1664 Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 6 / Wednesday, January 9, 2008 / Notices 

• Protect material required to be kept 

secret in the interest of national defense 

and foreign policy; 

• Prevent individuals that are the 

subject of investigation from frustrating 

the investigatory process, to ensure the 

proper functioning and integrity of law 

enforcement activities, to prevent 

disclosure of investigative techniques, 

to maintain the confidence of foreign 

governments in the integrity of the 

procedures under which privileged or 

confidential information may be 

provided, and to fulfill commitments 

made to sources to protect their 

identities and the confidentiality of 

information and to avoid endangering 

these sources and law enforcement 

personnel; or 

• Preclude impairment of the 

Department’s effective performance in 

carrying out its lawful protective 

responsibilities under 18 U.S.C. 3056 

and 22 U.S.C. 4802. 

Records meeting any of the above 

criteria are exempt from the following 

subsections of 5 U.S.C. 552a(c)(3), (d), 

(e)(1), (e)(4)(G), (e)(4)(H), (e)(4)(I), and (f) 

(2007). See 22 CFR 171.36(b)(1), (b)(2), 

and (b)(3) (2007). 

Dated: December 31, 2007. 

Maura Harty, 

Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Consular 

Affairs, Department of State. 

[FR Doc. E8–202 Filed 1–8–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4710–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF STATE 

[Public Notice 6056] 

Privacy Act of 1974; System of 

Records 

Summary: This report is submitted in 

compliance with Appendix I to OMB 

Circular Number A–130 entitled 

‘‘Federal Agency Responsibilities for 

Maintaining Records about 

Individuals.’’ The Department of State 

(‘‘Department’’) intends to alter an 

existing system of records, ‘‘Passport 

Records’’ (STATE–26), to reflect 

additional routine uses for the 

information maintained in the Passport 

Records System. 

Purpose: The information collected 

and maintained in the system of records 

entitled ‘‘Passport Records’’ is in 

keeping with the Department’s 

responsibility to adjudicate applications 

for U.S. passports. Proposed alterations 

appear in the routine uses section of the 

system description. The purpose in 

granting access to other entities varies, 

but principally encompasses the 

following functions: 

• To support national defense, border 

security, and foreign policy activities; 

• To ensure the proper functioning 

and integrity of law enforcement, 

counterterrorism, and fraud-prevention 

activities by supporting law 

enforcement personnel in the conduct of 

their duties; 

• To support the investigatory 

process; and 

• To assist with verification of 

passport validity to support 

employment eligibility and identity 

corroboration for public and private 

employment. 

This Systems of Records Notice 

(SORN) documents an updated list of 

routine uses for records maintained in 

the passport records system to include 

disclosure to the following entities: 

• Department of Homeland Security 

for law enforcement; counterterrorism; 

border patrol, screening, and security 

purposes; fraud prevention activities; 

and verification of passport validity to 

support employment eligibility and 

identity corroboration for public and 

private employment; 

• Department of Justice, including the 

Federal Bureau of Investigation, the 

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, 

and Explosives, the U.S. Marshals 

Service, and other components, for law 

enforcement, counterterrorism, border 

security, fraud prevention, and criminal 

and civil litigation activities; 

• INTERPOL and other international 

organizations for law enforcement, 

counterterrorism, fraud prevention, 

criminal activities related to lost and 

stolen passports; 

• National Counterterrorism Center to 

support strategic operational planning 

and counterterrorism intelligence 

activities; 

• Office of Personnel Management 

(OPM), other federal agencies, or 

contracted outside entities to support 

the investigations that OPM, other 

federal agencies, and contractor 

personnel conduct for the federal 

government in connection with 

verification of employment eligibility 

and/or the issuance of a security 

clearance; 

• Social Security Administration to 

support employment-eligibility 

verification for public and private 

employers, and for support in 

verification of social security numbers 

used in processing U.S. passport 

applications; 

• Federal, state, local or other 

agencies for use in legal proceedings as 

government counsel deems appropriate, 

in accordance with any understanding 

reached by the agency with the U.S. 

Department of State. 

• Foreign governments, to permit 

such governments to fulfill passport 

control and immigration duties and 

their own law enforcement, 

counterterrorism, and fraud prevention 

functions, and to support U.S. law 

enforcement, counterterrorism, and 

fraud prevention activities. 

• Public and private employers 

seeking to confirm the authenticity of 

the U.S. passport when it is presented 

as evidence of identity and eligibility to 

work in the United States; 

• Contractor personnel conducting 

data entry, scanning, corrections, and 

modifications, or conducting other 

authorized functions related to passport 

records. 

Authority: The authority for maintaining 

this system is derived from the Secretary of 

State’s authorities with respect to the 

following provisions: Granting and Issuing 

U.S. Passports, 22 U.S.C. 211a–218, 2651a, 

2705 (2007), and Executive Order 11295, 

August 5, 1966, 31 FR 10603; the Acquisition 

and Loss of U.S. Citizenship or U.S. 

Nationality, 8 U.S.C. 1401–1503 (2007); 

Travel Control of Citizens, 8 U.S.C. 1185 

(2007); and Crimes and Criminal Procedure 

connected to U.S. Passport Applications and 

Use, 18 U.S.C. 911, 1001, and 1541–1546 

(2007). 

Impact on Privacy: The information 

collected and maintained in the system 

of records is necessary to accomplish 

the Department’s mission as stated 

above. The Department believes the 

system offers suitably rigorous 

protection of privacy under the Privacy 

Act to the individuals covered by the 

system of records. Each of the above 

users either has been granted access to 

the passport database, or has been given 

passport information taken from the 

database, in order to facilitate these 

entities as they address issues and 

problems of a legal, investigative, 

technical, or procedural nature that may 

arise pursuant to an application for or 

any use of a U.S. passport. In granting 

access or providing information from 

the passport database to a routine user, 

the Department takes appropriate steps 

to limit disclosure to only the specific 

data elements required by each routine 

user in the performance of its mission, 

not all items of information that the 

Department maintains about an 

individual. To this end, the Department 

has established varying levels of access 

that are tailored to release the minimum 

amount of data necessary to support the 

attendant routine use. 

Prior to granting access to the 

passport system of records for a 

proposed routine use, partner agencies 

generally enter into a Memorandum of 

Understanding (MOU) with the 

Department that establishes the 

parameters that guide and limit the use. 

In addition, these MOUs establish the 

partner agency’s responsibilities in 


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Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 6 / Wednesday, January 9, 2008 / Notices 1665 

relation to the information provided, 

including proper training, establishing 

that each user has been cleared to access 

the sensitive information contained in 

the passport records system, and 

ensuring that password-protected access 

is appropriately safeguarded by users 

and the agency alike. 

Moreover, every user who is granted 

access to the system is subject to remote 

monitoring to ensure that s/he is 

accessing the system for the limited, 

routine use that has been prescribed in 

advance for each user. The overall 

impact on privacy is thereby minimized 

since each user may only access an 

individual’s information in relation to a 

concrete, pre-determined purpose that 

has been authorized by Congress and/or 

established by a formal, written 

agreement with the Department. The 

Department ultimately retains control of 

the Passport Records System and is able 

to appropriately limit the amount and 

type of information each user is able to 

access. Furthermore, the responsibility 

and accountability for all users rests 

with the Directorate of Passport 

Services. Therefore, access and control 

of the Passport Records system remains 

within the Department to allow for 

appropriate internal checks and 

balances over all users, whether in the 

Department of State or at partner 

entities. Deviations from the 

predetermined routine uses are not 

permitted, and employees may be 

subject to sanctions for mishandling 

Privacy Act-protected information. 

Safeguards: Access to the Department 

of State building and the annexes 

containing this system of records is 

controlled by security guards, and 

admission is limited to those 

individuals possessing a valid 

identification card or individuals under 

proper escort. These records are 

maintained in secured file cabinets, 

computer media, and/or in restricted 

areas, access to which is limited to 

authorized personnel. The 

computerized files are passwordprotected and under the direct 

supervision of a system manager who 

can monitor and audit trails of access. 

The system manager has the capability 

of printing audit trails of access from the 

computer media, thereby permitting 

regular and ad hoc monitoring of 

computer usage. In addition, the system 

logs all search and query activities 

conducted by users, and submits 

notification alerts to certifying 

authorities and system administrators if 

any unusual activity occurs. Any 

unusual system access patterns by nonDepartment users are logged and may 

result in suspension or termination of 

an individual user’s or an agency’s 

access rights. 

In addition, all Department employees 

have undergone a thorough background 

investigation prior to their employment. 

Department employees with access to 

the passport system are also required to 

undergo initial training in proper 

handling of this sensitive data, as well 

as in the correct method to maintain the 

security of the passport records system. 

All Department employees must also 

engage in refresher training at least 

annually on basic cyber security 

awareness, as well as training in any 

new security protections that may be 

added. As described above, partner 

entities also agree to provide initial and 

updated security training to all users 

who have any form of access to the 

passport system. 

Additional safeguards regarding 

access to the Department and its 

annexes are stated in the system 

description. 

Compatibility: The routine uses 

indicated are necessary for the 

recipients of information from the 

Passport Services Office to carry out 

their responsibilities for dealing with 

issues and problems of a legal, 

investigative, technical, or procedural 

nature that may arise pursuant to an 

application for or any use of a U.S. 

passport. 

The Department collects data on 

individual passport applicants in order 

to establish an individual’s unique 

identity and citizenship for passport 

issuance. This not only enables the 

Department to issue passports to 

qualified U.S. citizens and nationals, 

but it also facilitates the international 

travel of millions of passport holders by 

minimizing potential fraud in the 

application process, which in turn 

increases the value and functionality of 

the U.S. passport as a travel and 

identification document. Moreover, this 

database enables the Department to 

further support the Secure Border, Open 

Doors initiative by assisting border 

patrol officers to efficiently process 

returning U.S. passport holders whose 

identities are clearly established by their 

passport document, which in turn is 

validated by the passport records 

system. 

The routine uses listed above are 

functionally equivalent to the original 

purpose of data collection. Passport 

Services gathers data in order to 

establish a sound basis to establish and 

document an individual’s unique 

identity. The proposed routine users 

listed above likewise must establish an 

individual’s identity in order to carry 

out their critical missions, which range 

from law enforcement, to border 

security, to verification of potential 

employment eligibility. For example, 

the U.S. passport is an I–9-listed 

Employment Eligibility Verification 

document that may be presented as 

proof of employment eligibility; thus, 

data disclosure to corroborate the 

passport’s validity is compatible with 

the original purpose of collection. 

Additionally, Passport Services has 

worked to make the U.S. passport an 

internationally recognized, premier 

travel document. Of those entities listed 

above, many carry out travel-related 

functions that are compatible with the 

Passport Services mission and, thus, the 

original purpose of the data collection. 

Without adequate information and 

documentation, these entities would be 

unable or less able to ascertain whether 

the individual seeking entry into the 

United States or using the passport for 

overseas travel, is in fact the individual 

s/he claims to be. 

The passport records system provides 

a database of information that has 

already been well-scrutinized and 

evaluated by Department employees 

who are trained in fraud detection. 

Access to this thoroughly inspected 

database will aid the above-listed 

routine users as they seek to accomplish 

their functions. Additionally, providing 

other agencies the ability to confirm an 

individual’s unique identity supports 

national defense, border security, and 

foreign policy activities, and ensures the 

integrity of law enforcement, 

counterterrorism, and fraud-prevention 

activities. 

Dated: December 31, 2007. 

Maura Harty, 

Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Consular 

Affairs, Department of State. 

[FR Doc. E8–203 Filed 1–8–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4710–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

[Summary Notice No. PE–2007–48] 

Petition for Exemption; Summary of 

Petition Received; Correction 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of petition for exemption 

received; correction. 

SUMMARY: This notice contains a 

corrected summary of a petition seeking 

relief from specified requirements of 14 

CFR. The purpose of this notice is to 

improve the public’s awareness of, and 

participation in, this aspect of FAA’s 

regulatory activities. Neither publication 


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