Privacy Act of 1974; Notice of a Computer Matching Program

DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

[Docket No. FR-3918-N-17]

Privacy Act of 1974; Notice of a Computer Matching Program

AGENCY: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration, HUD.

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ACTION: Notice of a Computer Matching Program--HUD and Department of

Justice (DOJ).

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a), as

amended by the Computer Matching and Privacy Protection Act of 1988

(Pub. L. 100-503), Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Guidelines on

the Conduct of Matching Programs (54 FR 25818 (June 19, 1989)), and OMB

Bulletin 89-22, ``Instructions on Reporting Computer Matching Programs

to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Congress and the

Public,'' the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is

issuing a public notice of its intent to conduct a computer matching

program with the Department of Justice (DOJ) to utilize a computer

information system of HUD, the Credit Alert Interactive Voice Response

System (CAIVRS), with DOJ's debtor files. The CAIVRS data base now

includes delinquent debt information from the Departments of

Agriculture, Education and Veterans Affairs and the Small Business

Administration. This match will allow prescreening of applicants for

debts owed or loans guaranteed by the Federal Government to ascertain

if the applicant is delinquent in paying a debt owed to or insured by

the Federal Government. Before granting a loan, a lending agency and/or

an authorized lending institution will be able to interrogate the

CAIVRS debtor file which contains the Social Security Numbers (SSNs) of

HUD's delinquent debtors and defaulters and debtor files of the DOJ and

verify that the loan applicant is not in default on a Federal judgment

or delinquent on direct or guaranteed loans of participating Federal

programs. As a result of the information produced by this match, the

authorized users may not deny, terminate, or make a final decision of

any loan assistance to an applicant or take other adverse action

against such applicant, until an officer or employee of such agency has

independently verified such information.

DATES: Effective date: Computer matching is expected to begin 40 days

after publication of this notice in the Federal Register unless

comments are received which will result in a contrary determination, or

40 days from the date a computer matching agreement is signed,

whichever is later. Comments due by: December 31, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments regarding

this notice to the Rules Docket Clerk, Office of General Counsel, Room

10276, Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 Seventh Street,

SW, Washington, DC 20410. Communications should refer to the above

docket number and title. A copy of each communication submitted will be

available for public inspection and copying between 7:30 a.m. and 5:30

p.m. weekdays at the above address.

FOR PRIVACY ACT INFORMATION AND FOR FURTHER INFORMATION FROM RECIPIENT

AGENCY CONTACT: Jeanette Smith, Departmental Privacy Act officer,

Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th Street, SW,

Washington, DC 20410, telephone number (202) 708-2374. (This is not a

toll-free number.)

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION FROM SOURCE AGENCY CONTACT: Diane J. Watson,

Debt Collection Management, Department of Justice, 10th and

Constitution Avenue. NW, Washington, DC 20530. Telephone number (202)

514-5343. [This is not a toll-free number.]

REPORTING: In accordance with Pub. L. 100-503, the Computer Matching

and Privacy Protection Act of 1988, as amended, and Office of

Management and Budget Bulletin 89-22, ``Instructions on Reporting

Computer Matching Programs to the Office of Management and Budget

(OMB), Congress and the Public;'' copies of this Notice and report are

being provided to the Committee on Government Reform and Oversight of

the House of Representatives, the Committee on Governmental Affairs of

the Senate, and the Office of Management and Budget.

AUTHORITY: The matching program will be conducted under the authority

of 28 U.S.C. 2301(e) (section 3611 of the Federal Debt Collection

Procedures Act of 1990, Pub. L. 101-647), and Office of Management and

Budget (OMB) Circular A-129, Policies for Federal Credit Programs and

Non-Tax Receivables. One of the purposes of all Executive departments

and agencies--including HUD--is to implement efficient management

practices for Federal credit programs.

OBJECTIVES TO BE MET BY THE MATCHING PROGRAM: By identifying those

individuals or corporations against whom the DOJ has filed a judgment,

the Federal Government can expand the prescreening search of their loan

applicants to further avoid lending to applicants who are credit risks.

RECORD TO BE MATCHED: HUD will utilize its system of records entitled,

Accounting Records, HUD/DEPT-2. The debtor files for HUD programs

involved are included in this system of records. HUD's debtor files

contain information on borrowers and coborrowers who are currently in

default (at least 90 days delinquent on their loans); or who have any

outstanding claims paid during the last three years on Title II insured

or guaranteed home mortgage loans; or individuals who have defaulted on

Section 312 rehabilitation loans; or individuals who have had a claim

paid in the last three years on a Title I loan. For the CAICVRS match,

HUD/DEPT-2, System of Records, receives its program inputs from HUD/

DEPT-28, Property Improvement and Manufactured (Mobile) Home Loans--

Default; HUD/DEPT-32, Delinquent/Default/Assigned Temporary Mortgage

Assistance Payments (TMAP) Program; and HUD/CPD-1, Rehabilitation

Loans--Delinquent/Dafault.

The DOJ will provide HUD with its debtor files contained in its

system of records entitled, Debt Collection Management System, JUSTICE/

JMD-006. HUD is maintaining DOJ's records only as a ministerial action

on behalf of DOJ, not as a part of HUD's HUD/DEPT-2 system of records.

DOJ's data contain information on individuals or corporations who have

defaulted on Federal judgments. The DOJ will retain ownership and

responsibility for their system of records that they place with HUD.

HUD serves only as a record location and routine use recipient for

DOJ's data.

NOTICE PROCEDURES: HUD will notify individuals at the time of

application (ensuring that routine use appears on the application form)

for guaranteed or direct loans that their records will be matched to

determine whether they are delinquent or in default on a Federal debt.

HUD and the DOJ will also publish notices concerning routine use

disclosures in the Federal Register to inform individuals that a

computer match may be performed to determine loan applicant's credit

status with the Federal Government.

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS/INDIVIDUALS INVOLVED: The debtor records include

these data elements: SSN, claim number, program code, and indication of

indebtedness. Categories of records include: records of claims and

defaults, repayment agreements, credit reports, financial statement,

records of foreclosures, and Federal judgment liens.

Categories of individuals include: Former mortgagors and purchasers

of HUD-owned properties, manufactured (mobile) home and home

improvement loan debtors who are delinquent or in default on their

loans, rehabilitation loan debtors who are delinquent or in default on

their loan, and individuals or

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corporations against whom judgments have been filed by DOJ.

PERIOD OF THE MATCH: Matching will begin at least 40 days from the date

copies of the signed (by both Data Integrity Boards) computer matching

agreement are sent to both Houses of Congress or at least 40 days from

the date this notice is published in the Federal Register, whichever is

later, providing no comments are received which would result in a

contrary determination. 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 in writing

to terminate or modify the agreement.

Dated: November 23, 1998.

Leslie H. Graham, Jr.

Deputy Director, Office of Information Technology.

[FR Doc. 98-31944 Filed 11-30-98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4210-01-M