Privacy Act of 1974; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Bond Management Information System (BMIS) System of Records, 52865-52868 [E8-21075]
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Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 177 / Thursday, September 11, 2008 / Notices
Contact Person: David I. Sommers, PhD,
Scientific Review Administrator, Division of
Extramural Activities, National Institute of
Mental Health, National Institutes of Health,
6001 Executive Blvd., Room 6154, MSC 9609,
Bethesda, MD 20892–9606, 301–443–7861,
dsommers@mail.nih.gov.
Name of Committee: National Institute of
Mental Health Special Emphasis Panel;
Personalized Approaches to Treatment of
Depression.
Date: November 3, 2008.
Time: 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Agenda: To review and evaluate grant
applications.
Place: Embassy Suites at the Chevy Chase
Pavilion, 4300 Military Road, NW.,
Washington, DC 20015.
Contact Person: David I. Sommers, PhD,
Scientific Review Administrator, Division of
Extramural Activities, National Institute of
Mental Health, National Institutes of Health,
6001 Executive Blvd., Room 6154, MSC 9609,
Bethesda, MD 20892–9606, 301–443–7861,
dsommers@mail.nih.gov.
(Catalogue of Federal Domestic Assistance
Program Nos. 93.242, Mental Health Research
Grants; 93.281, Scientist Development
Award, Scientist Development Award for
Clinicians, and Research Scientist Award;
93.282, Mental Health National Research
Service Awards for Research Training,
National Institutes of Health, HHS)
Dated: September 4, 2008.
Jennifer Spaeth,
Director, Office of Federal Advisory
Committee Policy.
[FR Doc. E8–21041 Filed 9–10–08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4140–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND
SECURITY
Office of the Secretary
[Docket No. DHS–2008–0079]
Privacy Act of 1974; U.S. Immigration
and Customs Enforcement Bond
Management Information System
(BMIS) System of Records
Privacy Office, DHS.
Notice of Privacy Act system of
AGENCY:
ACTION:
rmajette on PRODPC74 with NOTICES
records.
SUMMARY: In accordance with the
Privacy Act of 1974 and as part of the
Department of Homeland Security’s
ongoing effort to review and update
legacy system of record notices, U.S.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement
(ICE) proposes to republish a legacy
record system titled Justice/INS.008,
Bond Management Information System
(63 FR 70159, Dec. 18, 1998) as an ICE
system of records titled Bond
Management Information System.
Categories of individuals, categories of
records, and the routine uses of this
legacy system of records notice has been
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14:21 Sep 10, 2008
Jkt 214001
consolidated and updated to better
reflect the agency’s immigration bond
administration and financial
management records. This system will
be included in the Department of
Homeland Security’s inventory of
record systems. ICE is not claiming any
Privacy Act exemptions for this system
of records.
DATES: The established system of
records will be effective October 14,
2008. Written comments must be
submitted on or before October 14,
2008.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments,
identified by docket number DHS–
2008–0079 by one of the following
methods:
• Federal e-Rulemaking Portal:
https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments.
• Fax: 1–866–466–5370.
• Mail: Hugo Teufel III, Chief Privacy
Officer, Privacy Office, Department of
Homeland Security, Washington, DC
20528.
• Instructions: All submissions
received must include the agency name
and docket number for this rulemaking.
All comments received will be posted
without change to https://
www.regulations.gov, including any
personal information provided.
• Docket: For access to the docket to
read background documents or
comments received go to https://
www.regulations.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lyn
Rahilly (202–514–1900), Privacy Officer,
U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement, 425 I Street, NW.,
Washington, DC 20536, or Hugo Teufel
III (703–235–0780), Chief Privacy
Officer, Privacy Office, U.S. Department
of Homeland Security, Washington, DC
20528.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
The Bond Management Information
System (BMIS) is a collection of records
used to record and maintain for bond
administration and financial
management purposes the immigration
bonds that are posted for aliens.
Immigration bond administration
includes tracking the issuance,
maintenance, cancellation, and
revocation of bonds. Financial
management activities include
collection, reimbursement or forfeiture
of the bond principal, and calculation
and payment of interest, including
issuance of IRS Form 1099 to the obligor
reflecting interest paid on the bond.
Pursuant to the savings clause in the
Homeland Security Act of 2002, Public
Law 107–296, section 1512, 116 Stat.
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52865
2310 (November 25, 2002), DHS and its
components and offices have relied on
preexisting Privacy Act systems of
records notices for the maintenance of
records that concern the administration
and financial management operations of
ICE’s immigration bond program.
The BMIS system of records includes
immigration bond data maintained in
ICE’s enforcement records and in BMIS
Web, a new immigration bond
management database that will be used
by the ICE Office of Financial
Management to track the life cycle of
immigration bonds from the time an
individual posts the bond at an ICE
Detention and Removal Operations
(DRO) field office until the bond is
considered closed. BMIS Web launched
as a pilot in August 2008, with full
deployment scheduled for September
2008. With the deployment of BMIS
Web, ICE will retire the predecessor
database known as BMIS. A PIA was
conducted on BMIS Web because it is a
new system that will maintain
personally identifiable information. The
BMIS Web PIA is available on the
Department of Homeland Security
(DHS) Privacy Office Web site at
https://www.dhs.gov/privacy.
An immigration bond is a formal
written guaranty by the obligor posted
as security for the amount of the bond
that assures DHS that all of the
conditions of the bond will be fulfilled
by the obligor as guarantor. Immigration
bonds may be posted for the release
from detention of aliens in removal
proceedings and/or as voluntary
departure bonds. Immigration bonds
may be posted by surety companies that
have obtained a certificate to do so from
the U.S. Treasury Department, or by an
individual’s or entity’s pledge (deposit)
of cash or U.S. securities. If the
conditions of a bond are satisfied, the
bond must be cancelled and, if a cash
bond, the principal and accrued interest
returned to the obligor. If a bond is
declared breached, the cash deposited
as security will be forfeited and accrued
interest returned to the obligor. Surety
companies must make payment to DHS
for the full amount of the bond plus
interest and penalties. All of these bond
activities are tracked in BMIS.
BMIS maintains personal information
about individuals who post cash bonds
(known as obligors) or who request a
surety bond (known as indemnitors), the
bonded alien, the surety company and
bonding agency/agent, and other general
information about the bond itself, such
as amount, number, date, etc.
Information about the bonded alien may
be shared with individuals or entities
seeking to post or that have already
posted an immigration bond for the
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alien. BMIS information is also shared
with the Internal Revenue Service to
report any interest paid to obligors.
Information about surety bonds may be
shared with Department of Justice legal
counsel; the U.S. Treasury Department;
insurance investigators for surety
companies; or bonding agencies and
legal representatives for surety
companies and bonding agencies. This
information is shared when ICE is
pursuing further collection efforts on
the surety bond receivables or if an
agent or bonding agency that posts
surety bonds is being investigated for its
business practices.
Consistent with DHS’s information
sharing mission, information stored in
BMIS may be shared with other DHS
components, as well as appropriate
Federal, State, local, tribal, foreign, or
international government agencies. This
sharing will only take place after DHS
determines that the receiving
component or agency has a need to
know the information to carry out
national security, law enforcement,
immigration, intelligence, or other
functions consistent with the routine
uses set forth in this system of records
notice.
II. Privacy Act
The Privacy Act embodies fair
information principles in a statutory
framework governing the means by
which the United States Government
collects, maintains, uses, and
disseminates personally identifiable
information. The Privacy Act applies to
information that is maintained in a
‘‘system of records.’’ A ‘‘system of
records’’ is a group of any records under
the control of an agency for which
information is retrieved by the name of
an individual or by some identifying
number, symbol, or other identifying
particular assigned to the individual. In
the Privacy Act, an individual is defined
to encompass United States citizens and
lawful permanent residents. As a matter
of policy, DHS extends administrative
Privacy Act protections to all
individuals where systems of records
maintain information on U.S. citizens,
lawful permanent residents, and
visitors. Individuals may request access
to their own records that are maintained
in a system of records in the possession
or under the control of DHS by
complying with DHS Privacy Act
regulations, 6 CFR Part 5.
The Privacy Act requires each agency
to publish in the Federal Register a
description denoting the type and
character of each system of records that
the agency maintains, and the routine
uses that are contained in each system
in order to make agency record keeping
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practices transparent, to notify
individuals regarding the uses to which
personally identifiable information is
put, and to assist individuals to more
easily find such files within the agency.
Below is the description of the BMIS
system of records.
In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552a(r),
DHS has provided a report of this new
system of records to the Office of
Management and Budget and to
Congress.
SYSTEM OF RECORDS
DHS/ICE–004.
SYSTEM NAME:
Bond Management Information
System.
SECURITY CLASSIFICATION:
Unclassified.
SYSTEM LOCATION:
Records are maintained at U.S.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement
(ICE) Headquarters in Washington, DC;
ICE Office of Financial Management
facilities in Williston, Vermont; and ICE
field offices.
CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE
SYSTEM:
Categories of individuals covered by
this system include: Individuals who
post cash immigration bonds for aliens
(known as obligors); aliens for whom an
immigration bond is posted (known as
bonded aliens); individuals that arrange
for the posting of surety bonds for aliens
(known as indemnitors); individual
bond agents who post surety bonds; and
notaries public and attorneys.
CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
For the Obligor: Name; Social Security
Number/Tax Identification Number;
address; phone number.
For the Bonded Alien: Name; alien
number; location (while in detention);
Address(es) and phone number of
residence upon release; date and
country of birth; nationality; and date
and port of arrival;
For the Indemnitor: Name;
address(es); and phone number.
For the Bonding Agent: Name; Tax
Identification Number; address(es); and
phone number.
General bond information, including:
bond number; bond amount; securities
pledged; bond types; bond status;
location and date of posted bond; dates
for bond-related activities, such as
declaration of breach; names and titles
of DHS officials that approve, cancel, or
declare breaches of bonds; names and
contact information for notary public
and attorney in fact; information such as
dates, forms, status and outcome,
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concerning motions to reconsider a
breach or cancellation of bonds; and
information such as dates, forms, status
and outcome, about bond-related
appeals.
AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
Sections 103, 213, 236, 240B, and 293
of the Immigration and Nationality Act,
as amended (8 U.S.C. 1103, 1183, 1226,
1229c, and 1363, respectively).
PURPOSE(S):
The purpose of this system is to
maintain records related to the
administration and financial
management operations of ICE’s
immigration bond program. Immigration
bond administration includes the
issuance, maintenance, cancellation,
and revocation of bonds. Financial
management operations include
collection, reimbursement or forfeiture
of the bond principal, and calculation
and payment of interest, including
issuance of IRS Form 1099 to the obligor
reflecting interest paid on the bond.
ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE
SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES OF USERS AND
THE PURPOSES OF SUCH USES:
In addition to those disclosures
generally permitted under 5 U.S.C.
552a(b) of the Privacy Act, all or a
portion of the records or information
contained in this system may be
disclosed outside DHS as a routine use
pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(b)(3) as
follows:
A. To the Department of Justice or
other Federal agency conducting
litigation or in proceedings before any
court, adjudicative or administrative
body, when (1) DHS or any component
thereof; (2) any employee of DHS in his/
her official capacity; (3) any employee
of DHS in his/her individual capacity
where DOJ or DHS has agreed to
represent the employee; or (4) the
United States or any agency thereof, is
a party to the litigation or has an interest
in such litigation; and DHS determines
that the records are both relevant and
necessary to the litigation and the use of
such records is compatible with the
purpose for which DHS collected the
records.
B. To a congressional office from the
record of an individual in response to
an inquiry from that congressional office
made at the request of the individual to
whom the record pertains.
C. To the National Archives and
Records Administration or other Federal
government agencies pursuant to
records management inspections being
conducted under the authority of 44
U.S.C. 2904 and 2906.
D. To an agency, organization, or
individual for the purpose of performing
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audit or oversight operations as
authorized by law, but only such
information as is necessary and relevant
to such audit or oversight function.
E. To appropriate agencies, entities,
and persons when (1) ICE suspects or
has confirmed that the security or
confidentiality of information in the
system of records has been
compromised; (2) ICE has determined
that as a result of the suspected or
confirmed compromise there is a risk of
harm to economic or property interests,
identity theft or fraud, or harm to the
security or integrity of this system or
other systems or programs (whether
maintained by ICE or another agency or
entity) that rely upon the compromised
information, or harm to the individual;
and (3) the disclosure made to such
agencies, entities, and persons is
reasonably necessary to assist in
connection with ICE’s efforts to respond
to the suspected or confirmed
compromise and prevent, minimize, or
remedy such harm.
F. To contractors and their agents,
grantees, experts, consultants, and
others performing or working on a
contract, service, grant, cooperative
agreement, or other assignment for DHS,
when necessary to accomplish an
agency function related to this system of
records. Individuals provided
information under this routine use are
subject to the same Privacy Act
requirements and limitations on
disclosure as are applicable to DHS
officers and employees.
G. To an appropriate Federal, State,
tribal, local, international, or foreign law
enforcement agency or other appropriate
authority charged with investigating or
prosecuting a violation or enforcing or
implementing a law, rule, regulation, or
order, where a record, either on its face
or in conjunction with other
information, indicates a violation or
potential violation of law, which
includes criminal, civil, or regulatory
violations and such disclosure is proper
and consistent with the official duties of
the person making the disclosure.
H. To the U.S. Treasury Department to
facilitate payments owed to obligors and
for the reporting of interest payments to
the Internal Revenue Service.
I. To the Department of Justice, the
U.S. Treasury Department, other
appropriate Federal agencies, State
insurance regulators, credit bureaus,
debt collection agencies, legal
representatives for surety companies
and bonding agencies, and insurance
investigators to provide information
relevant to (1) investigations of an agent
or bonding agency that posts surety
bonds, or (2) activities related to
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Jkt 214001
collection of unpaid monies owed to the
U.S. Government on immigration bonds.
J. To agencies, individuals, or entities
as necessary to locate individuals who
are owed money or property connected
with the issuance of an immigration
bond.
K. To an individual or entity seeking
to post or arrange, or who has already
posted or arranged, an immigration
bond for an alien to aid the individual
or entity in (1) identifying the location
of the alien, or (2) posting the bond,
obtaining payments related to the bond,
or conducting other administrative or
financial management activities related
to the bond.
L. To the news media and the public,
with the approval of the Chief Privacy
Officer in consultation with legal
counsel, when there exists a legitimate
public interest in the disclosure of the
information or when disclosure is
necessary to preserve confidence in the
integrity of DHS or is necessary to
demonstrate the accountability of DHS’s
officers, employees, or individuals
covered by the system, except to the
extent it is determined that release of
the specific information in the context
of a particular case would constitute an
unwarranted invasion of personal
privacy.
DISCLOSURE TO CONSUMER REPORTING
AGENCIES:
Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(b)(12),
disclosures may be made from this
system to consumer reporting agencies
in accordance with 31 U.S.C. 3711(e).
POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORING,
RETRIEVING, ACCESSING, RETAINING, AND
DISPOSING OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
STORAGE:
Records in this system are stored
electronically or on paper in secure
facilities in a locked drawer behind a
locked door. The records are stored on
magnetic disc, tape, digital media, and
CD–ROM.
RETRIEVABILITY:
Records may be retrieved by any of
the following: bond number, Social
Security or Tax Identification Numbers
(SSN/TIN), alien name, alien number,
obligor name, surety company name, or
location and date bond was posted.
SAFEGUARDS:
Records in this system are
safeguarded in accordance with
applicable rules and policies, including
all applicable DHS automated systems
security and access policies. Strict
controls have been imposed to minimize
the risk of compromising the
information that is being stored. Access
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52867
to the computer systems containing the
records in this system is limited to those
individuals who have a need to know
the information for the performance of
their official duties and who have
appropriate clearances or permissions.
The system maintains a real-time
auditing function of individuals who
access electronic records. Additional
safeguards may vary by component and
program.
RETENTION AND DISPOSAL:
Under the existing retention schedule,
information is retained for six years and
three months after the bond is closed or
cancelled and the collateral is returned
to the obligor. Copies of the Form I–352
(Immigration Bond) are placed into the
alien’s A-File and maintained for the
life of that file (75 years).
SYSTEM MANAGER AND ADDRESS:
Director, Financial Systems
Modernization, 800 K Street, NW.,
Washington, DC 20536; Director, Office
of Detention and Removal, 425 I Street,
NW., Washington, DC 20536.
NOTIFICATION PROCEDURE:
Individuals seeking notification of
and access to any record contained in
this system of records, or seeking to
contest its content, may submit a
request in writing to the component’s
FOIA Officer, whose contact
information can be found at https://
www.dhs.gov/foia under ‘‘contacts.’’ If
an individual believes more than one
component maintains Privacy Act
records concerning him or her the
individual may submit the request to
the Chief Privacy Officer, Department of
Homeland Security, 245 Murray Drive,
SW., Building 410, STOP–0550,
Washington, DC 20528.
When seeking records about yourself
from this system of records or any other
Departmental system of records your
request must conform with the Privacy
Act regulations set forth in 6 CFR Part
5. You must first verify your identity,
meaning that you must provide your full
name, current address and date and
place of birth. You must sign your
request, and your signature must either
be notarized or submitted under 28
U.S.C. 1746, a law that permits
statements to be made under penalty or
perjury as a substitute for notarization.
While no specific form is required, you
may obtain forms for this purpose from
the Director, Disclosure and FOIA,
https://www.dhs.gov or 1–866–431–0486.
In addition you should provide the
following:
• An explanation of why you believe
the Department would have information
on you,
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• Identify which component(s) of the
Department you believe may have the
information about you,
• Specify when you believe the
records would have been created,
• Provide any other information that
will help the FOIA staff determine
which DHS component agency may
have responsive records,
• If your request is seeking records
pertaining to another living individual,
you must include a statement from that
individual certifying his/her agreement
for you to access his/her records.
Without this bulleted information the
component(s) will not be able to
conduct an effective search, and your
request may be denied due to lack of
specificity or lack of compliance with
applicable regulations.
RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURES:
See ‘‘Notification procedure’’ above.
CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES:
See ‘‘Notification procedure’’ above.
RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
Information is obtained from
individuals, entities, indemnitors,
surety companies, and bonding agencies
and agents.
EXEMPTIONS CLAIMED FOR THE SYSTEM:
None.
Dated: September 3, 2008.
John W. Kropf,
Acting Chief Privacy Officer, Department of
Homeland Security.
[FR Doc. E8–21075 Filed 9–10–08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410–10–P
DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND
SECURITY
Federal Emergency Management
Agency
Agency Information Collection
Activities: Proposed Collection;
Comment Request
Federal Emergency
Management Agency, DHS.
ACTION: Notice; 60-day notice and
request for comments; Extension,
without change, of a currently approved
collection, OMB Number 1660–0024, No
Form.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: The Federal Emergency
Management Agency, as part of its
continuing effort to reduce paperwork
and respondent burden, invites the
general public and other Federal
agencies to take this opportunity to
comment on a continuing information
collection. In accordance with the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this
notice seeks comments concerning
FEMA’s request for information from
the licensee of a nuclear power plant
that is needed in order to form a
decision as to whether or not a
condition of ‘‘decline or fail’’ exists at
the state and local government level in
the preparation of emergency planning
responses.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Executive
Order 12657, dated November 18, 1988,
charged the Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA) and other
Federal agencies with emergency
planning response in cases where State
and local governments have declined or
failed to prepare emergency plans. To
implement Executive Order 12657,
FEMA worked with the Nuclear
Regulatory Commission (NRC) and other
Federal agencies on the Federal
Radiological Preparedness Coordinating
Committee to develop regulation 44 CFR
352, Commercial Nuclear Power Plants:
Emergency Preparedness Planning. This
regulation establishes policies and
procedures for a licensee submission of
a certification of ‘‘decline or fail,’’ and
for FEMA determination concerning
Federal assistance to the licensee; and
also establishes policies and procedures
for providing Federal support for offsite
planning and preparedness.
Collection of Information
Title: Federal Assistance for Offsite
Radiological Emergency Planning.
Type of Information Collection:
Extension, without change, of a
currently approved collection.
OMB Number: 1660–0024.
Form Numbers: No Form
Abstract: In accordance with
Executive Order 12657, FEMA will need
certain information from the licensee in
order to form a decision as to whether
or not a condition of ‘‘decline or fail’’
exists on the part of State or local
governments (44 CFR 352.3–4). This
information will be collected by the
appropriate FEMA Regional Office or
Headquarters. Also in accordance with
the Executive Order, when a licensee
requests Federal facilities or resources,
FEMA will need information from the
NRC as to whether the licensee has
made maximum use of its resources and
the extent to which the licensee has
complied with 10 CFR 50.47 (c)(1) and
44 CFR 352.5. This information will be
collected by the NRC and will be
provided to FEMA through consultation
between the two agencies.
Affected Public: Business or other forprofits.
Estimated Total Annual Burden
Hours: 160 hours.
TABLE A.12—ESTIMATED ANNUALIZED BURDEN HOURS AND COSTS
Type of
respondent
Business or other
for profits.
Business or other
for profits.
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Business or other
for profits.
VerDate Aug<31>2005
Form name/
form No.
Submission of decline/fail certification—No Form
number.
Document with explanation of why
assistance needed.
Document with response of State
Governor or
local official with
emergency preparedness plans.
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Jkt 214001
Number of
responses per
respondent
Number of
respondents
Avg. burden
per response
(in hours)
Total annual
burden
(in hours)
Avg. hourly
wage rate
Total annual
respondent
cost
1
40
40
$46.70
$1868
1
1
20
20
46.70
934
1
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1
1
40
40
46.70
1868
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 177 (Thursday, September 11, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52865-52868]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-21075]
=======================================================================
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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
Office of the Secretary
[Docket No. DHS-2008-0079]
Privacy Act of 1974; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Bond Management Information System (BMIS) System of Records
AGENCY: Privacy Office, DHS.
ACTION: Notice of Privacy Act system of records.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974 and as part of the
Department of Homeland Security's ongoing effort to review and update
legacy system of record notices, U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement (ICE) proposes to republish a legacy record system titled
Justice/INS.008, Bond Management Information System (63 FR 70159, Dec.
18, 1998) as an ICE system of records titled Bond Management
Information System. Categories of individuals, categories of records,
and the routine uses of this legacy system of records notice has been
consolidated and updated to better reflect the agency's immigration
bond administration and financial management records. This system will
be included in the Department of Homeland Security's inventory of
record systems. ICE is not claiming any Privacy Act exemptions for this
system of records.
DATES: The established system of records will be effective October 14,
2008. Written comments must be submitted on or before October 14, 2008.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by docket number DHS-
2008-0079 by one of the following methods:
Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
Fax: 1-866-466-5370.
Mail: Hugo Teufel III, Chief Privacy Officer, Privacy
Office, Department of Homeland Security, Washington, DC 20528.
Instructions: All submissions received must include the
agency name and docket number for this rulemaking. All comments
received will be posted without change to https://www.regulations.gov,
including any personal information provided.
Docket: For access to the docket to read background
documents or comments received go to https://www.regulations.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lyn Rahilly (202-514-1900), Privacy
Officer, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, 425 I Street, NW.,
Washington, DC 20536, or Hugo Teufel III (703-235-0780), Chief Privacy
Officer, Privacy Office, U.S. Department of Homeland Security,
Washington, DC 20528.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
The Bond Management Information System (BMIS) is a collection of
records used to record and maintain for bond administration and
financial management purposes the immigration bonds that are posted for
aliens. Immigration bond administration includes tracking the issuance,
maintenance, cancellation, and revocation of bonds. Financial
management activities include collection, reimbursement or forfeiture
of the bond principal, and calculation and payment of interest,
including issuance of IRS Form 1099 to the obligor reflecting interest
paid on the bond. Pursuant to the savings clause in the Homeland
Security Act of 2002, Public Law 107-296, section 1512, 116 Stat. 2310
(November 25, 2002), DHS and its components and offices have relied on
preexisting Privacy Act systems of records notices for the maintenance
of records that concern the administration and financial management
operations of ICE's immigration bond program.
The BMIS system of records includes immigration bond data
maintained in ICE's enforcement records and in BMIS Web, a new
immigration bond management database that will be used by the ICE
Office of Financial Management to track the life cycle of immigration
bonds from the time an individual posts the bond at an ICE Detention
and Removal Operations (DRO) field office until the bond is considered
closed. BMIS Web launched as a pilot in August 2008, with full
deployment scheduled for September 2008. With the deployment of BMIS
Web, ICE will retire the predecessor database known as BMIS. A PIA was
conducted on BMIS Web because it is a new system that will maintain
personally identifiable information. The BMIS Web PIA is available on
the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Privacy Office Web site at
https://www.dhs.gov/privacy.
An immigration bond is a formal written guaranty by the obligor
posted as security for the amount of the bond that assures DHS that all
of the conditions of the bond will be fulfilled by the obligor as
guarantor. Immigration bonds may be posted for the release from
detention of aliens in removal proceedings and/or as voluntary
departure bonds. Immigration bonds may be posted by surety companies
that have obtained a certificate to do so from the U.S. Treasury
Department, or by an individual's or entity's pledge (deposit) of cash
or U.S. securities. If the conditions of a bond are satisfied, the bond
must be cancelled and, if a cash bond, the principal and accrued
interest returned to the obligor. If a bond is declared breached, the
cash deposited as security will be forfeited and accrued interest
returned to the obligor. Surety companies must make payment to DHS for
the full amount of the bond plus interest and penalties. All of these
bond activities are tracked in BMIS.
BMIS maintains personal information about individuals who post cash
bonds (known as obligors) or who request a surety bond (known as
indemnitors), the bonded alien, the surety company and bonding agency/
agent, and other general information about the bond itself, such as
amount, number, date, etc. Information about the bonded alien may be
shared with individuals or entities seeking to post or that have
already posted an immigration bond for the
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alien. BMIS information is also shared with the Internal Revenue
Service to report any interest paid to obligors. Information about
surety bonds may be shared with Department of Justice legal counsel;
the U.S. Treasury Department; insurance investigators for surety
companies; or bonding agencies and legal representatives for surety
companies and bonding agencies. This information is shared when ICE is
pursuing further collection efforts on the surety bond receivables or
if an agent or bonding agency that posts surety bonds is being
investigated for its business practices.
Consistent with DHS's information sharing mission, information
stored in BMIS may be shared with other DHS components, as well as
appropriate Federal, State, local, tribal, foreign, or international
government agencies. This sharing will only take place after DHS
determines that the receiving component or agency has a need to know
the information to carry out national security, law enforcement,
immigration, intelligence, or other functions consistent with the
routine uses set forth in this system of records notice.
II. Privacy Act
The Privacy Act embodies fair information principles in a statutory
framework governing the means by which the United States Government
collects, maintains, uses, and disseminates personally identifiable
information. The Privacy Act applies to information that is maintained
in a ``system of records.'' A ``system of records'' is a group of any
records under the control of an agency for which information is
retrieved by the name of an individual or by some identifying number,
symbol, or other identifying particular assigned to the individual. In
the Privacy Act, an individual is defined to encompass United States
citizens and lawful permanent residents. As a matter of policy, DHS
extends administrative Privacy Act protections to all individuals where
systems of records maintain information on U.S. citizens, lawful
permanent residents, and visitors. Individuals may request access to
their own records that are maintained in a system of records in the
possession or under the control of DHS by complying with DHS Privacy
Act regulations, 6 CFR Part 5.
The Privacy Act requires each agency to publish in the Federal
Register a description denoting the type and character of each system
of records that the agency maintains, and the routine uses that are
contained in each system in order to make agency record keeping
practices transparent, to notify individuals regarding the uses to
which personally identifiable information is put, and to assist
individuals to more easily find such files within the agency. Below is
the description of the BMIS system of records.
In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552a(r), DHS has provided a report of
this new system of records to the Office of Management and Budget and
to Congress.
SYSTEM OF RECORDS
DHS/ICE-004.
SYSTEM NAME:
Bond Management Information System.
SECURITY CLASSIFICATION:
Unclassified.
SYSTEM LOCATION:
Records are maintained at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
(ICE) Headquarters in Washington, DC; ICE Office of Financial
Management facilities in Williston, Vermont; and ICE field offices.
CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM:
Categories of individuals covered by this system include:
Individuals who post cash immigration bonds for aliens (known as
obligors); aliens for whom an immigration bond is posted (known as
bonded aliens); individuals that arrange for the posting of surety
bonds for aliens (known as indemnitors); individual bond agents who
post surety bonds; and notaries public and attorneys.
CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
For the Obligor: Name; Social Security Number/Tax Identification
Number; address; phone number.
For the Bonded Alien: Name; alien number; location (while in
detention); Address(es) and phone number of residence upon release;
date and country of birth; nationality; and date and port of arrival;
For the Indemnitor: Name; address(es); and phone number.
For the Bonding Agent: Name; Tax Identification Number;
address(es); and phone number.
General bond information, including: bond number; bond amount;
securities pledged; bond types; bond status; location and date of
posted bond; dates for bond-related activities, such as declaration of
breach; names and titles of DHS officials that approve, cancel, or
declare breaches of bonds; names and contact information for notary
public and attorney in fact; information such as dates, forms, status
and outcome, concerning motions to reconsider a breach or cancellation
of bonds; and information such as dates, forms, status and outcome,
about bond-related appeals.
AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
Sections 103, 213, 236, 240B, and 293 of the Immigration and
Nationality Act, as amended (8 U.S.C. 1103, 1183, 1226, 1229c, and
1363, respectively).
PURPOSE(S):
The purpose of this system is to maintain records related to the
administration and financial management operations of ICE's immigration
bond program. Immigration bond administration includes the issuance,
maintenance, cancellation, and revocation of bonds. Financial
management operations include collection, reimbursement or forfeiture
of the bond principal, and calculation and payment of interest,
including issuance of IRS Form 1099 to the obligor reflecting interest
paid on the bond.
ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES
OF USERS AND THE PURPOSES OF SUCH USES:
In addition to those disclosures generally permitted under 5 U.S.C.
552a(b) of the Privacy Act, all or a portion of the records or
information contained in this system may be disclosed outside DHS as a
routine use pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(b)(3) as follows:
A. To the Department of Justice or other Federal agency conducting
litigation or in proceedings before any court, adjudicative or
administrative body, when (1) DHS or any component thereof; (2) any
employee of DHS in his/her official capacity; (3) any employee of DHS
in his/her individual capacity where DOJ or DHS has agreed to represent
the employee; or (4) the United States or any agency thereof, is a
party to the litigation or has an interest in such litigation; and DHS
determines that the records are both relevant and necessary to the
litigation and the use of such records is compatible with the purpose
for which DHS collected the records.
B. To a congressional office from the record of an individual in
response to an inquiry from that congressional office made at the
request of the individual to whom the record pertains.
C. To the National Archives and Records Administration or other
Federal government agencies pursuant to records management inspections
being conducted under the authority of 44 U.S.C. 2904 and 2906.
D. To an agency, organization, or individual for the purpose of
performing
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audit or oversight operations as authorized by law, but only such
information as is necessary and relevant to such audit or oversight
function.
E. To appropriate agencies, entities, and persons when (1) ICE
suspects or has confirmed that the security or confidentiality of
information in the system of records has been compromised; (2) ICE has
determined that as a result of the suspected or confirmed compromise
there is a risk of harm to economic or property interests, identity
theft or fraud, or harm to the security or integrity of this system or
other systems or programs (whether maintained by ICE or another agency
or entity) that rely upon the compromised information, or harm to the
individual; and (3) the disclosure made to such agencies, entities, and
persons is reasonably necessary to assist in connection with ICE's
efforts to respond to the suspected or confirmed compromise and
prevent, minimize, or remedy such harm.
F. To contractors and their agents, grantees, experts, consultants,
and others performing or working on a contract, service, grant,
cooperative agreement, or other assignment for DHS, when necessary to
accomplish an agency function related to this system of records.
Individuals provided information under this routine use are subject to
the same Privacy Act requirements and limitations on disclosure as are
applicable to DHS officers and employees.
G. To an appropriate Federal, State, tribal, local, international,
or foreign law enforcement agency or other appropriate authority
charged with investigating or prosecuting a violation or enforcing or
implementing a law, rule, regulation, or order, where a record, either
on its face or in conjunction with other information, indicates a
violation or potential violation of law, which includes criminal,
civil, or regulatory violations and such disclosure is proper and
consistent with the official duties of the person making the
disclosure.
H. To the U.S. Treasury Department to facilitate payments owed to
obligors and for the reporting of interest payments to the Internal
Revenue Service.
I. To the Department of Justice, the U.S. Treasury Department,
other appropriate Federal agencies, State insurance regulators, credit
bureaus, debt collection agencies, legal representatives for surety
companies and bonding agencies, and insurance investigators to provide
information relevant to (1) investigations of an agent or bonding
agency that posts surety bonds, or (2) activities related to collection
of unpaid monies owed to the U.S. Government on immigration bonds.
J. To agencies, individuals, or entities as necessary to locate
individuals who are owed money or property connected with the issuance
of an immigration bond.
K. To an individual or entity seeking to post or arrange, or who
has already posted or arranged, an immigration bond for an alien to aid
the individual or entity in (1) identifying the location of the alien,
or (2) posting the bond, obtaining payments related to the bond, or
conducting other administrative or financial management activities
related to the bond.
L. To the news media and the public, with the approval of the Chief
Privacy Officer in consultation with legal counsel, when there exists a
legitimate public interest in the disclosure of the information or when
disclosure is necessary to preserve confidence in the integrity of DHS
or is necessary to demonstrate the accountability of DHS's officers,
employees, or individuals covered by the system, except to the extent
it is determined that release of the specific information in the
context of a particular case would constitute an unwarranted invasion
of personal privacy.
DISCLOSURE TO CONSUMER REPORTING AGENCIES:
Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(b)(12), disclosures may be made from this
system to consumer reporting agencies in accordance with 31 U.S.C.
3711(e).
POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORING, RETRIEVING, ACCESSING, RETAINING,
AND DISPOSING OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
STORAGE:
Records in this system are stored electronically or on paper in
secure facilities in a locked drawer behind a locked door. The records
are stored on magnetic disc, tape, digital media, and CD-ROM.
RETRIEVABILITY:
Records may be retrieved by any of the following: bond number,
Social Security or Tax Identification Numbers (SSN/TIN), alien name,
alien number, obligor name, surety company name, or location and date
bond was posted.
SAFEGUARDS:
Records in this system are safeguarded in accordance with
applicable rules and policies, including all applicable DHS automated
systems security and access policies. Strict controls have been imposed
to minimize the risk of compromising the information that is being
stored. Access to the computer systems containing the records in this
system is limited to those individuals who have a need to know the
information for the performance of their official duties and who have
appropriate clearances or permissions. The system maintains a real-time
auditing function of individuals who access electronic records.
Additional safeguards may vary by component and program.
RETENTION AND DISPOSAL:
Under the existing retention schedule, information is retained for
six years and three months after the bond is closed or cancelled and
the collateral is returned to the obligor. Copies of the Form I-352
(Immigration Bond) are placed into the alien's A-File and maintained
for the life of that file (75 years).
SYSTEM MANAGER AND ADDRESS:
Director, Financial Systems Modernization, 800 K Street, NW.,
Washington, DC 20536; Director, Office of Detention and Removal, 425 I
Street, NW., Washington, DC 20536.
NOTIFICATION PROCEDURE:
Individuals seeking notification of and access to any record
contained in this system of records, or seeking to contest its content,
may submit a request in writing to the component's FOIA Officer, whose
contact information can be found at https://www.dhs.gov/foia under
``contacts.'' If an individual believes more than one component
maintains Privacy Act records concerning him or her the individual may
submit the request to the Chief Privacy Officer, Department of Homeland
Security, 245 Murray Drive, SW., Building 410, STOP-0550, Washington,
DC 20528.
When seeking records about yourself from this system of records or
any other Departmental system of records your request must conform with
the Privacy Act regulations set forth in 6 CFR Part 5. You must first
verify your identity, meaning that you must provide your full name,
current address and date and place of birth. You must sign your
request, and your signature must either be notarized or submitted under
28 U.S.C. 1746, a law that permits statements to be made under penalty
or perjury as a substitute for notarization. While no specific form is
required, you may obtain forms for this purpose from the Director,
Disclosure and FOIA, https://www.dhs.gov or 1-866-431-0486. In addition
you should provide the following:
An explanation of why you believe the Department would
have information on you,
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Identify which component(s) of the Department you believe
may have the information about you,
Specify when you believe the records would have been
created,
Provide any other information that will help the FOIA
staff determine which DHS component agency may have responsive records,
If your request is seeking records pertaining to another
living individual, you must include a statement from that individual
certifying his/her agreement for you to access his/her records.
Without this bulleted information the component(s) will not be able
to conduct an effective search, and your request may be denied due to
lack of specificity or lack of compliance with applicable regulations.
RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURES:
See ``Notification procedure'' above.
CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES:
See ``Notification procedure'' above.
RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
Information is obtained from individuals, entities, indemnitors,
surety companies, and bonding agencies and agents.
EXEMPTIONS CLAIMED FOR THE SYSTEM:
None.
Dated: September 3, 2008.
John W. Kropf,
Acting Chief Privacy Officer, Department of Homeland Security.
[FR Doc. E8-21075 Filed 9-10-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-10-P
