Creating Advanced Streamlined Electronic Services (CASES) for Constituents Act of 2017

To amend section 552a of title 5, United States Code (commonly referred to as the Privacy Act) to require agencies to accept electronic release forms, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Creating Advanced Streamlined Electronic Services for Constituents Act of 2018 CASES Act 2. Sense of congress It is the sense of Congress that— (1) congressional offices provide crucial services to constituents by acting as a liaison between the constituents and the respective agencies; (2) this includes assisting constituents by making inquiries and working toward resolutions on behalf of the constituent with the respective agencies; and (3) this process should be simplified through the creation of electronic forms that may be submitted under section 552a of title 5, United States Code (commonly referred to as the Privacy Act), thus modernizing the process for constituents and improving access and efficiency of Government services and agencies in order to expedite the resolution of the problem for which constituents sought help. 3. OMB guidance on electronic consent forms (a) Guidance Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Director shall issue guidance that does the following: (1) Establishes— (A) standards for each agency to develop an electronic identity proofing and authentication process for allowing an individual to provide a prior written electronic consent form for the disclosure of the individual’s record under section 552a(b) of title 5, United States Code, or for individual access to a record under section 552a(d) of such title; or (B) a method by which each agency can electronically identity proof and authenticate an individual submitting an electronic consent form through a central online portal. (2) Creates a template for an electronic consent form that can be properly identity proofed and authenticated in accordance with paragraph (1). (3) Requires each agency to accept the electronic consent form described in paragraph (2) that provides consent from any individual properly identity proofed and authenticated in accordance with paragraph (1) from the individual providing consent or an entity other than the individual, including a congressional office, on behalf of the individual for the purpose of authorizing the disclosure of the individual’s record in accordance with section 552a(b) or 552a(d) of title 5, United States Code. (4) Authorizes each agency to provide an online link to the consolidated online portal described under subsection (b)(1). (b) Portal; consent identifier; congressional function (1) Consolidated online portal (A) Operation of portal The Director (or a designee) shall operate (or designate the head of an agency to operate) a consolidated online portal that allows a member of the public to submit an electronic consent form in accordance with the guidance issued pursuant to subsection (a) to any agency from a single website. (B) Privacy and other features The portal shall include features to protect the privacy of individuals using the portal and may include any additional functions the Director finds will improve the implementation of this section. (C) Use of existing website or portal The Director may use any existing website or portal to satisfy the requirements of this subsection, including the portal established under section 552(m) of title 5, United States Code. (2) Consent identifier The Director, or a designee, shall assign each consent form submitted through the portal described in paragraph (1) a consent identifier, which shall be provided to the agency and the individual or entity submitting the consent form. The agency shall track the consent form with the consent identifier. (3) Congressional assistance function (A) In general The Director, or a designee, shall ensure the operation of a function that allows a congressional office to provide a publicly available online link to the portal described in paragraph (1), which shall auto-populate information about such congressional office, including an indication of consent for such office to access a record in accordance with section 552a(b) of title 5, United States Code, in the consent form accessed through the portal. (B) Notification of consent identifier required The Director, or a designee, shall ensure the function sends the consent identifier to the congressional office when a consent form is submitted to an agency through the portal as accessed through the function. (c) Agency compliance Each agency shall comply with the guidance issued pursuant to subsection (a) not later than 1 year after the date on which such guidance is issued. (d) Definitions In this section: (1) Agency; individual; record The terms agency individual record (2) Consent identifier The term consent identifier (3) Director The term Director Amend the title so as to read: A bill to require the Director of the Office of Management and Budget to issue guidance on electronic consent forms, and for other purposes. July 16, 2018 Reported with amendments, committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed

Summary: Creating Advanced Streamlined Electronic Services (CASES) for Constituents Act of 2017 This bill amends the Privacy Act of 1974 to require each executive agency to establish a system that allows an individual, or an entity authorized to act on such individual's behalf, to electronically submit a release form that grants another entity access to information in such system pertaining to the individual. The Office of Management and Budget shall establish a uniform release form to be used across agencies for such electronic submission.