[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 225 (Tuesday, November 21, 2000)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 69865-69875]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-29673]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
31 CFR Part 1
Departmental Offices; Privacy Act of 1974; Implementation
AGENCY: Department of the Treasury.
ACTION: Final Rule.
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SUMMARY: The Department of the Treasury is amending its Privacy Act
exemption rules that were first published on October 2, 1975, to
consolidate the regulations issued pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(j) and (k)
which exempt one or more systems of records established on behalf of
each bureau by the Department.
EFFECTIVE DATE: November 21, 2000.
ADDRESSES: Inquiries may be addressed to Department of the Treasury,
Disclosure Services, Washington, DC 22020.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dale Underwood, Deputy Assistant
Director, Disclosure Services, (202) 622-0930.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, 5
U.S.C. 552a, authorizes the head of the agency to promulgate rules in
accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act to exempt Privacy Act
systems of records from certain provisions of the Privacy Act, if the
system of records contains records which fall within 5 U.S.C. 552a(j)
and/or (k).
The Department is amending this part to consolidate the regulations
issued
[[Page 69866]]
pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(j)and (k) which exempt one or more systems of
records established on behalf of each bureau by the Department. The
amendment will revise the format of the regulations; more clearly
reflect the organization of the Department; remove redundant language;
reduce the length of the regulations; permit readers to use the
regulations in an easier manner; change the system number and or title
to several systems of records, and references to systems of records
which have been deleted are being removed.
The regulations were first published at 40 FR 45692, October 2,
1975, and amended at:
44 FR 7141, February 6, 1979;
44 FR 42189, July 19, 1979;
45 FR 13455, February 29, 1980;
48 FR 21945, May 16, 1983;
48 FR 48460, October 19, 1983;
52 FR 11990, April 14, 1987;
56 FR 12447, March 26, 1991;
59 FR 47538, September 16, 1994;
61 FR 387, January 5, 1996;
62 FR 19505, April 22, 1997;
62 FR 26939, May 16, 1997;
62 FR 58908, October 31, 1997;
62 FR 60782, November 13, 1997;
64 FR 62585, November 17,1999;
64 FR 62586, November 17,1999; and
65 FR 56791, September 20, 2000.
No new systems of records are being exempted pursuant to this rule,
nor is an exemption being added to any of the systems of records listed
below.
The rule will update the regulations by removing references to the
following systems of records which have been deleted from the
Department's inventory of systems of records:
(1) Comptroller of the Currency: CC .010--Federal Bureau of
Investigation Report Card Index (published March 1, 1988, at 53 FR
6252);
(2) U.S. Customs Service: CS .037--Cargo Security File (published
April 17, 1992, at 57 FR 13900);
(3) U.S. Customs Service: CS .287--Customs Automated Licensing
Information System (CALIS) (published April 17, 1992, at 57 FR 13900);
(4) Internal Revenue Service: IRS 90.014--Management Files
Maintained by Operations Division and the Deputy Chief Counsel Other
than the Office of Personnel Management's Official Personnel Files
(published April 17, 1992, at 57 FR 13900);
(5) U.S. Mint: Mint .006--Examination Reports of Coins Forwarded to
the Mint from the U.S. Secret Service, (published May 11, 1994, at 59
FR 5206);
(6) U.S. Customs Service: CS .182--Penalty Case File (published
November 9, 1995, at 60 FR 56648);
(7) U.S. Customs Service: CS .140--Lookout Notice (published March
1, 1998, at 53 FR 6252);
(8) U.S. Customs Service: CS .155--Narcotics Suspect File
(Published March 1, 1998, at 53 FR 6252);
(9) Internal Revenue Service: IRS 34.018--Integrated Data Retrieval
System (IDRS) Security Files (Published November 17, 1998, at 63 FR
64141);
(10) U.S. Customs Service: CS .014--Advice Requests (Legal)
(Pacific Region) (published December 17, 1998, at 63 FR 69716); and
(11) U.S. Customs Service: CS .078--Disclosure of Information File
(published December 3, 1999, at 64 FR 67966).
The Department published final rules exempting Treasury/IRS
34.037--IRS Audit Trail and Security Records System on September 20,
2000, at 65 FR 56791, Treasury/IRS 34.020--IRS Audit Trail Lead
Analysis System on November 17, 1999, at 64 FR 62586, and Treasury/
Customs .213--Seized Asset and Case Tracking System (SEACATS) on
November 17, 1999, at 64 FR 62585. The amendments are included as part
of the revision.
This rule makes changes to the title of the following systems of
records identified in the rule: (1) Departmental Offices--DO .144 from
``Treasury Interagency Automated Litigation System (TRIALS)'' to
``General Counsel Litigation Referral and Reporting System,'' (2)
Bureau of Engraving and Printing--BEP .021 from ``Security
Investigative Files'' to ``Investigative Files.''
The rule moves the exemption regulation pertaining to ``Bank
Secrecy Act Reports File--Treasury/Customs .067,'' from under the
heading ``United States Customs Service'' and inserts it under the
heading ``Departmental Offices.'' The system of records associated with
this activity, ``Bank Secrecy Act Reports System--Treasury/DO .213,''
was transferred to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) on
January 10, 1997 (62 FR 1489). The exemption regulations for the above
system of records is being moved within this section to reflect that
the responsibility for the system has been moved within the Department.
The IRS Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998 included specific
provisions impacting the Internal Revenue Service by transferring the
responsibility to conduct personnel security investigations formerly
performed by Office of the Chief Inspector to the Assistant
Commissioner (Support Services). A notice was published on June 15,
1999, at 64 FR 32096 to amend Treasury/IRS 60.008--Security,
Background, and Character Investigation Files, Inspection, and
Treasury/IRS 60.011--Internal Security Management Information System
(ISMIS) by renumbering and renaming them to ``Treasury/IRS 34.021--
Personnel Security Investigations, National Background Investigations
Center,'' and ``Treasury/IRS 34.022--National Background Investigations
Center Management Information System (NBICMIS).'' Exemptions have been
claimed under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(5), and 5 U.S.C. 552a(j)(2)
respectively. This rule will make the above changes under the
appropriate exemption.
These regulations are being published as a final rule because the
amendment does not impose any requirements on any member of the public.
This amendment is the most efficient means for the Treasury Department
to implement its internal requirements for complying with the Privacy
Act.
Accordingly, pursuant to the administrative procedure provisions in
5 U.S.C. 553, the Department of the Treasury finds good cause that
prior notice and other public procedure with respect to this rule are
impracticable and unnecessary and finds good cause for making this rule
effective on the date of publication in the Federal Register.
In accordance with Executive Order 12866, it has been determined
that this rule is not a ``significant regulatory action'' and,
therefore, does not require a Regulatory Impact Analysis.
The regulation will not have a substantial direct effect on the
States, on the relationship between the national Government and the
States, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities among the
various levels of government. Therefore, it is determined that this
final rule does not have federalism implications under Executive Order
13132.
Because no notice of proposed rulemaking is required, the
provisions of the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) do
not apply.
In accordance with the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), the Department of the Treasury has
determined that this rule will not impose new record-keeping,
application, reporting, or other types of information collection
requirements.
Dated: October 17, 2000.
W. Earl Wright, Jr.,
Chief Management and Administrative Programs Officer.
List of Subjects in 31 CFR Part 1
Privacy.
[[Page 69867]]
Part 1 of title 31 of the Code of Federal Regulations is amended as
follows:
PART 1--[AMENDED]
1. The authority citation for part 1 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301 and 31 U.S.C. 321. Subpart A also issued
under 5 U.S.C. 552 as amended. Subpart C also issued under 5 U.S.C.
552a.
2. Section 1.36 of subpart C is revised to read as follows:
Sec. 1.36 Systems exempt in whole or in part from provisions of 5
U.S.C. 552a and this part.
(a) In General. In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552a(j) and (k) and
Sec. 1.23(c), the Department of the Treasury hereby exempts the systems
of records identified below from the following provisions of the
Privacy Act for the reasons indicated.
(b) Authority. These rules are promulgated pursuant to the
authority vested in the Secretary of the Treasury by 5 U.S.C. 552a(j)
and (k) and pursuant to the authority of Sec. 123(c).
(c) General exemptions under 5 U.S.C. 552a(j)(2). (1) Under 5
U.S.C. 552a(j)(2), the head of any agency may promulgate rules to
exempt any system of records within the agency from certain provisions
of the Privacy Act of 1974 if the agency or component thereof that
maintains the system performs as its principal function any activities
pertaining to the enforcement of criminal laws. Certain components of
the Department of the Treasury have as their principal function
activities pertaining to the enforcement of criminal laws and
protective service activities which are necessary to assure the safety
of individuals protected by the Department pursuant to the provisions
of 18 U.S.C. 3056. This paragraph applies to the following systems of
records maintained by the Department of the Treasury:
(i) Departmental Offices:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
DO .190................................... General Allegations and
Investigative Records.
DO .200................................... FinCEN Database.
DO .212................................... Bank Secrecy Act Reports
System.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(ii) Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
ATF .003.................................. Criminal Investigation
Report System.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(iii) Comptroller of the Currency:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
CC .013................................... Enforcement and Compliance
Information.
CC .500................................... Chief Counsel's Management
Information System.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(iv) U.S. Customs Service:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
CS .053................................... Confidential Source
Identification File.
CS .127................................... Internal Affairs Records
System.
CS .129................................... Investigations Record
System.
CS .171................................... Pacific Basin Reporting
Network.
CS .244................................... Treasury Enforcement
Communications System
(TECS).
CS .270................................... Background-Record File of
Non-Customs Employees.
CS .285................................... Automated Index to Central
Enforcement Files.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(v) Bureau of Engraving and Printing.
(vi) Federal Law Enforcement Training Center.
(vii) Financial Management Service.
(viii) Internal Revenue Service:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
IRS 34.022................................ National Background
Investigations Center
Management Information
System (NBICMIS).
IRS 46.002................................ Case Management and Time
Reporting System, Criminal
Investigation Division.
IRS 46.003................................ Confidential Informants,
Criminal Investigation
Division.
IRS 46.005................................ Electronic Surveillance
Files, Criminal
Investigation Division.
IRS 46.009................................ Centralized Evaluation and
Processing of Information
Items (CEPIIs), Criminal
Investigation Division.
IRS 46.015................................ Relocated Witnesses,
Criminal Investigation
Division.
IRS 46.016................................ Secret Service Details,
Criminal Investigation
Division.
IRS 46.022................................ Treasury Enforcement
Communications System
(TECS).
IRS 46.050................................ Automated Information
Analysis System.
IRS 60.001................................ Assault and Threat
Investigation Files.
IRS 60.002................................ Bribery Investigation Files.
IRS 60.004................................ Disclosure Investigation
Files.
IRS 90.001................................ Chief Counsel Criminal Tax
Case Files.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(ix) U.S. Mint
(x) Bureau of the Public Debt
(xi) U.S. Secret Service:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
USSS .003................................. Criminal Investigation
Information System.
USSS .006................................. Non-Criminal Investigation
Information System.
USSS .007................................. Protection Information
System.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(xii) Office of Thrift Supervision:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
OTS .001.................................. Confidential Individual
Information System.
OTS .004.................................. Criminal Referral Database
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(2) The Department hereby exempts the systems of records listed in
paragraphs (c)(1)(i) through (xii) of this section from the following
provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552a, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(j)(2): 5 U.S.C.
552a(c)(3) and (4), 5 U.S.C. 552a(d)(1), (2), (3), (4), 5 U.S.C.
552a(e)(1), (2) and (3), 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(4)(G), (H), and (I), 5 U.S.C.
552a(e)(5) and (8), 5 U.S.C. 552a(f), and 5 U.S.C. 552a(g).
(d) Reasons for exemptions under 5 U.S.C. 552a(j)(2). (1) 5 U.S.C.
552a(e)(4)(G) and (f)(l) enable individuals to inquire whether a system
of records contains records pertaining to them. Application of these
provisions to the systems of records would give individuals an
opportunity to learn whether they have been identified as suspects or
subjects of investigation. As further described in the following
paragraph, access to such knowledge would impair the Department's
ability to carry out its mission, since individuals could:
(i) Take steps to avoid detection;
(ii) Inform associates that an investigation is in progress;
(iii) Learn the nature of the investigation;
(iv) Learn whether they are only suspects or identified as law
violators;
(v) Begin, continue, or resume illegal conduct upon learning that
they are not identified in the system of records; or
(vi) Destroy evidence needed to prove the violation.
(2) 5 U.S.C. 552a(d)(1), (e)(4)(H) and (f)(2), (3) and (5) grant
individuals access to records pertaining to them. The application of
these provisions to the systems of records would compromise the
Department's ability to provide useful tactical and strategic
information to law enforcement agencies.
(i) Permitting access to records contained in the systems of
records
[[Page 69868]]
would provide individuals with information concerning the nature of any
current investigations and would enable them to avoid detection or
apprehension by:
(A) Discovering the facts that would form the basis for their
arrest;
(B) Enabling them to destroy or alter evidence of criminal conduct
that would form the basis for their arrest; and
(C) Using knowledge that criminal investigators had reason to
believe that a crime was about to be committed, to delay the commission
of the crime or commit it at a location that might not be under
surveillance.
(ii) Permitting access to either on-going or closed investigative
files would also reveal investigative techniques and procedures, the
knowledge of which could enable individuals planning crimes to
structure their operations so as to avoid detection or apprehension.
(iii) Permitting access to investigative files and records could,
moreover, disclose the identity of confidential sources and informers
and the nature of the information supplied and thereby endanger the
physical safety of those sources by exposing them to possible reprisals
for having provided the information. Confidential sources and informers
might refuse to provide criminal investigators with valuable
information unless they believed that their identities would not be
revealed through disclosure of their names or the nature of the
information they supplied. Loss of access to such sources would
seriously impair the Department's ability to carry out its mandate.
(iv) Furthermore, providing access to records contained in the
systems of records could reveal the identities of undercover law
enforcement officers who compiled information regarding the
individual's criminal activities and thereby endanger the physical
safety of those undercover officers or their families by exposing them
to possible reprisals.
(v) By compromising the law enforcement value of the systems of
records for the reasons outlined in paragraphs (d)(2)(i) through (iv)
of this section, permitting access in keeping with these provisions
would discourage other law enforcement and regulatory agencies, foreign
and domestic, from freely sharing information with the Department and
thus would restrict the Department's access to information necessary to
accomplish its mission most effectively.
(vi) Limitation on access to the material contained in the
protective intelligence files is considered necessary to the
preservation of the utility of intelligence files and in safeguarding
those persons the Department is authorized to protect. Access to the
protective intelligence files could adversely affect the quality of
information available to the Department; compromise confidential
sources, hinder the ability of the Department to keep track of persons
of protective interest; and interfere with the Department's protective
intelligence activities by individuals gaining access to protective
intelligence files.
(vii) Many of the persons on whom records are maintained in the
protective intelligence suffer from mental aberrations. Knowledge of
their condition and progress comes from authorities, family members and
witnesses. Many times this information comes to the Department as a
result of two party conversations where it would be impossible to hide
the identity of informants. Sources of information must be developed,
questions asked and answers recorded. Trust must be extended and
guarantees of confidentiality and anonymity must be maintained.
Allowing access to information of this kind to individuals who are the
subjects of protective interest may well lead to violence directed
against an informant by a mentally disturbed individual.
(viii) Finally, the dissemination of certain information that the
Department may maintain in the systems of records is restricted by law.
(3) 5 U.S.C. 552a(d)(2), (3) and (4), (e)(4)(H), and (f)(4) permit
an individual to request amendment of a record pertaining to him or her
and require the agency either to amend the record, or to note the
disputed portion of the record and to provide a copy of the
individual's statement of disagreement with the agency's refusal to
amend a record to persons or other agencies to whom the record is
thereafter disclosed. Since these provisions depend on the individual's
having access to his or her records, and since these rules exempt the
systems of records from the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552a relating to
access to records, for the reasons set out in paragraph (d)(2) of this
section, these provisions should not apply to the systems of records.
(4) 5 U.S.C. 552a(c)(3) requires an agency to make accountings of
disclosures of a record available to the individual named in the record
upon his or her request. The accountings must state the date, nature,
and purpose of each disclosure of the record and the name and address
of the recipient.
(i) The application of this provision would impair the ability of
law enforcement agencies outside the Department of the Treasury to make
effective use of information provided by the Department. Making
accountings of disclosures available to the subjects of an
investigation would alert them to the fact that another agency is
conducting an investigation into their criminal activities and could
reveal the geographic location of the other agency's investigation, the
nature and purpose of that investigation, and the dates on which that
investigation was active. Violators possessing such knowledge would be
able to take measures to avoid detection or apprehension by altering
their operations, by transferring their criminal activities to other
geographical areas, or by destroying or concealing evidence that would
form the basis for arrest. In the case of a delinquent account, such
release might enable the subject of the investigation to dissipate
assets before levy.
(ii) Moreover, providing accountings to the subjects of
investigations would alert them to the fact that the Department has
information regarding their criminal activities and could inform them
of the general nature of that information. Access to such information
could reveal the operation of the Department's information-gathering
and analysis systems and permit violators to take steps to avoid
detection or apprehension.
(iii) The release of such information to the subject of a
protective intelligence file would provide significant information
concerning the nature of an investigation, and could result in impeding
or compromising the efforts of Department personnel to detect persons
suspected of criminal activities or to collect information necessary
for the proper evaluation of persons considered to be of protective
interest.
(5) 5 U.S.C. 552(c)(4) requires an agency to inform any person or
other agency about any correction or notation of dispute that the
agency made in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552a(d) to any record that the
agency disclosed to the person or agency if an accounting of the
disclosure was made. Since this provision depends on an individual's
having access to and an opportunity to request amendment of records
pertaining to him or her, and since these rules exempt the systems of
records from the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552a relating to access to and
amendment of records, for the reasons set out in paragraph (f)(3) of
this section, this provision should not apply to the systems of
records.
(6) 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(4)(I) requires an agency to publish a general
notice listing the categories of sources for
[[Page 69869]]
information contained in a system of records. The application of this
provision to the systems of records could compromise the Department's
ability to provide useful information to law enforcement agencies,
since revealing sources for the information could:
(i) Disclose investigative techniques and procedures;
(ii) Result in threats or reprisals against informers by the
subjects of investigations; and
(iii) Cause informers to refuse to give full information to
criminal investigators for fear of having their identities as sources
disclosed.
(7) 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(1) requires an agency to maintain in its
records only such information about an individual as is relevant and
necessary to accomplish a purpose of the agency required to be
accomplished by statute or executive order. The term ``maintain,'' as
defined in 5 U.S.C. 552a(a)(3), includes ``collect'' and
``disseminate.'' The application of this provision to the systems of
records could impair the Department's ability to collect and
disseminate valuable law enforcement information.
(i) At the time that the Department collects information, it often
lacks sufficient time to determine whether the information is relevant
and necessary to accomplish a Treasury Department purpose.
(ii) In many cases, especially in the early stages of
investigation, it may be impossible to immediately determine whether
information collected is relevant and necessary, and information that
initially appears irrelevant and unnecessary often may, upon further
evaluation or upon collation with information developed subsequently,
prove particularly relevant to a law enforcement program.
(iii) Compliance with the records maintenance criteria listed in
the foregoing provision would require the periodic up-dating of the
Department's protective intelligence files to insure that the records
maintained in the system remain timely and complete.
(iv) Not all violations of law discovered by the Department fall
within the investigative jurisdiction of the Department of the
Treasury. To promote effective law enforcement, the Department will
have to disclose such violations to other law enforcement agencies,
including State, local and foreign agencies, that have jurisdiction
over the offenses to which the information relates. Otherwise, the
Department might be placed in the position of having to ignore
information relating to violations of law not within the jurisdiction
of the Department of the Treasury when that information comes to the
Department's attention during the collation and analysis of information
in its records.
(8) 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(2) requires an agency to collect information
to the greatest extent practicable directly from the subject individual
when the information may result in adverse determinations about an
individual's rights, benefits, and privileges under Federal programs.
The application of this provision to the systems of records would
impair the Department's ability to collate, analyze, and disseminate
investigative, intelligence, and enforcement information.
(i) Most information collected about an individual under criminal
investigation is obtained from third parties, such as witnesses and
informants. It is usually not feasible to rely upon the subject of the
investigation as a source for information regarding his criminal
activities.
(ii) An attempt to obtain information from the subject of a
criminal investigation will often alert that individual to the
existence of an investigation, thereby affording the individual an
opportunity to attempt to conceal his criminal activities so as to
avoid apprehension.
(iii) In certain instances, the subject of a criminal investigation
is not required to supply information to criminal investigators as a
matter of legal duty.
(iv) During criminal investigations it is often a matter of sound
investigative procedure to obtain information from a variety of sources
to verify information already obtained.
(9) 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(3) requires an agency to inform each
individual whom it asks to supply information, on the form that it uses
to collect the information or on a separate form that the individual
can retain, of the agency's authority for soliciting the information;
whether disclosure of information is voluntary or mandatory; the
principal purposes for which the agency will use the information; the
routine uses that may be made of the information; and the effects on
the individual of not providing all or part of the information. The
systems of records should be exempted from this provision to avoid
impairing the Department's ability to collect and collate
investigative, intelligence, and enforcement data.
(i) Confidential sources or undercover law enforcement officers
often obtain information under circumstances in which it is necessary
to keep the true purpose of their actions secret so as not to let the
subject of the investigation or his or her associates know that a
criminal investigation is in progress.
(ii) If it became known that the undercover officer was assisting
in a criminal investigation, that officer's physical safety could be
endangered through reprisal, and that officer may not be able to
continue working on the investigation.
(iii) Individuals often feel inhibited in talking to a person
representing a criminal law enforcement agency but are willing to talk
to a confidential source or undercover officer whom they believe not to
be involved in law enforcement activities.
(iv) Providing a confidential source of information with written
evidence that he or she was a source, as required by this provision,
could increase the likelihood that the source of information would be
subject to retaliation by the subject of the investigation.
(v) Individuals may be contacted during preliminary information
gathering, surveys, or compliance projects concerning the
administration of the internal revenue laws before any individual is
identified as the subject of an investigation. Informing the individual
of the matters required by this provision would impede or compromise
subsequent investigations.
(vi) Finally, application of this provision could result in an
unwarranted invasion of the personal privacy of the subject of the
criminal investigation, particularly where further investigation
reveals that the subject was not involved in any criminal activity.
(10) 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(5) requires an agency to maintain all records
it uses in making any determination about any individual with such
accuracy, relevance, timeliness, and completeness as is reasonably
necessary to assure fairness to the individual in the determination.
(i) Since 5 U.S.C. 552a(a)(3) defines ``maintain'' to include
``collect'' and ``disseminate,'' application of this provision to the
systems of records would hinder the initial collection of any
information that could not, at the moment of collection, be determined
to be accurate, relevant, timely, and complete. Similarly, application
of this provision would seriously restrict the Department's ability to
disseminate information pertaining to a possible violation of law to
law enforcement and regulatory agencies. In collecting information
during a criminal investigation, it is often impossible or unfeasible
to determine accuracy, relevance, timeliness, or completeness prior to
collection of the information. In disseminating information to law
[[Page 69870]]
enforcement and regulatory agencies, it is often impossible to
determine accuracy, relevance, timeliness, or completeness prior to
dissemination, because the Department may not have the expertise with
which to make such determinations.
(ii) Information that may initially appear inaccurate, irrelevant,
untimely, or incomplete may, when collated and analyzed with other
available information, become more pertinent as an investigation
progresses. In addition, application of this provision could seriously
impede criminal investigators and intelligence analysts in the exercise
of their judgment in reporting results obtained during criminal
investigations.
(iii) Compliance with the records maintenance criteria listed in
the foregoing provision would require the periodic up-dating of the
Department's protective intelligence files to insure that the records
maintained in the system remain timely and complete.
(11) 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(8) requires an agency to make reasonable
efforts to serve notice on an individual when the agency makes any
record on the individual available to any person under compulsory legal
process, when such process becomes a matter of public record. The
systems of records should be exempted from this provision to avoid
revealing investigative techniques and procedures outlined in those
records and to prevent revelation of the existence of an ongoing
investigation where there is need to keep the existence of the
investigation secret.
(12) 5 U.S.C. 552a(g) provides for civil remedies to an individual
when an agency wrongfully refuses to amend a record or to review a
request for amendment, when an agency wrongfully refuses to grant
access to a record, when an agency fails to maintain accurate,
relevant, timely, and complete records which are used to make a
determination adverse to the individual, and when an agency fails to
comply with any other provision of 5 U.S.C. 552a so as to adversely
affect the individual. The systems of records should be exempted from
this provision to the extent that the civil remedies may relate to
provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552a from which these rules exempt the systems
of records, since there should be no civil remedies for failure to
comply with provisions from which the Department is exempted. Exemption
from this provision will also protect the Department from baseless
civil court actions that might hamper its ability to collate, analyze,
and disseminate investigative, intelligence, and law enforcement data.
(e) Specific exemptions under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(1). (1) Under 5
U.S.C. 552a(k)(1), the head of any agency may promulgate rules to
exempt any system of records within the agency from certain provisions
of the Privacy Act of 1974 to the extent that the system contains
information subject to the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(1). This
paragraph applies to the following system of records maintained by the
Department of the Treasury:
Departmental Offices:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
DO .200................................... FinCEN Database.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(2) The Department of the Treasury hereby exempts the system of
records listed in paragraph (e)(1) of this section from the following
provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552a, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(1): 5 U.S.C.
552a(c)(3), 5 U.S.C. 552a(d)(1), (2), (3) and (4), 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(1),
5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(4)(G), (H), and (I), and 5 U.S.C. 552a(f).
(f) Reasons for exemptions under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(1). The reason
for invoking the exemption is to protect material required to be kept
secret in the interest of national defense or foreign policy pursuant
to Executive Order 12958 (or successor or prior Executive Order).
(g) Specific exemptions under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(2). (1) Under 5
U.S.C. 552a(k)(2), the head of any agency may promulgate rules to
exempt any system of records within the agency from certain provisions
of the Privacy Act of 1974 if the system is investigatory material
compiled for law enforcement purposes and for the purposes of assuring
the safety of individuals protected by the Department pursuant to the
provisions of 18 U.S.C. 3056. This paragraph applies to the following
systems of records maintained by the Department of the Treasury:
(i) Departmental Offices:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
DO .114................................... Foreign Assets Control
Enforcement Records.
DO .144................................... General Counsel Litigation
Referral and Reporting
System.
DO .190................................... General Allegations and
Investigative File.
DO .200................................... FinCEN Database.
DO .213................................... Bank Secrecy Act Reports
System.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(ii) Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
ATF .006.................................. Internal Security Record
System.
ATF .008.................................. Regulatory Enforcement
Record System.
ATF .009.................................. Technical and Scientific
Services Record System.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(iii) Comptroller of the Currency
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
CC .013................................... Enforcement and Compliance
Information.
CC .500................................... Chief Counsel's Management
Information System.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(iv) U.S. Customs Service:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
CS .021................................... Arrest/Seizure/Search Report
and Notice of Penalty File.
CS .022................................... Attorney Case File.
CS .041................................... Cartmen or Lightermen.
CS .043................................... Case Files (Associate Chief
Counsel--Gulf Custom
Management Center).
CS .046................................... Claims Case File.
CS .053................................... Confidential Source
Identification File.
CS .057................................... Container Station Operator
Files.
CS .058................................... Cooperating Individual
Files.
CS .061................................... Court Case File.
CS .069................................... Customhouse Brokers File
(Chief Counsel).
CS .077................................... Disciplinary Action,
Grievances and Appeal Case
Files.
CS .098................................... Fines, Penalties, and
Forfeitures Records.
CS .099................................... Fines, Penalties, and
Forfeiture Files
(Supplemental Petitions).
CS .100................................... Fines, Penalties, and
Forfeiture Records
(Headquarters).
CS .122................................... Information Received File.
CS .125................................... Intelligence Log.
CS .127................................... Internal Affairs Records
System.
CS .129................................... Investigations Record
System.
CS .133................................... Justice Department Case
File.
CS .138................................... Litigation Issue Files.
CS .159................................... Notification of Personnel
Management Division when an
employee is placed under
investigation by the Office
of Internal Affairs.
CS .171................................... Pacific Basin Reporting
Network.
CS .186................................... Personnel Search.
CS .190................................... Personnel Case File.
CS .197................................... Private Aircraft/Vessel
Inspection Reporting
System.
[[Page 69871]]
CS .206................................... Regulatory Audits of
Customhouse Brokers.
CS .212................................... Search/Arrest/Seizure
Report.
CS .214................................... Seizure File.
CS .224................................... Suspect Persons Index.
CS .232................................... Tort Claims Act File.
CS .244................................... Treasury Enforcement
Communications System
(TECS).
CS .258................................... Violator's Case Files.
CS .260................................... Warehouse Proprietor Files.
CS .270................................... Background-Record File of
Non-Customs Employees.
CS .271................................... Cargo Security Record
System.
CS .285................................... Automated Index to Central
Investigative Files.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(v) Bureau of Engraving and Printing:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
BEP .021.................................. Investigative files.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(vi) Federal Law Enforcement Training Center
(vii) Financial Management Service
(viii) Internal Revenue Service:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
IRS 00.002................................ Correspondence File-
Inquiries about Enforcement
Activities.
IRS 22.061................................ Wage and Information Returns
Processing (IRP).
IRS 26.001................................ Acquired Property Records.
IRS 26.006................................ Form 2209, Courtesy
Investigations.
IRS 26.008................................ IRS and Treasury Employee
Delinquency.
IRS 26.011................................ Litigation Case Files.
IRS 26.012................................ Offer in Compromise (OIC)
Files.
IRS 26.013................................ One-hundred Per Cent Penalty
Cases.
IRS 26.016................................ Returns Compliance Programs
(RCP).
IRS 26.019................................ TDA (Taxpayer Delinquent
Accounts).
IRS 26.020................................ TDI (Taxpayer Delinquency
Investigations) Files.
IRS 26.021................................ Transferee Files.
IRS 26.022................................ Delinquency Prevention
Programs.
IRS 34.020................................ IRS Audit Trail Lead
Analysis System.
IRS 34.037................................ IRS Audit Trail and Security
Records System.
IRS 37.002................................ Applicant Appeal Files.
IRS 37.003................................ Closed Files Containing
Derogatory Information
about individuals' Practice
before the IRS and Files of
Attorneys and Certified
Public Accountants Formerly
Enrolled to Practice.
IRS 37.004................................ Derogatory Information (No
Action).
IRS 37.005................................ Present Suspensions and
Disbarments Resulting from
Administrative Proceeding.
IRS 37.007................................ Inventory.
IRS 37.009................................ Resigned Enrolled Agents
(action pursuant to 31 CFR
Section 10.55(b)).
IRS 37.011................................ Present Suspensions from
Practice Before the
Internal Revenue Service.
IRS 42.001................................ Examination Administrative
File.
IRS 42.008................................ Audit Information Management
System (AIMS).
IRS 42.012................................ Combined Case Control Files.
IRS 42.016................................ Classification and
Examination Selection
Files.
IRS 42.017................................ International Enforcement
Program Files.
IRS 42.021................................ Compliance Programs and
Projects Files.
IRS 42.029................................ Audit Underreporter Case
Files.
IRS 42.030................................ Discriminant Function File
(DIF) Appeals Case Files.
IRS 44.001................................ Appeals Case Files.
IRS 46.050................................ Automated Information
Analysis System.
IRS 48.001................................ Disclosure Records.
IRS 49.001................................ Collateral and Information
Requests System.
IRS 49.002................................ Component Authority and
Index Card Mircofilm
Retrieval System.
IRS 49.007................................ Overseas Compliance Projects
System.
IRS 60.003................................ Conduct Investigation Files.
IRS 60.006................................ Enrollee Charge
Investigation Files.
IRS 60.007................................ Miscellaneous Information
File.
IRS 60.009................................ Special Inquiry
Investigation Files.
IRS 90.002................................ Chief Counsel Disclosure
Litigation Division Case
Files.
IRS 90.004................................ Chief Counsel General Legal
Services Case Files.
IRS 90.005................................ Chief Counsel General
Litigation Case Files.
IRS 90.009................................ Chief Counsel Field Case
Service Files.
IRS 90.010................................ Digest Room Files Containing
Briefs, Legal Opinions,
Digests of Documents
Generated Internally or by
the Department of Justice
Relating to the
Administration of the
Revenue Laws.
IRS 90.013................................ Legal case files of the
Chief Counsel, Deputy Chief
Counsel, Associate Chief
Counsels (Enforcement
Litigation) and
(technical).
IRS 90.016................................ Counsel Automated Tracking
System (CATS).
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(ix) U.S. Mint:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mint .008................................. Criminal investigation files
(formerly: Investigatory
Files on Theft of Mint
Property).
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(x) Bureau of the Public Debt.
(xi) U.S. Secret Service:.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
USSS .003................................. Criminal Investigation
Information System.
USSS .006................................. Non-Criminal Investigation
Information System.
USSS .007................................. Protection Information
System.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(xii) Office of Thrift Supervision:.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
OTS .001.................................. Confidential Individual
Information System.
OTS .004.................................. Criminal Referral Database.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(2) The Department hereby exempts the systems of records listed in
paragraphs (g)(1)(i) through (xii) of this section from the following
provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552a, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(2): 5 U.S.C.
552a(c)(3), 5 U.S.C. 552a(d) (1), (2), (3), and (4), 5 U.S.C.
552a(e)(1), 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(4)(G), (H), and (I), and 5 U.S.C. 552a(f).
(h) Reasons for exemptions under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(2). (1) 5 U.S.C.
552a(c)(3) requires an agency to make accountings of disclosures of a
record available to the individual named in the record upon his or her
request. The accountings must state the date, nature, and purpose of
each disclosure of the record and the name and address of the
recipient.
(i) The application of this provision would impair the ability of
law enforcement agencies outside the Department of the Treasury to make
effective use of information provided by the Department. Making
accountings of disclosures available to the subjects of an
investigation would alert them to the fact that another agency is
conducting an investigation into their criminal activities and could
reveal the geographic location of the other agency's investigation, the
nature and purpose of that investigation, and the dates on which that
investigation was active. Violators possessing such knowledge would be
able to take measures to avoid detection or apprehension by altering
their operations, by transferring their criminal activities to other
geographical areas, or by destroying or concealing
[[Page 69872]]
evidence that would form the basis for arrest. In the case of a
delinquent account, such release might enable the subject of the
investigation to dissipate assets before levy.
(ii) Providing accountings to the subjects of investigations would
alert them to the fact that the Department has information regarding
their criminal activities and could inform them of the general nature
of that information. Access to such information could reveal the
operation of the Department's information-gathering and analysis
systems and permit violators to take steps to avoid detection or
apprehension.
(2) 5 U.S.C. 552a(d)(1), (e)(4)(H) and (f)(2), (3) and (5) grant
individuals access to records pertaining to them. The application of
these provisions to the systems of records would compromise the
Department's ability to provide useful tactical and strategic
information to law enforcement agencies.
(i) Permitting access to records contained in the systems of
records would provide individuals with information concerning the
nature of any current investigations and would enable them to avoid
detection or apprehension by:
(A) Discovering the facts that would form the basis for their
arrest;
(B) Enabling them to destroy or alter evidence of criminal conduct
that would form the basis for their arrest, and
(C) Using knowledge that criminal investigators had reason to
believe that a crime was about to be committed, to delay the commission
of the crime or commit it at a location that might not be under
surveillance.
(ii) Permitting access to either on-going or closed investigative
files would also reveal investigative techniques and procedures, the
knowledge of which could enable individuals planning crimes to
structure their operations so as to avoid detection or apprehension.
(iii) Permitting access to investigative files and records could,
moreover, disclose the identity of confidential sources and informers
and the nature of the information supplied and thereby endanger the
physical safety of those sources by exposing them to possible reprisals
for having provided the information. Confidential sources and informers
might refuse to provide criminal investigators with valuable
information unless they believed that their identities would not be
revealed through disclosure of their names or the nature of the
information they supplied. Loss of access to such sources would
seriously impair the Department's ability to carry out its mandate.
(iv) Furthermore, providing access to records contained in the
systems of records could reveal the identities of undercover law
enforcement officers who compiled information regarding the
individual's criminal activities and thereby endanger the physical
safety of those undercover officers or their families by exposing them
to possible reprisals.
(v) By compromising the law enforcement value of the systems of
records for the reasons outlined in paragraphs (h)(2)(i) through (iv)
of this section, permitting access in keeping with these provisions
would discourage other law enforcement and regulatory agencies, foreign
and domestic, from freely sharing information with the Department and
thus would restrict the Department's access to information necessary to
accomplish its mission most effectively.
(vi) Finally, the dissemination of certain information that the
Department may maintain in the systems of records is restricted by law.
(3) 5 U.S.C. 552a(d)(2), (3) and (4), (e)(4)(H), and (f)(4) permit
an individual to request amendment of a record pertaining to him or her
and require the agency either to amend the record, or to note the
disputed portion of the record and to provide a copy of the
individual's statement of disagreement with the agency's refusal to
amend a record to persons or other agencies to whom the record is
thereafter disclosed. Since these provisions depend on the individual's
having access to his or her records, and since these rules exempt the
systems of records from the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552a relating to
access to records, for the reasons set out in paragraph (h)(2) of this
section, these provisions should not apply to the systems of records.
(4) 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(1) requires an agency to maintain in its
records only such information about an individual as is relevant and
necessary to accomplish a purpose of the agency required to be
accomplished by statute or executive order. The term ``maintain,'' as
defined in 5 U.S.C. 552a(a)(3), includes ``collect'' and
``disseminate.'' The application of this provision to the system of
records could impair the Department's ability to collect and
disseminate valuable law enforcement information.
(i) At the time that the Department collects information, it often
lacks sufficient time to determine whether the information is relevant
and necessary to accomplish a Department purpose.
(ii) In many cases, especially in the early stages of
investigation, it may be impossible immediately to determine whether
information collected is relevant and necessary, and information that
initially appears irrelevant and unnecessary often may, upon further
evaluation or upon collation with information developed subsequently,
prove particularly relevant to a law enforcement program.
(iii) Not all violations of law discovered by the Department
analysts fall within the investigative jurisdiction of the Department
of the Treasury. To promote effective law enforcement, the Department
will have to disclose such violations to other law enforcement
agencies, including State, local and foreign agencies that have
jurisdiction over the offenses to which the information relates.
Otherwise, the Department might be placed in the position of having to
ignore information relating to violations of law not within the
jurisdiction of the Department of the Treasury when that information
comes to the Department's attention during the collation and analysis
of information in its records.
(5) U.S.C. 552a (e)(4)(G) and (f)(1) enable individuals to inquire
whether a system of records contains records pertaining to them.
Application of these provisions to the systems of records would allow
individuals to learn whether they have been identified as suspects or
subjects of investigation. As further described in the following
paragraph, access to such knowledge would impair the Department's
ability to carry out its mission, since individuals could:
(i) Take steps to avoid detection;
(ii) Inform associates that an investigation is in progress;
(iii) Learn the nature of the investigation;
(iv) Learn whether they are only suspects or identified as law
violators;
(v) Begin, continue, or resume illegal conduct upon learning that
they are not identified in the system of records; or
(vi) Destroy evidence needed to prove the violation.
(6) 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(4)(I) requires an agency to publish a general
notice listing the categories of sources for information contained in a
system of records. The application of this provision to the systems of
records could compromise the Department's ability to provide useful
information to law enforcement agencies, since revealing sources for
the information could:
(i) Disclose investigative techniques and procedures;
[[Page 69873]]
(ii) Result in threats or reprisals against informers by the
subjects of investigations; and
(iii) Cause informers to refuse to give full information to
criminal investigators for fear of having their identities as sources
disclosed.
(i) Specific exemptions under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(3). (1) The head of
any agency may promulgate rules to exempt any system of records within
the agency from certain provisions of the Privacy Act of 1974 if it is
maintained in connection with providing protective intelligence to the
President of the United States or other individuals pursuant to section
3056 of Title 18. This paragraph applies to the following system of
records maintained by the Department which contains material relating
to criminal investigations concerned with the enforcement of criminal
statutes involving the security of persons and property. Further, this
system contains records described in 5 U.S.C. 552a(k) including, but
not limited to, classified material and investigatory material compiled
for law enforcement purposes, for which exemption is claimed under 5
U.S.C. 552a(k)(3):
U.S. Secret Service:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
USSS .007................................. Protection Information
System.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(2) The Department hereby exempts the system of records listed in
(i)(1) of this section from the following provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552a,
pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(3): 5 U.S.C. 552a(c)(3), 5 U.S.C.
552a(d)(1), (2), (3),and (4), 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(1), 5 U.S.C.
552a(e)(4)(G), (H), and (I), and 5 U.S.C. 552a(f).
(j) Reasons for exemptions under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(3). (1) 5 U.S.C.
552a(c)(3) requires an agency to make accountings of disclosures of a
record available to the individual named in the record upon his or her
request. The accountings must state the date, nature, and purpose of
each disclosure of the record and the name and address of the
recipient.
(i) The application of this provision would impair the ability of
law enforcement agencies outside the Department of the Treasury to make
effective use of information provided by the Department. Making
accountings of disclosures available to the subjects of an
investigation would alert them to the fact that another agency is
conducting an investigation into their criminal activities and could
reveal the geographic location of the other agency's investigation, the
nature and purpose of that investigation, and the dates on which the
investigation was active. Violators possessing such knowledge would be
able to take measures to avoid detection or apprehension by altering
their operations, by transferring their criminal activities to other
geographical areas, or by destroying or concealing evidence that would
form the basis for arrest.
(ii) Providing accountings to the subjects of investigations would
alert them to the fact that the Department has information regarding
their criminal activities and could inform them of the general nature
of that information. Access to such information could reveal the
operation of the Department's information-gathering and analysis
systems and permit violators to take steps to avoid detection or
apprehension.
(iii) The release of such information to the subject of a
protective intelligence file would provide significant information
concerning the nature and scope of an investigation, and could result
in impeding or compromising the efforts of Department personnel to
detect persons suspected of criminal activities or to collect
information necessary for the proper evaluation of persons considered
to be of protective interest.
(2) 5 U.S.C. 552a(d)(1), (e)(4)(H) and (f)(2), (3) and (5) grant
individuals access to records pertaining to them. The application of
these provisions to the systems of records would compromise the
Department's ability to provide useful tactical and strategic
information to law enforcement agencies.
(i) Permitting access to records contained in the systems of
records would provide individuals with information concerning the
nature of any current investigations and would enable them to avoid
detection or apprehension by:
(A) Discovering the facts that would form the basis for their
arrest;
(B) Enabling them to destroy or alter evidence of criminal conduct
that would form the basis for their arrest, and
(C) Using knowledge that criminal investigators had reason to
believe that a crime was about to be committed, to delay the commission
of the crime or commit it at a location that might not be under
surveillance.
(ii) Permitting access to either on-going or closed investigative
files would also reveal investigative techniques and procedures, the
knowledge of which could enable individuals planning crimes to
structure their operations so as to avoid detection or apprehension.
(iii) Permitting access to investigative files and records could,
moreover, disclose the identity of confidential sources, and informers
and the nature of the information supplied and thereby endanger the
physical safety of those sources by exposing them to possible reprisals
for having provided the information. Confidential sources and informers
might refuse to provide criminal investigators with valuable
information unless they believed that their identities would not be
revealed through disclosure of their names or the nature of the
information they supplied. Loss of access to such sources would
seriously impair the Department's ability to carry out its mandate.
(iv) Furthermore, providing access to records contained in the
systems of records could reveal the identities of undercover law
enforcement officers who compiled information regarding the
individual's criminal activities and thereby endanger the physical
safety of those undercover officers or their families by exposing them
to possible reprisals.
(v) By compromising the law enforcement value of the systems of
records for the reasons outlined in paragraphs (j)(2)(i) through (iv)
of this section, permitting access in keeping with these provisions
would discourage other law enforcement and regulatory agencies, foreign
and domestic, from freely sharing information with the Department and
thus would restrict the Department's access to information necessary to
accomplish its mission most effectively.
(vi) Limitation on access to the materials contained in the
protective intelligence files is considered necessary to the
preservation of the utility of intelligence files and in safeguarding
those persons the Department is authorized to protect. Access to the
protective intelligence files could adversely affect the quality of
information available to the Department; compromise confidential
sources; hinder the ability of the Department to keep track of persons
of protective interest; and interfere with the Department's protective
intelligence activities by individuals gaining access to protective
intelligence files.
(vii) Many of the persons on whom records are maintained in the
protective intelligence files suffer from mental aberrations. Knowledge
of their condition and progress comes from authorities, family members
and witnesses. Many times this information comes to the Department as a
result of two-party conversations where it would
[[Page 69874]]
be impossible to hide the identity of informants. Sources of
information must be developed, questions asked and answers recorded.
Trust must be extended and guarantees of confidentiality and anonymity
must be maintained. Allowing access of information of this kind to
individuals who are the subjects of protective interest may well lead
to violence directed against an informant by a mentally disturbed
individual.
(viii) Finally, the dissemination of certain information that the
Department may maintain in the systems of records is restricted by law.
(3) 5 U.S.C. 552a(d)(2), (3) and (4), (e)(4)(H), and (f)(4) permit
an individual to request amendment of a record pertaining to him or her
and require the agency either to amend the record, or to note the
disputed portion of the record and to provide a copy of the
individual's statement of disagreement with the agency's refusal to
amend a record to persons or other agencies to whom the record is
thereafter disclosed. Since these provisions depend on the individual's
having access to his or her records, and since these rules exempt the
systems of records from the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552a relating to
access to records, for the reasons set out in paragraph (j)(2) of this
section, these provisions should not apply to the systems of records.
(4) 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(1) requires an agency to maintain in its
records only such information about an individual as is relevant and
necessary to accomplish a purpose of the agency required to be
accomplished by statute or executive order. The term ``maintain,'' as
defined in 5 U.S.C. 552a(a)(3), includes ``collect'' and
``disseminate.'' The application of this provision to the systems of
records could impair the Department's ability to collect and
disseminate valuable law enforcement information.
(i) At the time that the Department collects information, it often
lacks sufficient time to determine whether the information is relevant
and necessary to accomplish a Department purpose.
(ii) In many cases, especially in the early stages of
investigation, it may be impossible immediately to determine whether
information collected is relevant and necessary, and information that
initially appears irrelevant and unnecessary often may, upon further
evaluation or upon collation with information developed subsequently,
prove particularly relevant to a law enforcement program.
(iii) Not all violations of law discovered by the Department
analysts fall within the scope of the protective intelligence
jurisdiction of the Department of the Treasury. To promote effective
law enforcement, the Department will have to disclose such violations
to other law enforcement agencies, including State, local and foreign
agencies, that have jurisdiction over the offenses to which the
information relates. Otherwise, the Department might be placed in the
position of having to ignore information relating to violations of law
not within the jurisdiction of the Department of the Treasury when that
information comes to the Department's attention during the collation
and analysis of information in its records.
(5) U.S.C. 552a (e)(4)(G) and (f)(1) enable individuals to inquire
whether a system of records contains records pertaining to them.
Application of these provisions to the systems of records would allow
individuals to learn whether they have been identified as suspects or
subjects of investigation. As further described in the following
paragraph, access to such knowledge would impair the Department's
ability to carry out its mission to safeguard those persons the
Department is authorized to protect, since individuals could:
(i) Take steps to avoid detection;
(ii) Inform associates that an investigation is in progress;
(iii) Learn the nature of the investigation;
(iv) Learn whether they are only suspects or identified as law
violators;
(v) Begin, continue, or resume illegal conduct upon learning that
they are not identified in the system of records; or
(vi) Destroy evidence needed to prove the violation.
(6) 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(4)(I) requires an agency to publish a general
notice listing the categories of sources for information contained in a
system of records. The application of this provision to the systems of
records could compromise the Department's ability to provide useful
information to law enforcement agencies, since revealing sources for
the information could:
(i) Disclose investigative techniques and procedures;
(ii) Result in threats or reprisals against informers by the
subject(s) of a protective intelligence file; and
(iii) Cause informers to refuse to give full information to
criminal investigators for fear of having their identities as sources
disclosed.
(k) Specific exemptions under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(4). (1) Under 5
U.S.C. 552a(k)(4), the head of any agency may promulgate rules to
exempt any system of records within the agency from certain provisions
of the Privacy Act of 1974 if the system is required by statute to be
maintained and used solely as statistical records. This paragraph
applies to the following system of records maintained by the
Department, for which exemption is claimed under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(4):
Internal Revenue Service:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
IRS 70.001................................ Statistics of Income-
Individual Tax Returns.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(2) The Department hereby exempts the system of records listed in
paragraph (k)(1) of this section from the following provisions of 5
U.S.C. 552a, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(4): 5 U.S.C. 552a(c)(3), 5
U.S.C. 552a(d)(1), (2), (3), and (4), 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(1), 5 U.S.C.
552a(e)(4)(G), (H), and (I), and 5 U.S.C. 552a(f).
(3) The system of records is maintained under section 6108 of the
Internal Revenue Code, which provides that ``the Secretary or his
delegate shall prepare and publish annually statistics reasonably
available with respect to the operation of the income tax laws,
including classifications of taxpayers and of income, the amounts
allowed as deductions, exemptions, and credits, and any other facts
deemed pertinent and valuable.''
(l) Reasons for exemptions under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(4). The reason
for exempting the system of records is that disclosure of statistical
records (including release of accounting for disclosures) would in most
instances be of no benefit to a particular individual since the records
do not have a direct effect on a given individual.
(m) Specific exemptions under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(5). (1) Under 5
U.S.C. 552a(k)(5), the head of any agency may promulgate rules to
exempt any system of records within the agency from certain provisions
of the Privacy Act of 1974 if the system is investigatory material
compiled solely for the purpose of determining suitability,
eligibility, and qualifications for Federal civilian employment or
access to classified information, but only to the extent that the
disclosure of such material would reveal the identity of a source who
furnished information to the Government under an express promise that
the identity of the source would be held in confidence, or, prior to
September 27, 1975, under an implied promise that the identity of the
source would be held in confidence. Thus to the extent that the records
in this system can be disclosed without revealing the identity of a
confidential source, they are not within the scope of this
[[Page 69875]]
exemption and are subject to all the requirements of the Privacy Act.
This paragraph applies to the following systems of records maintained
by the Department or one of its bureaus:
(i) Departmental Offices:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
DO .004................................... Personnel Security System.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(ii) Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
ATF .006.................................. Internal Security Record
System.
ATF .007.................................. Personnel Record System.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(iii) Comptroller of the Currency:
(iv) U.S. Customs Service:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number System name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
CS .127................................... Internal Affairs Records.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
(v) Bureau of Engraving and Printing:
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Number System name
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BEP .004.................................. Personnel Security Files and
Indices.
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(vi) Federal Law Enforcement Training Center
(vii) Financial Management Service
(viii) Internal Revenue Service:
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Number System name
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IRS 34.021................................ Personnel Security
Investigations, National
Background Investigations
Center.
IRS 36.008................................ Recruiting, Examining and
Placement Records.
IRS 90.003................................ Chief Counsel General
Administrative Systems.
IRS 90.011................................ Attorney Recruiting Files.
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(ix) U.S. Mint
(x) Bureau of the Public Debt
(xi) U.S. Secret Service
(xii) Office of Thrift Supervision
(2) The Department hereby exempts the systems of records listed in
paragraphs (m)(1)(i) through (xii) of this section from the following
provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552a, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(5): 5 U.S.C.
552a(c)(3), 5 U.S.C. 552a(d)(1), (2), (3), and (4), 5 U.S.C.
552a(e)(1), 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(4)(G), (H), and (I), and 5 U.S.C. 552a(f).
(n) Reasons for exemptions under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(5). (1) The
sections of 5 U.S.C. 552a from which the systems of records are exempt
include in general those providing for individuals' access to or
amendment of records. When such access or amendment would cause the
identity of a confidential source to be revealed, it would impair the
future ability of the Department to compile investigatory material for
the purpose of determining suitability, eligibility, or qualifications
for Federal civilian employment, Federal contracts, or access to
classified information. In addition, the systems shall be exempt from 5
U.S.C. 552a(e)(1) which requires that an agency maintain in its records
only such information about an individual as is relevant and necessary
to accomplish a purpose of the agency required to be accomplished by
statute or executive order. The Department believes that to fulfill the
requirements of 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(1) would unduly restrict the agency in
its information gathering inasmuch as it is often not until well after
the investigation that it is possible to determine the relevance and
necessity of particular information.
(2) If any investigatory material contained in the above-named
systems becomes involved in criminal or civil matters, exemptions of
such material under 5 U.S.C. 552a (j)(2) or (k)(2) is hereby claimed.
(o) Exemption under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(6). (1) Under 5 U.S.C.
552a(k)(6), the head of any agency may promulgate rules to exempt any
system of records that is testing or examination material used solely
to determine individual qualifications for appointment or promotion in
the Federal service the disclosure of which would compromise the
objectivity or fairness of the testing or examination process. This
paragraph applies to the following system of records maintained by the
Department, for which exemption is claimed under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(6):
Internal Revenue Service:
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Number System name
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IRS 36.008................................ Recruiting, Examining and
Placement Records.
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(2) The Department hereby exempts the system of records listed in
paragraph (o)(1) of this section from the following provisions of 5
U.S.C. 552a, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(6): 5 U.S.C. 552a(c)(3), 5
U.S.C. 552a(d)(1), (2), (3), and (4), 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(1), 5 U.S.C.
552a(e)(4)(G), (H), and (I), and 5 U.S.C. 552a(f).
(p) Reasons for exemptions under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(6). The reason
for exempting the system of records is that disclosure of the material
in the system would compromise the objectivity or fairness of the
examination process.
(q) Exempt information included in another system. Any information
from a system of records for which an exemption is claimed under 5
U.S.C. 552a(j) or (k) which is also included in another system of
records retains the same exempt status such information has in the
system for which such exemption is claimed.
[FR Doc. 00-29673 Filed 11-20-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-25-P