Document ID: DOT-OST-2009-0092-0128
Agency: dot
Document Type: Rule
Title: Privacy Act; Systems of Records
Posted Date: 2010-11-09T05:00Z

[Federal Register: November 9, 2010 (Volume 75, Number 216)]
[Notices]               
[Page 68852-68854]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr09no10-101]                         

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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Office of the Secretary

 
Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records Notice

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary of Transportation (OST), Department of 
Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Notice to establish a system of records.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Transportation's Office of the Secretary of 
Transportation (DOT/OST) proposes to establish a DOT-wide system of 
records under the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a) to cover 
emergency contact records that are not covered by the government-wide 
System of Records Notice (SORN) of the Office of Personnel Management, 
OPM/GOVT-1. (OPM/GOVT-1 covers some but not all employee contact 
records that are maintained outside the Official Personnel File, does 
not cover agencies' emergency-program-related contact records, and does 
not cover contact information about contractor personnel.) The DOT-wide 
system, known as the Emergency Contact Records system (ECR), is more 
thoroughly detailed below.

DATES: Effective December 27, 2010. Written comments should be 
submitted on or before the effective date. DOT/OST may publish an 
amended SORN in light of any comments received.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Habib Azarsina, Departmental 
Privacy Officer, Office of the Chief Information Officer, U.S. 
Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, 
DC 20590 or habib.azarsina@dot.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For privacy issues please contact: 
Habib Azarsina, Departmental Privacy Officer, Office of the Chief 
Information Officer, U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey 
Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590 or habib.azarsina@dot.gov or (202) 
366-1965.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. DOT Emergency Contact Records

    This System of Records Notice covers all Privacy Act systems within 
DOT that maintain emergency contact records about DOT personnel 
(including employees, detailees and contractor personnel), other than 
those covered by OPM/GOVT-1. Examples of such systems include, but are 
not limited to, the following:
     DOT offices that administer emergency-related programs 
(such as emergency response, building evacuation, continuity of 
operations) maintain emergency contact records about emergency, 
mission-critical emergency, and other personnel as required for those 
programs.
     Supervisors and administrative assistants in offices 
throughout DOT maintain emergency contact records about personnel in 
their work units for general office administrative purposes.
     Some DOT components maintain automated systems to 
communicate mass notifications to all of their employees, including 
those who are not involved in emergency and mission-critical programs.

II. The Privacy Act

    The Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552a) governs the means by which the 
United States Government collects, maintains, and uses personally 
identifiable information (PII) in a system of records. A ``system of 
records'' is a group of any records under the control of a Federal 
agency from which information about individuals is retrieved by name or 
other personal identifier.
    The Privacy Act requires each agency to publish in the Federal 
Register a system of records notice (SORN) identifying and describing 
each system of records the agency maintains, including the purposes for 
which the agency uses PII in the system, the routine uses for which the 
agency discloses such information outside the agency, and how 
individuals to whom a Privacy Act record pertains can exercise their 
rights under the Privacy Act (e.g., to determine if the system contains 
information about them).
    In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552a(r), a report on the establishment 
of this system of records has been sent to Congress and to the Office 
of Management and Budget.
System Number: DOT/ALL 22

SYSTEM NAME:
    Emergency Contact Records (ECR)--Not Covered by Notices of Other 
Agencies.

SECURITY CLASSIFICATION:
    Unclassified, sensitive.

SYSTEM LOCATION:
    These records are maintained at all Department of Transportation 
(DOT) Headquarters offices and field locations, for all DOT components. 
Locations are available from http://www.dot.gov.

CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM OF RECORDS:
    Record subjects are current and former DOT employees, detailees and 
contractor personnel.

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
    The system includes emergency contact records not covered by OPM/
GOVT-1, including but not limited to records that particular DOT 
offices create for emergency-related programs (such as emergency 
response, building evacuation and continuity of operations); that DOT 
supervisors and administrative assistants create for their general 
office administrative purposes; and that DOT components use to provide 
mass notifications to employees. The records contain personal contact 
information for employees, detailees and contractor

[[Page 68853]]

personnel and for their designated contacts (e.g., relatives, friends), 
and may include the following personally-identifiable information (PII) 
about them:
     Personal cell phone number, home telephone number, home 
fax number, home address, home e-mail address;
     Information about the personnel member's skills, position, 
and assignment to or membership on an emergency response team (such as 
a continuity of operations cadre or a field incident response team), to 
facilitate their deployment in an emergency;
     Work location information, which may include zip code or 
geophysical information system data to facilitate mapping of locations 
where the personnel member is working;
     Special needs information such as medical conditions or 
mobility requirements (such information is not routinely collected but 
may be included if a personnel member provides it voluntarily); and
     The personnel member's relationship to any third-party 
contacts he or she designates.

AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
    The National Security Act of 1947, as amended; the Homeland 
Security Act of 2002 (Pub. L. 107-296), dated November 25, 2002; 
Executive Order 12148, Federal Emergency Management, dated July 20, 
1979, as amended; Executive Order 12656, Assignment of Emergency 
Preparedness Responsibilities, dated November 18, 1988, as amended; 
Executive Order 13286, Establishing the Office of Homeland Security, 
dated February 28, 2003.

PURPOSE(S):
    Emergency contact records are used by DOT human resources 
specialists, security, safety and emergency response coordinators, 
members of emergency response teams and other work units, and 
supervisors and administrative assistants, on a need to know basis, for 
the reasons such as the following:
     To identify and locate emergency personnel to work during 
emergencies, office dismissal or closure situations;
     To identify and locate mission-critical emergency 
personnel to participate in continuity of operations exercises and to 
provide continuity of operations during national security, natural 
disaster, pandemic flu and similar situations;
     To account for and maintain communication with personnel 
during an office closure, building evacuation, natural disaster, 
pandemic flu or other office emergency (e.g., to make telework or leave 
arrangements), or to contact them about an urgent work matter (e.g., 
during off-duty hours);
     To notify designated third-party contact(s) to help locate 
a personnel member who is absent without leave, or to assist a 
personnel member in an evacuation or if he or she is injured, ill or 
incapacitated at work; and
     To deliver an identical automated message to all of the 
component's or office's personnel, alerting them to conditions such as 
power outages, road closings and extreme weather.
    Any special needs, medical condition or similar information 
contained in the records is maintained and used in accordance with 
relevant provisions of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, 29 
U.S.C. 791, et seq., and implementing regulations at 29 CFR parts 1614 
and 1630, and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 at 
42 U.S.C. 2000ff et seq..
    Contractor personnel and detailees assisting DOT may have access to 
and use information in these systems; for example, DOT may use 
contractors to provide emergency notification and communication 
services or system administrative services for databases containing the 
records.

ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES 
OF USERS AND THE PURPOSES OF SUCH USES:
    DOT shares contact information about emergency personnel and 
mission-critical emergency personnel who are assigned to DOT emergency-
related programs with Federal, State and local governmental agencies or 
executive offices, relief agencies, 501c3s, and non-governmental 
organizations, when disclosure is appropriate for proper coordination 
of security, protective, and other official operations and functions in 
response to or in preparation for emergency situations.
    Other possible routine uses of the information, applicable to all 
DOT Privacy Act systems of records, are published in the Federal 
Register at 65 FR 19476 (April 11, 2000), under ``Prefatory Statement 
of General Routine Uses'' (available at http://www.dot.gov/privacy/
privacyactnotices).

DISCLOSURE TO CONSUMER REPORTING AGENCIES:
    None.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORING, RETRIEVING, ACCESSING, RETAINING, 
AND DISPOSING OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM--
STORAGE:
    Electronic databases and paper file folders.

RETRIEVABILITY:
    Records may be retrieved by the individual record subject's name, 
location, telephone number, special identification numbers or codes 
assigned only for these records, and/or other personal identifier.

SAFEGUARDS:
    Only personnel with a need to know are authorized to access the 
records. Access to electronic records is controlled by password and 
limited according to job function. Personnel may be allowed access to 
their own entries, to edit or update them. Access to hard-copy records 
is controlled by lock and key or by access to a secure area.

RETENTION AND DISPOSAL:
    Pursuant to General Records Schedule 18, Item 27, contact records 
maintained for emergency-related programs are destroyed 3 years after 
issuance of a new emergency plan or directive. Pursuant to General 
Records Schedule 1, Item 18, other emergency contact records (such as 
those maintained by supervisors and administrative assistants) are 
destroyed when superseded or obsolete or within one year after 
separation or transfer of the personnel member.

SYSTEM MANAGER AND ADDRESS:
    The DOT Office of Intelligence, Security and Emergency Response, 
the Human Resources Office, the Head of the individual record subject's 
employing office, or the supervisor or administrative assistant for the 
work group or unit.

NOTIFICATION PROCEDURE:
    At any time, the record subject (the individual personnel member) 
may contact the System Manager to request access to review his or her 
personal information in the system and request changes, as appropriate. 
A requester must provide suitable identification and may be required to 
sign a written request, including but not limited to the requester's 
name, mailing address, telephone number and/or e-mail address, a 
description of the records requested, and a sworn statement (either a 
signed, notarized statement or a statement signed under penalty of 
perjury) that the requester is the individual who he or she claims to 
be.

RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURE:
    Same as indicated under ``Notification procedure.''

CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURE:
    Same as indicated under ``Notification procedure.''

[[Page 68854]]

RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
    Individual personnel members provide their own emergency contact 
information. Supervisors designate employees to serve as emergency 
employees or mission critical emergency employees. Emergency personnel, 
security specialists, human resources specialists, supervisors and 
administrative assistants may provide other information (e.g., skill 
data, work location information, job titles, occupational code/series, 
and information that describes the emergency response group or work 
unit to which the individual is assigned).

EXEMPTIONS CLAIMED FOR THE SYSTEM:
    None.

    Dated: November 3, 2010.
Habib Azarsina,
Departmental Privacy Officer,
    202-366-1965.
[FR Doc. 2010-28238 Filed 11-8-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-9X-P