debts by voluntary repayment,

administrative, or salary offset

procedures under the provisions of 5

U.S.C. 5514 or through collection

agencies under the provisions of 31

U.S.C. 3718.

(7) Information contained in this

system of records may be disclosed to a

debt collection agency when USDA

determines such referral is appropriate

for collecting the debtor’s account as

provided for in U.S. Government

contracts with collection agencies

executed pursuant to 31 U.S.C. 3718.

(8) Where prior collection efforts have

failed, the USDA will refer to the

Department of the Treasury information

from this system of records concerning

past-due legally enforceable debts for

offset against tax refunds that may

become due the debtors for the tax year

in which referral is made in accordance

with IRS regulation at 26 CFR 301.6402–

6T, offset of Past-due Legally

Enforceable Debt Against Overpayment,

and under the authority contained in 31

U.S.C. 3720A.

(9) Information contained in this

system of records may be disclosed to a

consumer reporting agency in

accordance with 31 U.S.C. 3711(f).

(10) Information contained in this

system of records, related to non-tax

debts or claims that are delinquent for

180 days, will be sent to the Secretary

of the Treasury or to other Federal

agencies designated by the Secretary of

the Treasury for the purpose of

offsetting Federal payments to collect

delinquent debts, owed to the Federal

Government. Records will be matched

by Taxpayer Identification Number

(TIN) and name. For an individual, the

TIN is the Social Security Number. For

a business, the TIN is the Employer

Identification Number. The release of

this information is in accordance with

31 U.S.C. 3716 and 4 CFR part 102.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STRONG,

RETRIEVING, ACCESSING, RETAINING, AND

DISPOSING OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:

STORAGE:

Records are maintained on magnetic

tape files, disk files, and in folders at the

National Finance Center.

RETRIEVABILITY:

Records in the administrative billings

and collections data base are retrieved

by Social Security Number and by name

of individual or equivalent identifying

number. Records in the claims data base

are retrieved by the claim number, by

Social Security Number and name of

individual, or by equivalent identifying

number.

SAFEGUARDS:

Magnetic tape files and disk files are

kept in a locked computer room and

tape library which can be accessed by

authorized personnel only. File folders

are maintained in secured areas with

access by authorized personnel only.

Disk files are password protected to

limit access to authorized personnel

only. Online access by National Finance

Center and other agency personnel is

password protected.

RETENTION AND DISPOSAL:

Master history magnetic tapes are

retained in accordance with a tape

library management schedule. Manual

records are transferred to the Federal

Records Center for storage and

disposition in accordance with General

Services Administration regulations.

SYSTEM MANAGER(S) AND ADDRESS:

Director, National Finance Center,

OCFO, USDA, PO Box 60000, New

Orleans, Louisiana 70160.

NOTIFICATION PROCEDURE:

Any individual may request

information regarding this system of

records or information as to whether the

system contains records pertaining to

him/her from the System Manager. A

request for information pertaining to an

individual should be in writing and

should contain: name, address, Social

Security Number, and particulars

involved (i.e., dates of claims, copies of

correspondence, etc.).

RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURES:

Any individual may obtain

information as to the procedures for

gaining access to a record in the system

which pertains to him/her by submitting

a written request to the System

Manager.

CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES:

Any individual may obtain

information as to the procedures for

contesting a record in the system which

pertain to him/her by submitting a

written request to the System Manager.

RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:

Information in this system comes

primarily from USDA employees,

former USDA employees, non-USDA

employees, agency claimants, and

USDA or other investigative personnel.

[FR Doc. 97–23903 Filed 9–9–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–18–M

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Rural Housing Service

Notice of Extension for Availability of

Funding and Requests for Proposals

for the Section 538 Rural Rental

Housing Guaranteed Loan

Demonstration Program

AGENCY: Rural Housing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: The Rural Housing Service

(RHS) announces the extension of the

application deadline to September 22,

1997. Applications for the program will

be processed as they are received, until

the funds are exhausted.

RHS previously announced the

availability of the section 538 Rural

Rental Housing Guaranteed Loan

program on a demonstration basis on

July 2, 1997, 62 FR 35782. The

application closing date is extended

from August 18, 1997, to September 22,

1997.

DATES: The deadline for receipt of

applications is 4:00 p.m., Eastern

Daylight Savings Time on September 22,

1997. Applications received after such

date and time will be returned. Lenders

are encouraged to submit applications

prior to September 22, 1997, as

applications will be reviewed as they

are received. If there are differences

between any previously distributed

guidelines and this notice, the

requirements of this notice shall prevail.

If RHS is unable to obligate section 538

funds for guaranteed loans by