Defense Logistics Agency

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Defense Logistics Agency

Privacy Act of 1974; New Computer Matching Program Between the

Defense Finance and Accounting Service and the Defense Manpower

Data Center of the Department of Defense.

AGENCY: Defense Manpower Data Center, Defense Logistics Agency,

Department of Defense.

ACTION: Notice of a new computer matching program between the Defense

Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) and the Department of Defense

(DoD) for public comment.

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SUMMARY: Subsection (e)(12) of the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, (5

U.S.C. 552a) requires agencies to publish advance notice of any

proposed or revised computer matching program by the matching agency

for public comment. The DoD, as the matching agency under the Privacy

Act is hereby giving constructive notice in lieu of direct notice to

the record subjects of a computer matching program between DFAS and DoD

that their records are being matched by computer. The record subjects

are DFAS delinquent debtors who may be current or former Federal

employees receiving Federal salary or benefit payments and who are

delinquent in their repayment of debts owed to the United States

Government under programs administered by DFAS so as to permit DFAS to

pursue and collect the debt by voluntary repayment or by administrative

or salary offset procedures under the provisions of the Debt Collection

Act of 1982.

DATES: This proposed action will become effective August 29, 1994, and

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

Director, Defense Privacy Office, Crystal Mall 4, Room 920, 1941

Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, VA 22202-4502.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Aurelio Nepa, Jr. at telephone

(703) 607-2943.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to subsection (o) of the Privacy

Act of 1974, as amended, (5 U.S.C. 552a), the DMDC and DFAS have

concluded an agreement to conduct a computer matching program between

the agencies. The purpose of the match is to exchange personal data

between the agencies for debt collection. The match will yield the

identity and location of the debtors within the Federal government so

that DFAS can pursue recoupment of the debt by voluntary payment or by

administrative or salary offset procedures. Computer matching appeared

to be 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 for accomplishing this requirement.

A copy of the computer matching memorandum of understanding between

DFAS and DMDC is available upon request to the public. Requests should

be submitted to the address caption above or to the Defense Finance and

Accounting Service, (DFAS-DE/FYSA), 6760 E. Irvington Place, Denver, CO

80279-7000. Telephone (303) 655-0400.

Set forth below is the notice of the establishment of a computer

matching program required by paragraph 6.c. of the Office of Management

and Budget Guidelines on computer matching published in the Federal

Register at 54 FR 25818 on June 19, 1989.

The matching memorandum of understanding, as required by 5 U.S.C.

552a(r) of the Privacy Act, and an advance copy of this notice was

submitted on July 15, 1994, to the Committee on Government Operations

of the House of Representatives, the Committee on Governmental Affairs

of the Senate, and the Administrator of the Office of Information and

Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget pursuant to

paragraph 4d of Appendix I to OMB Circular No. A-130, `Federal Agency

Responsibilities for Maintaining Records about Individuals,' dated June

25, 1993 (58 FR 36075, July 2, 1993). The matching program is subject

to review by OMB and Congress and shall not become effective until that

review period has elapsed.

Dated: July 20, 1994.

Patricia L. Toppings,

Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison Officer, Department of Defense.

NOTICE OF A COMPUTER MATCHING PROGRAM BETWEEN THE DEFENSE FINANCE

AND ACCOUNTING SERVICE AND THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE FOR DEBT

COLLECTION

A. Participating agencies: Participants in this computer matching

program are the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) and the

Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC) of the Department of Defense (DoD).

The DFAS is the source agency, i.e., the activity disclosing the

records for the purpose of the match. The DMDC is the specific

recipient activity or matching agency, i.e., the agency that actually

performs the computer matching.

B. Purpose of the match: Upon the execution of a memorandum of

understanding (MOU), the DFAS will provide and disclose debtor records

to DMDC to identify and locate any matched Federal personnel, employed

or retired, who may owe delinquent debts to the Federal Government

under certain programs administered by the DOD. The DFAS will use this

information to initiate independent collection of those debts under the

provisions of the Debt Collection Act of 1982 when voluntary payment is

not forthcoming. These collection efforts will include requests by the

DFAS of any employing Federal agency to apply administrative and/or

salary offset procedures until such time as the obligation is paid in

full.

C. Authority for conducting the match: The legal authority for

conducting the matching program is contained in the Debt Collection Act

of 1982 (Public Law 97-365), 31 U.S.C. Chapter 37, Subchapter I

(General) and Subchapter II (Claims of the United States Government),

31 U.S.C. 3711 Collection and Compromise, 31 U.S.C. 3716 Administrative

Offset, 5 U.S.C. 5514 Installment Deduction for Indebtedness (Salary

Offset); 10 U.S.C. 136, Assistant Secretaries of Defense, Appointment

Powers and Duties; Section 206 of Executive Order 11222; 4 CFR Chapter

II, Federal Claims Collection Standards (General Accounting Office -

Department of Justice); 5 CFR 550.1101 - 550.1108 Collection by Offset

from Indebted Government Employees (OPM); DOD Instruction 7045.18

Collection of Indebtedness Due the United States (32 CFR part 90); DOD

Directive 7045.13, DOD Credit Management and Debt Collection Program.

D. Records to be matched: The systems of records maintained by the

respective agencies under the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, 5 U.S.C.

552a, from which records will be disclosed for the purpose of this

computer match are as follows:

The DFAS will use personal data from the following Privacy Act

record systems for the match:

Record system identified as Department of the Army system of

records notice A0037-104-1bSAFM, entitled `Debt Management System',

last published in the Federal Register on February 22, 1993, at 58 FR

10046.

Record system identified as Department of the Navy system of

records notice N07430-1, entitled `Navy Debt Management and Collection

System (MNCS)', last published in the Federal Register on February 22,

1993, at 58 FR 10809.

Record system identified as Department of the Air Force system of

records notice F177 AF AFC A, entitled `Accounts Receivable Records

Maintained by Accounting and Finance', last published in the Federal

Register on February 22, 1993, at 58 FR 10476.

Record system identified as United States Marine Corps system of

records notice MFD00007, entitled 'Marine Corps Financial Records

System', last published in the Federal Register February 22, 1993, at

58 FR 10638.

Record system identified as Washington Headquarters Services system

of records notice DWHS B46, entitled `DOD Creditor Agency Accounts

Receivable System' last published in the Federal Register on February

22, 1993, at 58 FR 10281.

DMDC will use personal data from the record systems identified as:

S322.10 DMDC, entitled `Defense Manpower Data Center Data Base',

last published in the Federal Register on February 22, 1993, at 58 FR

10872.

S322.11 DMDC, entitled `Federal Creditor Agency Debt Collection

Data Base,' last published in the Federal Register on February 22,

1993, at 58 FR 10875.

Sections 5 and 10 of the Debt Collection Act authorize agencies to

disclose information about debtors in order to effect salary or

administrative offsets. Agencies must publish routine uses pursuant to

subsection (b)(3) of the Privacy Act for those systems of records from

which they intend to disclose this information. Sections 5 and 10 of

the Debt Collection Act will comprise the necessary authority to meet

the Privacy Act's `compatibility' condition. The systems of records

described above contain an appropriate routine use disclosure between

the agencies of the information proposed in the match. The routine use

provisions are compatible with the purpose for which the information

was collected.

E. Description of computer matching program: The DFAS, as the

source agency, will provide DMDC with a magnetic tape which contains

the names of delinquent debtors in programs the DOD administers. Upon

receipt of the computer tape file of debtor accounts, DMDC will perform

a computer match using all nine digits of the SSN of the DFAS file

against a DMDC computer database. The DMDC database, established under

an interagency agreement between DOD, OPM, OMB, and the Department of

the Treasury, consists of employment records of Federal employees and

military members, active, and retired. Matching records (`hits'), based

on the SSN, will produce the member's name, service or agency, category

of employee, and current work or home address. The hits or matches will

be furnished to the DFAS. The DFAS is responsible for verifying and

determining that the data on the DMDC reply tape file are consistent

with the DFAS source file and for resolving any discrepancies or

inconsistencies on an individual basis. The DFAS will also be

responsible for making final determinations as to positive

identification, amount of indebtedness and recovery efforts as a result

of the match.

The magnetic computer tape provided by DFAS will contain data

elements of the debtor's name, SSN, debtor status and debt balance,

internal account numbers and the total amount owed on approximately

100,000 delinquent debtors.

The DMDC computer database file contains approximately 11 million

records of active duty and retired military members, including the

Reserve and Guard, and the OPM government wide Federal civilian records

of current and retired Federal employees.

DMDC will match the SSN on the DFAS tape by computer against the

DMDC database. Matching records, hits based on SSN, will produce data

elements of the member's name, SSN, service or agency, and current work

or home address.

F. 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, and the mandatory 30

day public notice period for comment has expired for this Federal

Register notice with no significant adverse public comments in receipt

resulting in a contrary determination, then this computer matching

program becomes effective and the respective agencies may begin the

exchange of data 30 days after the date of this published notice at a

mutually agreeable time and will be repeated annually. 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 DFAS and DMDC, 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.

G. Address for receipt of public comments or inquiries: Director,

Defense Privacy Office, Crystal Mall 4, Room 920, 1941 Jefferson Davis

Highway, Arlington, VA 22202-4502. Telephone (703) 607-2943.

[FR Doc. 94-18420 Filed 7-27-94; 8:45 am]

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