Privacy Act of 1974; Computer Matching Program Between the Armed Forces Retirement Home and the Social Security Administration

ARMED FORCES RETIREMENT HOME

Privacy Act of 1974; Computer Matching Program Between the Armed

Forces Retirement Home and the Social Security Administration

AGENCY: Armed Forces Retirement Home (AFRH).

ACTION: Publication of notice of computer matching to comply with

Public Law 100-503, the Computer Matching and Privacy Protection Act of

1988.

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SUMMARY: AFRH is publishing notice of its computer matching program

with the Social Security Administration (SSA) to meet the reporting and

publication requirements of Public Law 100-503. The purpose of this

match is for SSA to provide and verify benefit payment information of

the AFRH's residents.

DATES: This proposed action will become effective February 22, 1994.

The computer matching will proceed accordingly without further notice,

unless comments are received which would result in a contrary

determination or if the Office of Management and Budget, or Congress,

objects thereto. Any public comment must be received before the

effective date.

ADDRESSES: Any interested party may submit written comments to the

Administrative Officer, Administration Division, Resource Management

Directorate, U.S. Soldiers' and Airmen's Home, Washington, DC 20317-

0002.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Doris D. Montgomery, at (202) 722-3230.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: AFRH and SSA have concluded an agreement to

conduct a computer matching program. The purpose of this agreement is

to establish the conditions under which the SSA agrees to the

disclosure of benefit payment information on the residents of the AFRH,

which includes the United States Soldiers' and Airmen's Home (USSAH)

and United States Naval Home (USNH). The AFRH Resident Fee Maintenance

System will be used in a matching program with the SSA Master

Beneficiary Records and Supplemental Security Income Records. Residents

of the AFRH are required by 24 U.S.C. 414 to pay a percentage of their

Federal payments, including Social Security; thus, the AFRH will use

the SSA data to verify the benefit earnings information currently

provided by the residents, and identify any unreported recipients of

benefit payments. A computer matching is the most efficient and

effective manner to accomplish this task with the least amount of

intrusion of personal privacy of the individuals concerned. It was

therefore concluded and agreed upon that computer matching would be the

best and least obtrusive manner and choice of accomplishing this

requirement.

The matching agreement and an advance copy of this notice were

submitted on January 6, 1994, to the Committee on Government Operations

of the United States House of Representatives, the Committee on

Governmental Affairs of the United States Senate, and the Administrator

of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of

Management and Budget. The matching program is subject to review by

Congress and OMB and shall not become effective until that review

period has elapsed.

Dennis W. Jahnigen,

Armed Forces Retirement Home Board Chair.

Computer Matching Program between the Armed Forces Retirement Home and

the Social Security Administration

A. Participating agencies: AFRH and SSA.

B. Purpose of the matching program: The purpose of this computer

matching program is to identify and verify the gross Social Security

benefit earnings of each resident of the AFRH. This is necessary to

properly assess correct resident fee amounts, which is required by 24

U.S.C. 414 to be a fixed percentage of residents' Federal payments,

including Social Security payments.

C. Authority for conducting the matching program: The Armed Forces

Retirement Home Act of 1991, 24 U.S.C. 401-441, requires the Directors

of the USSAH and USNH, which are incorporated under the Armed Forces

Retirement Home, to collect from each resident a monthly resident fee.

The fee is a fixed percentage of residents' Federal payments, including

Social Security payments.

D. Records to be matched: The SSA records involved in the match are

the Supplemental Security Income Record, HHS/SSA/OSR, 09-60-0103, and

the Master Beneficiary Record, HHS/SSA/OSR, 09-60-0090 (both last

published at 58 FR 35025 (June 30, 1993)). The AFRH will provide a

magnetic finder file established from the AFRH Resident Fee Maintenance

System.

E. Inclusive dates of the matching program: This computer matching

program is subject to review by the Office of Management and Budget and

Congress. If no objections are raised by either within 40 days, and the

30 day public notice period for comment has expired for this Federal

Register notice with no significant adverse public comments, this

computer matching program becomes effective and the respective agencies

may begin the exchange of data at a mutually agreeable time and will be

repeated on a semiannual basis. Under no circumstances shall the

matching program be implemented before the 30 day public notice period

for comment has elapsed as this time period cannot be waived. By

agreement between SSA and AFRH, the matching program will be in effect

and continue for 18 months with an option to renew for 12 additional

months unless one of the parties to the agreement advises the other by

written request to terminate or modify the agreement.

F. Address for receipt of public comments or inquiries:

Administrative Officer, Administration Division, Resource Management

Directorate, U.S. Soldiers' and Airmen's Home, Washington, DC 20317-

0002, (202) 722-3230.

[FR Doc. 94-1298 Filed 1-19-94; 8:45 am]

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