Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 60 / Tuesday, March 31, 2009 / Notices 14613 

Goods by Air (ICAOTI) and the 

International Maritime Dangerous 

Goods Code (IMDG Code). PHMSA is 

considering proposing to mandate the 

use of these regulations for the 

international transportation (see 49 CFR 

171.8) of hazardous materials by aircraft 

or vessel. PHMSA requests comments 

regarding this prospective proposal. 

PHMSA is interested in comments 

including, but not limited to, comments 

related to the safety and economic 

implications of mandating the use of 

these regulations for international 

shipments, as well as implications to 

training of personnel. 

The public is invited to attend 

without prior notification. Due to the 

heightened security measures 

participants are encouraged to arrive 

early to allow time for security checks 

necessary to obtain access to the 

building. Following the 35th session of 

the UNSCOE TDG, PHMSA will place a 

copy of the Sub-Committee’s report and 

a summary of the results on PHMSA’s 

Hazardous Materials Safety Homepage 

at http://www.phmsa.dot.gov/hazmat/ 

regs/international. 

Documents 

Copies of documents for the UNSCOE 

TDG meeting and the meeting agenda 

may be obtained by downloading them 

from the United Nations Transport 

Division’s Web site at: http://www.

unece.org/trans/main/dgdb/dgsubc/

c32009.html. PHMSA’s site at http:// 

www.phmsa.dot.gov/hazmat/regs/

international also provides additional 

information regarding the UNSCOE TDG 

and related matters such as summaries 

of decisions taken at previous sessions 

of the UNSCOE TDG. 

Theodore L. Willke, 

Associate Administrator for Hazardous 

Materials Safety. 

[FR Doc. E9–7042 Filed 3–30–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–60–M 

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 

AFFAIRS 

Privacy Act of 1974 

AGENCY: Department of Veterans Affairs 

(VA). 

ACTION: Notice of establishment of a new 

system of records. 

SUMMARY: The Privacy Act of 1974, 5 

U.S.C. 552(e)(4), requires that all 

agencies publish in the Federal Register 

a notice of the existence and character 

of their systems of records. Notice is 

hereby given that the Department of 

Veterans Affairs (VA) is establishing a 

new system of records entitled 

‘‘Automated Safety Incident 

Surveillance and Tracking System–VA’’ 

(99VA13). 

DATES: Comments on the establishment 

of this new system of records must be 

received no later than April 30, 2009. If 

no public comment is received, the new 

system will become effective April 30, 

2009. 

ADDRESSES: Written comments may be 

submitted through http:// 

www.Regulations.gov; by mail or handdelivery to the Director, Regulations 

Management (02REG), Department of 

Veterans Affairs, 810 Vermont Ave., 

NW., Room 1068, Washington, DC 

20420; or by fax to (202) 273–9026. 

Copies of comments received will be 

available for public inspection in the 

Office of Regulation Policy and 

Management, Room 1063B, between the 

hours of 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday 

through Friday (except holidays). Please 

call (202) 461–4902 for an appointment. 

In addition, during the comment period, 

comments may be viewed Online 

through the Federal Docket Management 

System (FDMS). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Veterans Health Administration (VHA ) 

Privacy Officer, Department of Veterans 

Affairs, 810 Vermont Avenue, NW., 

Washington, DC, 20420, telephone (704) 

245–2492. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In 

accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974 

(5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(4)), the Department of 

Veterans Affairs (VA) published a notice 

of a new system of records entitled 

‘‘Automated Safety Incident 

Surveillance and Tracking System–VA’’ 

(99VA13) (ASISTS). 71 FR 62347 (Oct. 

24, 2006). If no comments were received 

during the 30-day comment period, the 

system of records was to be effective on 

November 24, 2006. Due to comments 

that were received and indication that 

additional comments may be submitted, 

notice was provided that the system of 

records would not be effective until 

October 9, 2007. 71 FR 67957 (Nov. 24, 

2006); 72 FR 17631 (Apr. 9, 2007). Due 

to comments received during that time, 

VA has revised the system notice and 

republishing the notice in its entirety. 

I. Description of Proposed Systems of 

Records 

The Automated Safety Incident 

Surveillance and Tracking System 

(ASISTS) is a bifurcated information 

system used to manage work-related 

injuries and illnesses by identifying, 

characterizing, and tracking 

occupational injuries and illnesses and 

the progress of injured or ill current and 

former employees, trainees, contractors, 

subcontractors, volunteers, and other 

individuals working with or performing 

services for VA. In limited 

circumstances, when such an individual 

chooses to file a workers’ compensation 

claim with the Department of Labor 

(DoL), data required to file the claim is 

entered into the claim form that is then 

submitted to DoL. For the purpose of 

this system of records, current and 

former employees, trainees, contractors, 

subcontractors, volunteers, and other 

individuals working with or performing 

services for VA are characterized 

collectively as employees. 

With respect to occupational safety, 

information regarding a workplace 

injury or illness, including the 

description of the incident, any 

correction action taken, results of any 

investigation, and recommendations for 

employees’ safety and health, is entered 

into ASISTS by the supervisor of an 

injured or ill employee and the health 

and safety personnel of the facility. 

These records are used to identify 

specific incidents of work-related 

injuries and illnesses; track and evaluate 

services and medical care of injured or 

ill workers; and determine emerging 

causes, clusters of incidents, and 

outbreaks. In addition, VA uses the 

information to identify system-wide 

problems and opportunities for focused 

education; evaluate through statistical 

analysis the effectiveness health and 

safety systems; develop and manage the 

planning, distribution, and utilization of 

resources; and support further research 

in the area of occupational medicine. 

Some of this data is then compiled for 

reporting to the Occupational Safety and 

Health Administration (OSHA) of the 

Department of Labor (DoL), in 

accordance with the 29 CFR part 1960. 

Further, the records may be used by 

institutional members of an accident 

review board or an incident review 

board, a multidisciplinary group of 

health and safety professionals and 

representatives from human resources, 

safety, occupational health, and unions/ 

labor representatives and infection 

control to determine root causes of 

injuries and illnesses; and by VA 

hospitals and regional offices, VA 

Central Office, and the VA Office of 

Inspector General (OIG) for audits, 

reviews, and investigations of such 

events. 

Where one of the injured or ill 

employees whose information is 

captured in the system chooses to file a 

workers’ compensation claim under the 

Federal Employee Compensation Act 

(FECA), 5 U.S.C. 8101 et seq., ASISTS 

provides a mechanism for electronic 

transmission of claims to the DoL Office 

of Workers’ Compensation Programs 

(OWCP). For those employees who do 


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14614 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 60 / Tuesday, March 31, 2009 / Notices 

not file workers’ compensation claims 

for their injuries or illnesses, no records 

pertaining to them exist in this portion 

of ASISTS. ASISTS is a bifurcated 

system that is protected by access 

control: authentication of users and 

authorization of those users’ access and 

actions only in accordance with their 

permission levels. Information entered 

into claim forms is maintained and 

accessed separately from the rest of the 

system. Further, that data is entered by 

only the employee, his or her 

supervisor, and the workers’ 

compensation personnel of the facility, 

and no other individual has access to 

those records. 

Although this system facilitates the 

filing of workers’ compensation claims, 

information used only to complete 

claims under the FECA, including the 

employee’s own description of the 

incident, is not part of this system of 

records. ASISTS does not contain, in 

whole or in part, any exact duplicates or 

identical copies of FECA claim records. 

Rather, the official workers’ 

compensation claim file is part of 

OWCP’s government-wide system of 

records entitled Office of Workers’ 

Compensation Programs, Federal 

Employees’ Compensation Act Files 

(DOL/GOVT–1) and is not covered by 

this system. To the extent that any data 

in ASISTS is derived from FECA claim 

forms, that information will be treated 

as DOL/GOVT–1 records and disclosed 

only in accordance with the routine 

uses in that system. 

II. Proposed Routine Use Disclosures of 

Data in the System 

VA proposes to establish the 

following routine use disclosures of 

information that will be maintained in 

the system: 

1. VA may disclose on its own 

initiative any information in this 

system, except the names and addresses 

of veterans and their dependents, which 

is relevant to a suspected or reasonably 

imminent violation of law, whether 

civil, criminal, or regulatory in nature 

and whether arising by general or 

program statute or by regulation, rule, or 

order issued pursuant thereto, to a 

Federal, state, local, or foreign agency 

charged with the responsibility of 

investigating or prosecuting such 

violation, or charged with enforcing or 

implementing the statute, regulation, 

rule, or order. VA may also disclose on 

its own initiative the names and 

addresses of veterans and their 

dependents to a Federal agency charged 

with the responsibility of investigating 

or prosecuting civil, criminal, or 

regulatory violations of law, or charged 

with enforcing or implementing the 

statute, regulation, rule, or order. 

VA must be able to disclose 

information within its possession on its 

own initiative that pertains to a 

violation of law to the appropriate 

authorities in order for them to 

investigate and enforce those laws. VA 

may disclose the names and home 

addresses of veterans and their 

dependents only to Federal entities with 

law enforcement responsibilities under 

38 U.S.C. 5701(a) and (f). Accordingly, 

VA has so limited this routine use. 

2. VA may disclose information to a 

Congressional office from the record of 

an individual in response to an inquiry 

from the Congressional office made on 

behalf of and at the request of that 

individual. 

Individuals sometimes request the 

help of a Member of Congress in 

resolving some issue relating to a matter 

before VA. When the Member of 

Congress writes VA, VA must be able to 

provide sufficient information to be 

responsive to the inquiry. This routine 

use is consistent with guidance from the 

Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB), issued on October 3, 1974, that 

directed all Federal agencies to insert 

this language in their systems of 

records. (http://www.whitehouse.gov/ 

omb/inforeg/lynn1975.pdf). 

3. VA may disclose information to the 

National Archives and Records 

Administration (NARA) in records 

disposition and management 

inspections conducted under authority 

of Title 44 of United States Code. 

NARA is responsible for archiving old 

records no longer actively used but 

which may be appropriate for 

preservation and for the physical 

maintenance of the Federal 

government’s records. VA must be able 

to turn records over to NARA in order 

to determine the proper disposition of 

such records. 

4. VA may disclose information in 

this system of records to the Department 

of Justice (DOJ), either on VA’s initiative 

or in response to DOJ’s request for the 

information, after either VA or DOJ 

determines that such information is 

relevant to DOJ’s representation of the 

United States or any of its components 

in legal proceedings before a court or 

adjudicative body, provided that, in 

each case, the agency also determines 

prior to disclosure 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 VA collected the 

records. VA, on its own initiative, may 

disclose records in this system of 

records in legal proceedings before a 

court or administrative body after 

determining that the disclosure of the 

records to the court or administrative 

body is a use of the information 

contained in the records that is 

compatible with the purpose for which 

VA collected the records. 

When VA is involved in litigation or 

an adjudicative or administrative 

process, or occasionally when another 

party is involved in litigation or an 

adjudicative or administrative process, 

and VA policies or operations could be 

affected by the outcome of the litigation 

or process, VA must be able to disclose 

information to the court, the 

adjudicative or administrative body, or 

the parties involved. A determination 

would be made in each instance that, 

under the circumstances involved, the 

purpose served by use of the 

information in the particular litigation 

or process is compatible with the 

purpose for which VA collected the 

information. This routine use is 

consistent with OMB guidance issued 

on May 24, 1985, directing all Federal 

agencies to promulgate such a routine 

use (http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/ 

inforeg/guidance1985.pdf). 

5. VA may disclose information for 

program review purposes and the 

seeking of accreditation and/or 

certification to survey teams of the Joint 

Commission on Accreditation of 

Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO), 

College of American Pathologists, 

American Association of Blood Banks, 

and similar national accreditation 

agencies or boards with which VA has 

a contract or agreement to conduct such 

reviews, but only to the extent that the 

information is necessary and relevant to 

the review. 

VA health care facilities undergo 

certification and accreditation by 

several national accreditation agencies 

or boards to comply with regulations 

and good medical practices. VA must be 

able to disclose information for program 

review purposes and the seeking of 

accreditation and/or certification of 

health care facilities and programs. 

6. VA may disclose information to 

officials of the Merit Systems Protection 

Board (MSPB) and the Office of the 

Special Counsel when requested in 

connection with appeals, special studies 

of the civil service and other merit 

systems, review of rules and regulations, 

investigation of alleged or possible 

prohibited personnel practices, and 

such other functions, promulgated in 5 

U.S.C. 1205 and 1206, or as may be 

authorized by law. 

VA must be able to disclose 

information to the MSPB to assist it in 

fulfilling its responsibilities regarding 

Federal employees, in accordance with 

Congressional intent reflected in that 


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agency’s enabling statutes. Moreover, 

VA minimizes the release of 

individually identifiable information to 

another Federal agency and limits the 

disclosure to anonymous data where 

such information is sufficient for that 

agency to accomplish its statutory 

purpose. 

7. VA may disclose information to the 

Equal Employment Opportunity 

Commission (EEOC) when requested in 

connection with investigations of 

alleged or possible discrimination 

practices, examination of Federal 

affirmative employment programs, 

compliance with the Uniform 

Guidelines of Employee Selection 

Procedures, or other functions vested in 

the Commission by the President’s 

Reorganization Plan No. 1 of 1978. 

VA must be able to disclose 

information to the EEOC to assist it in 

fulfilling its responsibilities to protect 

employee rights. 

8. VA may disclose to the Federal 

Labor Relations Authority (FLRA), 

including its General Counsel, 

information related to the establishment 

of jurisdiction, the investigation and 

resolution of allegations of unfair labor 

practices, or information in connection 

with the resolution of exceptions to 

arbitrator awards when a question of 

material fact is raised, in matters before 

the Federal Service Impasses Panel, and 

to investigate representation petitions 

and conduct or supervise representation 

elections. 

VA must be able to disclose 

information to the FLRA to comply with 

the statutory mandate under which 

FLRA operates. 

9. VA may disclose information to 

individuals, organizations, private or 

public agencies, or other entities with 

which VA has a contract or agreement, 

or where there is a subcontract to 

perform such services as VA may deem 

practicable for the purposes of laws 

administered by VA, in order for the 

contractor or subcontractor to perform 

the services of the contract or 

agreement. 

This routine use, which also applies 

to agreements that do not qualify as 

contracts defined by Federal 

procurement laws and regulations, is 

consistent with OMB guidance in OMB 

Circular A–130, App. I, paragraph 

5a(1)(b) that agencies promulgate 

routine uses to address disclosure of 

Privacy Act-protected information to 

contractors in order to perform the 

services contracts for the agency. VA 

must be able to provide information to 

contractors or subcontractors with 

which VA has a contract or agreement 

in order to perform the services of the 

contract or agreement. In these 

situations, safeguards are provided in 

the contract prohibiting the contractor 

or subcontractor from using or 

disclosing the information for any 

purpose other than that described in the 

contract. 

10. VA may disclose information to 

labor unions operating at the facility 

level as members of institutional review 

boards, also known as accident review 

boards, to review root causes of injuries. 

VA must be able to use and disclose 

the information to allow the facility and 

labor unions to review and recommend 

corrective measures for injury 

prevention. 

11. VA may disclose information to 

the Department of Labor for the 

electronic filing of workers 

compensation claims, as provided by 

the Federal Employee Compensation 

Act, 5 U.S.C. 8121. 

VA must be able to provide 

information regarding particular 

workplace injuries and illnesses to the 

Department of Labor for it to adjudicate 

claims for workers’ compensation filed 

by injured or ill VA employees. 

12. VA may, on its own initiative, 

disclose any information or records to 

appropriate agencies, entities, and 

persons when (1) VA suspects or has 

confirmed that the integrity or 

confidentiality of information in the 

system of records has been 

compromised; (2) the Department has 

determined that as a result of the 

suspected or confirmed compromise 

there is a risk of embarrassment or harm 

to the reputations of the record subjects, 

harm to economic or property interests, 

identity theft or fraud, or harm to the 

security, confidentiality, or integrity of 

this system or other systems or 

programs (whether maintained by the 

Department or another agency or entity) 

that rely upon the potentially 

compromised information; and (3) the 

disclosure is to agencies, entities, or 

persons whom VA determines are 

reasonably necessary to assist or carry 

out the Department’s efforts to respond 

to the suspected or confirmed 

compromise and prevent, minimize, or 

remedy such harm. 

This routine use permits disclosure 

that is required by the Memorandum 

from the Office of Management and 

Budget (M–07–16), dated May 22, 2007, 

of all systems of records of all Federal 

agencies. Further, the disclosure allows 

VA to respond to a suspected or 

confirmed data breach, including the 

conduct of any risk analysis or 

provision of credit protection services as 

provided in 38 U.S.C. 5724, as the terms 

are defined in 38 U.S.C. 5727. 

13. Disclosure to other Federal 

agencies may be made to assist such 

agencies in preventing and detecting 

possible fraud or abuse by individuals 

in their operations and programs. 

This routine use permits disclosures 

by the Department to report a suspected 

incident of identity theft and provide 

information and/or documentation 

related to or in support of the reported 

incident. 

III. Compatibility of the Proposed 

Routine Uses 

The Privacy Act permits VA to 

disclose information about individuals 

without their consent for a routine use 

when the information will be used for 

a purpose that is compatible with the 

purpose for which VA collected the 

information. In the routine use 

disclosures described above, except 

those governed by DOL/GOVT–1, either 

the recipient of the information will use 

the information in connection with a 

matter relating to one of VA’s programs 

or to provide a benefit to VA, or 

disclosure is required by law. 

The notice of intent to publish an 

advance copy of the system notice have 

been sent to the appropriate 

Congressional committees and to the 

Director of the Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB) as required by the 

Privacy Act, 5 U.S.C. 552a(r), and 

guidelines issued by OMB, 65 FR 77677, 

December 12, 2000. 

Approved: February 26, 2009. 

John R. Gingrich, 

Chief of Staff, Department of Veterans Affairs. 

99VA13 

SECURITY CLASSIFICATION: 

None. 

SYSTEM NAME: 

Automated Safety Incident 

Surveillance and Tracking System—VA. 

SYSTEM LOCATION: 

Records are maintained at each 

Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) 

health care facility with back-up 

computer tape information being stored 

at off-site locations in most cases. The 

national database where ASISTS resides 

is located at the Austin Automation 

Center. Address locations for VA 

facilities are listed in VA Appendix 1 of 

the biennial publication of the VA 

system of records. In addition, records 

may be maintained at the Department of 

Veterans Affairs, 810 Vermont Avenue, 

NW., Washington, DC; VA Data 

Processing Centers; VA OI Field Offices; 

Veterans Integrated Service Network 

Offices; and Employee Education 

Systems. 


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14616 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 60 / Tuesday, March 31, 2009 / Notices 

CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE

SYSTEM: 

The records include information 

concerning current and former 

employees, trainees, contractors, 

subcontractors, volunteers, and other 

individuals working with or performing 

services for VA. For the purpose of this 

system of records, these individuals are 

characterized collectively as employees. 

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM: 

The records in this system include: 

1. Personal identifiers, including the 

injured or ill employee’s name, date of 

birth, age, sex, and social security 

number; 

2. Residential and professional 

contact data, including home and/or 

mailing address, home telephone 

number, emergency contact information, 

personnel status, and duty station; 

3. Employment information, 

including personnel status, occupation, 

grade and step, date of hire, and station 

number; 

4. Information about injuries and 

illnesses attributed to work, including 

the location of injury, cause, severity, 

type of injury, body parts affected, risk, 

and contributing factors; 

5. Information from reviews and 

investigation of incidents conducted by 

the employee’s supervisor and the safety 

personnel of that facility, including any 

corrective actions taken by the 

supervisor and the findings of the health 

and safety officer; 

6. Abstract information, including 

environmental and epidemiological 

registries, studies of effectiveness health 

and safety systems, and further research 

in the area of occupational medicine. 

7. Information required for reporting 

to the Occupational Safety and Health 

Administration (OSHA) of the 

Department of Labor (DoL), including 

the name of the treating physician or 

other health care professional, 

hospitalization, medical treatment, 

medication, safety device; and 

8. Information required for filing a 

workers’ compensation claim with the 

DoL Office of Workers’ Compensation 

Programs (OWCP) under the Federal 

Employee Compensation Act (FECA), 5 

U.S.C. 8101 et seq. 

ASISTS does not contain, in whole or 

in part, workers’ compensation claim 

forms filed under the FECA, any 

duplicates or copies of such documents, 

or any information that is derived from 

claim records. 

AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM: 

5 U.S.C. Chapters 11, 31, 33, 43, 61, 

63, and 83; 38 U.S.C. 501; 38 U.S.C. 

Chapter 74. 

PURPOSE(S): 

The records will be used to identify 

specific cases of work-related injuries 

and illnesses; track and evaluate 

medical care of and services provided to 

injured or ill workers, and determine 

emerging causes, clusters of incidents, 

and outbreaks. The records will also be 

used to identify system-wide problems 

and opportunities for focused education 

and intervention; evaluate the 

effectiveness of health and safety 

systems performance, especially after 

interventions, through statistical 

analysis; to develop and manage the 

planning, distribution, and utilization of 

resources; and support further research 

in the area of occupational medicine. 

The data may also be used for the 

review of root causes of injuries and for 

audits, reviews, and investigations of 

incidents involving workplace injuries 

and illnesses. Data may be accessed 

locally and at the VISN level through 

ASISTS directly or through presentation 

modes on the VISN Support Service 

Center (in anonymized form such as 

through a Proclarity Data Cube), Users 

include the following: Nationally data 

may be accessed through the rolled-up 

master file and data use agreements 

with the System of Records owner that 

address confidentiality requirements 

under the Privacy Act. 

At the facility level: safety and 

industrial hygiene, engineering, human 

resources and workers compensation, 

occupational health, union, supervisory, 

and management staff. 

At the VISN level: VISN safety and 

workers compensation staff and human 

resources staff. 

At the national level: occupational 

health, safety, workers compensation, 

human resources, and engineering staff. 

Where an injured or ill employee 

chooses to file a workers’ compensation 

claim under the Federal Employee 

Compensation Act (FECA), 5 U.S.C. 

§ 8101 et seq., ASISTS provides a 

mechanism for electronic transmission 

of claims to DoL. Certain information in 

the system, including the employee’s 

own description of the injury or illness, 

populates the claim form. The 

completed claim form, which is not a 

part of ASISTS, is then submitted to 

OWCP. 

ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE

SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES OF USERS AND

THE PURPOSES OF SUCH USES: 

Although certain information in 

ASISTS populates workers’ 

compensation claim forms, the official 

workers’ compensation claim file is part 

of OWCP’s government-wide system of 

records entitled Office of Workers’ 

Compensation Programs, Federal 

Employees’ Compensation Act Files 

(DOL/GOVT–1) and is not covered by 

this system. Any data in ASISTS that is 

used solely to populate FECA claim 

forms, such as the employee’s own 

description of the incident, will be 

treated as DOL/GOVT–1 records and 

disclosed only in accordance with 

DOL’s interpretation of the DOL/GOVT– 

1 routine uses. 

1. VA may disclose on its own 

initiative any information in this 

system, except the names and addresses 

of veterans and their dependents, which 

is relevant to a suspected or reasonably 

imminent violation of law, whether 

civil, criminal, or regulatory in nature 

and whether arising by general or 

program statute or by regulation, rule, or 

order issued pursuant thereto, a Federal, 

state, local, or foreign agency charged 

with the responsibility of investigating 

or prosecuting such violation, or 

charged with enforcing or implementing 

the statute, regulation, rule, or order. VA 

may also disclose on its own initiative 

the names and addresses of veterans and 

their dependents to a Federal agency 

charged with the responsibility of 

investigating or prosecuting civil, 

criminal, or regulatory violations of law, 

or charged with enforcing or 

implementing the statute, regulation, 

rule, or order. 

2. VA may disclose information to a 

Congressional office from the record of 

an individual in response to an inquiry 

from the Congressional office on behalf 

of and at the request of that individual. 

3. VA may disclose information to the 

National Archives and Records 

Administration (NARA) in records 

disposition and management 

inspections conducted under authority 

of Title 44 of United States Code. 

4. VA may disclose information in 

this system of records to the Department 

of Justice (DOJ), either on VA’s initiative 

or in response to DOJ’s request for the 

information, after either VA or DOJ 

determines that such information is 

relevant to DOJ’s representation of the 

United States or any of its components 

in legal proceedings before a court or 

adjudicative body, provided that, in 

each case, the agency also determines 

prior to disclosure 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 VA collected the 

records. VA, on its own initiative, may 

disclose records in this system of 

records in legal proceedings before a 

court or administrative body after 

determining that the disclosure of the 

records to the court or administrative 

body is a use of the information 

contained in the records that is 


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compatible with the purpose for which 

VA collected the records. 

5. VA may disclose information for 

program review purposes and the 

seeking of accreditation and/or 

certification to survey teams of the Joint 

Commission on Accreditation of 

Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO), 

College of American Pathologists, 

American Association of Blood Banks, 

and similar national accreditation 

agencies or boards with which VA has 

a contract or agreement to conduct such 

reviews, but only to the extent that the 

information is necessary and relevant to 

the review. 

6. VA may disclose information to 

officials of the Merit Systems Protection 

Board (MSPB) and the Office of the 

Special Counsel when requested in 

connection with appeals, special studies 

of the civil service and other merit 

systems, review of rules and regulations, 

investigation of alleged or possible 

prohibited personnel practices, and 

such other functions promulgated in 5 

U.S.C. §§ 1205 and 1206, or as may be 

authorized by law. 

7. VA may disclose information to the 

Equal Employment Opportunity 

Commission (EEOC) when requested in 

connection with investigations of 

alleged or possible discrimination 

practices, examination of Federal 

affirmative employment programs, 

compliance with the Uniform 

Guidelines of Employee Selection 

Procedures, or other functions vested in 

the Commission by the President’s 

Reorganization Plan No. 1 of 1978. 

8. VA may disclose to the Federal 

Labor Relations Authority (FLRA), 

including its General Counsel, 

information related to the establishment 

of jurisdiction, the investigation and 

resolution of allegations of unfair labor 

practices, or information in connection 

with the resolution of exceptions to 

arbitrator awards when a question of 

material fact is raised, in matters before 

the Federal Service Impasses Panel, and 

to investigate representation petitions 

and conduct or supervise representation 

elections. 

9. VA may disclose information to 

individuals, organizations, private or 

public agencies, or other entities with 

which VA has a contract or agreement, 

or where there is a subcontract to 

perform such services as VA may deem 

practicable for the purposes of laws 

administered by VA, in order for the 

contractor or subcontractor to perform 

the services of the contract or 

agreement. 

10. VA may disclose information to 

labor unions operating at the facility 

level as members of institutional review 

boards, also known as accident review 

boards, to review root causes of injuries. 

11. VA may disclose information to 

the Department of Labor for the 

electronic filing of workers 

compensation claims, as provided by 5 

U.S.C. 8121. 

12. VA may, on its own initiative, 

disclose any information or records to 

appropriate agencies, entities, and 

persons when (1) VA suspects or has 

confirmed that the integrity or 

confidentiality of information in the 

system of records has been 

compromised; (2) the Department has 

determined that as a result of the 

suspected or confirmed compromise 

there is a risk of embarrassment or harm 

to the reputations of the record subjects, 

harm to economic or property interests, 

identity theft or fraud, or harm to the 

security, confidentiality, or integrity of 

this system or other systems or 

programs (whether maintained by the 

Department or another agency or entity) 

that rely upon the potentially 

compromised information; and (3) the 

disclosure is to agencies, entities, or 

persons whom VA determines are 

reasonably necessary to assist or carry 

out the Department’s efforts to respond 

to the suspected or confirmed 

compromise and prevent, minimize, or 

remedy such harm. 

13. Disclosure to other Federal 

agencies may be made to assist such 

agencies in preventing and detecting 

possible fraud or abuse by individuals 

in their operations and programs. 

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORING, 

RETRIEVING, ACCESSING, RETAINING, AND

DISPOSING OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM: 

STORAGE: 

Records are maintained electronically 

on magnetic tape, disk, or laser optical 

media with copies of back-up computer 

files maintained at off-site locations in 

most cases. 

RETRIEVABILITY: 

Records are retrieved by name, Social 

Security number, or other assigned 

identifiers of the individuals on whom 

they are maintained. 

SAFEGUARDS: 

1. Access to VA working and storage 

areas is restricted to VA personnel on a 

‘‘need-to-know’’ basis; strict control 

measures are enforced to ensure that 

disclosure to these individuals is also 

based on this same principle. Generally, 

VA file areas are locked after normal 

duty hours, and the facilities are 

protected from outside access by the 

Federal Protective Service or other 

security personnel. 

2. Access to computer rooms at health 

care facilities is generally limited by 

appropriate locking devices and 

restricted to authorized VA employees 

and vendor personnel. Automated Data 

Processing (ADP) peripheral devices are 

placed in secure areas, which are 

locked, with limited access, or are 

otherwise protected. Records may be 

accessed by authorized VA employees, 

and access is controlled at two levels; 

the systems recognize authorized users 

by series of individually unique 

passwords/codes as a part of each data 

message, and access is limited to only 

those who need the information in the 

performance of their official duties. 

Information downloaded from ASISTS 

and maintained on personal computers 

is afforded similar storage and access 

protections as data maintained in the 

original files. Access to information 

stored on automated storage media at 

other VA locations is controlled by 

individually unique passwords/codes. 

3. Access to information that 

populates workers’ compensation claim 

forms submitted to DoL is accessible to 

only the employee filing the claim, his 

or her supervisor, and the workers’ 

compensation personnel of the facility. 

RETENTION AND DISPOSAL: 

Records are maintained and disposed 

of in accordance with records 

disposition authority approved by the 

Archivist of the United States. 

At the current time, VA does not have 

records disposition authority for these 

records that has been approved by the 

Archivist of the United States. The 

System Manager has initiated action to 

seek and obtain such disposition 

authority in accordance with VA 

Handbook 6300.1, Records Management 

Procedures. The records will not be 

destroyed until VA obtains a NARAapproved records disposition authority. 

Once VA has obtained NARA-approved 

records disposition authority, the 

agency will amend this notice to reflect 

that authority, and any destruction of 

electronic records will occur when no 

longer needed for administrative, legal, 

audit, or other operational purposes. 

SYSTEM MANAGER(S) AND ADDRESS: 

Official responsible for policies and 

procedures: Office of Public Health and 

Environmental Hazards (13), 

Department of Veterans Affairs, 810 

Vermont Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 

20420. Officials maintaining the system: 

Director at the facility where the 

employee was associated. 

NOTIFICATION PROCEDURE: 

Individuals seeking information on 

the existence and content of a record 

pertaining to them should contact the 

VA facility location at which they are or 


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14618 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 60 / Tuesday, March 31, 2009 / Notices 

were employed, or performed work. 

Inquiries should include the person’s 

full name, social security number, dates 

of employment or work, and return 

address. 

RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURE: 

(See Notification Procedure above.) 

CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES: 

(See Notification Procedure above.) 

RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES: 

Information in this system of records 

is provided by employees, trainees, 

contractors, subcontractors, volunteers, 

and other affected individuals; 

supervisors; health and safety 

professionals at facilities; clinical 

personnel; workers’ compensation 

personnel; and human resources staff. 

[FR Doc. E9–7160 Filed 3–30–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 

AFFAIRS 

Privacy Act of 1974; System of 

Records 

AGENCY: Department of Veterans Affairs. 

ACTION: Notice to amend an existing 

system of records. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

requirements of the Privacy Act of 1974, 

as amended, 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(4), the 

Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is 

amending the system of records entitled 

‘‘Purchase Credit Card Program-VA’’ 

(131VA047) as described in the Federal 

Register at 70 FR 7320 (February 11, 

2005). VA is amending the system of 

records by updating our routine uses 

relating to records maintained in the 

system. VA is republishing the system 

of records notice in its entirety. 

DATES: Written comments mailed to the 

Department must be postmarked no 

later than April 30, 2009, and written 

comments hand-delivered or submitted 

electronically to the Department must 

be received no later than 5 p.m. Eastern 

Time on April 30, 2009. If no public 

comment is received during the 30-day 

public comment period, or unless 

otherwise published in the Federal 

Register by VA, the new system of 

records statement is effective on April 

30, 2009. 

ADDRESSES: Written comments may be 

submitted through http:// 

www.Regulations.gov; by mail or handdelivery to: Director, Regulations 

Management (02REG), Department of 

Veterans Affairs, 810 Vermont Avenue, 

NW., Room 1068, Washington, DC 

20420; fax to (202) 273–9026. Copies of 

comments received will be available for 

public inspection in the Office of 

Regulation Policy and Management, 

Room 1063B, between the hours of 8 

a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through 

Friday (except holidays). Please call 

(202) 461–4902 for an appointment (this 

is not a toll-free number). In addition, 

during the comment period, comments 

may be viewed Online through the 

Federal Docket Management System 

(FDMS) at http://www.Regulations.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Peter Mulhern, Office of Financial 

Policy (047G), Department of Veterans 

Affairs, 810 Vermont Avenue, NW., 

Washington, DC 20420, Telephone: 

(202) 461–6487 (this is not a toll-free 

number). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant 

to the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 

552a) and the Office of Management and 

Budget (OMB) Circular No. A–130, VA 

has conducted a review of its Privacy 

Act systems of records notices and has 

determined that it needs to amend and 

establish the following routine use 

disclosures for the information 

maintained in the system of records 

entitled ‘‘Purchase Credit Card ProgramVA’’ (131VA047): 

Routine use three (3) is amended to 

add language to clarify when VA will 

disclose information to a court, 

adjudicative or administrative bodies, or 

the parties involved. A determination 

would be made in each instance that, 

under the circumstances involved, the 

purpose served by the use of the 

information in the particular litigation 

or process is compatible with a purpose 

for which VA collects the information. 

Routine use five (5) is amended to add 

language to clarify when VA will 

disclose the names and addresses of 

veterans and their dependents in order 

to comply with the requirements of 

agencies, such as Federal, State, local, 

tribal and foreign agencies, charged with 

enforcing the law and investigations of 

violations or possible violations of law. 

Routine use seven (7) is deleted. A 

further reading of this routine use 

indicates that it may be more restrictive 

than the disclosure provided to 

consumer reporting agencies, as set 

forth in 38 U.S.C. 552a(b)(12). In 

addition, any delinquent debts that 

remain outstanding are referred for 

collection action to the Department of 

the Treasury or the Department of 

Justice. Disclosure of information for 

such referrals is already covered by 

routine uses three (3) and nine (9). The 

remainder of the routine uses will be 

renumbered accordingly. 

A new routine use ten (10) is added. 

VA may, on its own initiative, disclose 

any information or records to 

appropriate agencies, entities, and 

persons to respond to a suspected or 

confirmed data breach, including the 

conduct of any risk analysis or 

provision of credit protection services. 

Finally, VA is adding new routines 

uses eleven (11), twelve (12), and 

thirteen (13). These three new routine 

uses are added to enable disclosure of 

information to the Merit Systems 

Protection Board (MSPB), the Federal 

Labor Relations Authority (FLRA), and 

the Equal Employment Opportunity 

Commission (EEOC) in order for each to 

address matters within their 

jurisdiction. 

The Privacy Act of 1974 permits VA 

to disclose information about 

individuals without their consent for a 

routine use when the information will 

be used for a purpose that is compatible 

with the purpose for which VA 

collected the information. In all of the 

routine use disclosures described above, 

the recipient of the information will use 

the information either in connection 

with a matter related to one of VA’s 

programs, or will use the information to 

provide a benefit to VA, or will disclose 

as required by law. 

The notice of intent to publish and an 

advance copy of the system notice have 

been sent to the appropriate 

Congressional committees and to the 

Director of the Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB) as required by 5 

U.S.C. 552a(r) (Privacy Act of 1974) and 

guidelines issued by OMB on December 

12, 2000 (65FR77677). 

Approved: March 3, 2009. 

John R. Gingrich, 

Chief of Staff, Department of Veterans Affairs. 

131VA047 

SYSTEM NAME: 

Purchase Credit Card Program-VA 

SYSTEM LOCATION: 

This system of records is located in 

the finance/fiscal office of the local 

installations of the Department, the 

Financial Services Center, Austin, TX, 

and VA Central Office, Washington, DC. 

Records necessary for a contractor to 

perform under a contract are located at 

the contractor’s facility. 

CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE

SYSTEM: 

Individuals covered by the system are 

current VA employees who have their 

own Government assigned charge card, 

or who have had a charge card. 

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM: 

Records include name, work and 

home addresses, social security number, 


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