Privacy Act of 1974; Computer Matching Program Between the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of Health and Human Services: Matching Tenant Data in Assisted Housing Programs, 13403-13406 [2016-05695]
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Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 49 / Monday, March 14, 2016 / Notices
Dated: March 9, 2016.
Brenda B. Smith,
Assistant Commissioner, Office of
International Trade.
[FR Doc. 2016–05678 Filed 3–11–16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9111–14–P
DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND
URBAN DEVELOPMENT
[Docket No. FR–5921–N–01]
Privacy Act of 1974; Computer
Matching Program Between the
Department of Housing and Urban
Development and the Department of
Health and Human Services: Matching
Tenant Data in Assisted Housing
Programs
Office of Administration,
Housing and Urban Development
(HUD).
ACTION: Notice of a new computer
matching agreement between HUD and
Health and Human Services (HHS).
AGENCY:
Pursuant to the Computer
Matching and Privacy Protection Act of
1988, as amended, HUD is providing
notice of its intent to execute a new
computer matching agreement with
HHS for a recurring matching program
with HUD’s Office of Public and Indian
Housing (PIH) and Office of Housing,
involving comparisons of information
provided by participants in any
authorized HUD rental housing
assistance program with the
independent sources of income
information available through the
National Directory of New Hires
(NDNH) maintained by HHS. HUD will
obtain HHS data and make the results
available to: (1) Program administrators
such as public housing agencies (PHAs)
and private owners and management
agents (O/As) (collectively referred to as
POAs) to enable them to verify the
accuracy of income reported by the
tenants (participants) of HUD rental
assistance programs and (2) contract
administrators (CAs) overseeing and
monitoring O/A operations as well as
independent public auditors (IPAs) that
audit both PHAs and O/As.
The most recent renewal of the
current matching agreement expires on
March 15, 2016.
DATES: HUD will file a report of the
subject matching program with the
Committee on Oversight and
Government Reform of the House of
Representatives, the Committee on
Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs of the Senate, and Office of
Management and Budget’s (OMB),
Office of Information and Regulatory
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SUMMARY:
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Affairs. The matching program will
become effective as cited in Section VI
of this notice.
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 20410–0500.
Communications should refer to the
above docket number and title.
Facsimile (FAX) comments are not
acceptable. A copy of each
communication submitted will be
available for public inspection and
copying between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00
p.m. weekdays at the above address.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
Privacy Act Inquiries: Office of
Administration, Office of the Executive
Secretariat, contact Frieda B. Edwards,
Acting Chief Privacy Officer,
Department of Housing and Urban
Development, 451 Seventh Street SW.,
Room 10139, Washington, DC 20410,
telephone number (202) 402–6828. For
program information: Office of Public
and Indian Housing, contact Larry
Tipton, Project Manager for the Real
Estate Assessment Center, Department
of Housing and Urban Development,
451 Seventh Street SW., Room PCFL2,
Washington, DC 20410, telephone
number (202) 475–8746; and for the
Office of Housing, contact Danielle
Garcia, Director of the Housing
Oversight Division, Department of
Housing and Urban Development, 451
Seventh Street SW., Room 6134,
Washington, DC 20410, telephone
number (202) 402–2768. (These are not
toll-free numbers.) A
telecommunications device for hearingand speech-impaired individuals (TTY)
is available at (800) 877–8339 (Federal
Information Relay Service).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On March
11, 2009, Section 239 of HUD’s 2009
Appropriations Act modified Section
904 of the Stewart B. McKinney Act of
1988, as amended, to include the
Disaster Housing Assistance Program
(DHAP) as a ‘‘program’’ of HUD for the
purpose of income verifications and
computer matching. As such, pursuant
to the Computer Matching and Privacy
Protection Act (CMPPA) of 1988, as
amended; OMB’s guidance on this
statute entitled, ‘‘Final Guidance
Interpreting the Provisions of Public
Law 100–503’’; and OMB Circular No.
A–130, Appendix 1 to OMB’s Revisions
of Circular No. A–130, ‘‘Transmittal
Memorandum No. 4, Management of
Federal Information Resources’’; HUD is
providing the public with notice of a
new computer matching agreement with
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13403
HHS (previous notice of a computer
matching program between HUD and
HHS was previously published at 78 FR
47336 on August 5, 2013). The first
HUD–HHS computer matching program
was conducted in September 2005, with
HUD’s Office of Public and Indian
Housing. The scope of the HUD–HHS
computer matching program was
extended to include HUD’s Office of
Housing in December 2007, and the
participants of HUD’s DHAP in January
2011.
The matching program will be carried
out only to the extent necessary to: (1)
Verify the employment and income of
individuals participating in programs
identified in Section II below, to
correctly determine the amount of their
rent and assistance, (2) identify,
prevent, and recover improper
payments made on behalf of tenants,
and (3) after removal of personal
identifiers, to conduct analyses of the
employment and income reporting of
individuals participating in any HUD
authorized rental housing assistance
program.
HUD will make the results of the
computer matching program available to
public housing agencies (PHAs), private
housing owners and management agents
(O/As) administering HUD rental
assistance programs to enable them to
verify employment and income and
correctly determine the rent and
assistance levels for individuals
participating in those programs, and
contract administrators (CAs) overseeing
and monitoring O/A operations. This
information also may be disclosed to the
HUD Office of Inspector General (HUD/
OIG) and the Attorney General in
detecting and investigating potential
cases of fraud, waste, and abuse within
HUD rental assistance programs.
In addition to the above noted
information disclosures, limited
redisclosure of reports containing
NDNH information may be redisclosed
to the following persons and/or entities:
(1) Independent auditors for the sole
purpose of performing an audit of
whether these HUD authorized entities
verified tenants’ employment and/or
income and calculated the subsidy and
rent correctly; and (2) entities and/or
individuals associated with grievance
procedures and judicial proceedings
(i.e. lawyers, court personnel, agency
personnel, grievance hearing officers,
etc.) relating to independently verified
unreported income identified through
this matching program.
HUD and its third party
administrators (PHAs, O/As, and CAs)
will use this matching authority to
identify, reduce or eliminate improper
payments in HUD’s rental housing
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Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 49 / Monday, March 14, 2016 / Notices
assistance programs, while continuing
to ensure that HUD rental housing
assistance programs serve and are
accessible by its intended program
beneficiaries.
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I. Authority
This matching program is being
conducted pursuant to Section 217 of
the Consolidated Appropriation Act of
2004 (Pub. L. 108–199, Approved
January 23, 2004), which amended
Section 453(j) of the Social Security Act
(42 U.S.C. 653(j)), Sections 3003 and
13403 of the Omnibus Budget
Reconciliation Act of 1993 (Pub. L. 103–
66, approved August 10, 1993); Section
542(b) of the 1998 Appropriations Act
(Pub. L. 105–65); Section 904 of the
Stewart B. McKinney Homeless
Assistance Amendments Act of 1988, as
amended by Section 239 of HUD’s 2009
Appropriations, effective March 11,
2009 (42 U.S.C. 3544); Section 165 of
the Housing and Community
Development Act of 1987 (42 U.S.C.
3543); the National Housing Act (12
U.S.C. 1701–1750g); the United States
Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437–
1437z); Section 101 of the Housing and
Community Development Act of 1965
(12 U.S.C. 1701s); the Native American
Housing Assistance and SelfDetermination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C.
4101 et seq.); and the Quality Housing
and Work Responsibility Act of 1998 (42
U.S.C. 1437a(f)).
The Housing and Community
Development Act of 1987 authorizes
HUD to require applicants and
participants (as well as members of their
household 6 years of age and older) in
HUD-administered programs involving
rental housing assistance to disclose to
HUD their Social Security Numbers
(SSNs) as a condition of initial or
continuing eligibility for participation
in the programs. Effective January 31,
2010, all applicants and participants
under the age of 6, are required to
disclose their SSN to HUD, in
accordance with regulatory revisions
made to 24 CFR 5.216, as published at
74 FR 68924, on December 29, 2009.
Section 217 of the Consolidated
Appropriations Act of 2004 (Pub. L.
108–199, approved January 23, 2004)
authorizes HUD to provide to HHS
information on persons participating in
any programs authorized by:
(i) The United States Housing Act of 1937
(42 U.S.C. 1437 et seq.);
(ii) Section 202 of the Housing Act of 1959
(12 U.S.C. 1701q);
(iii) Section 221(d)(3), 221(d)(5) or 236 of
the National Housing Act (12 U.S.C. 17151(d)
and 1715z–1);
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(iv) Section 811 of the Cranston-Gonzalez
National Affordable Housing Act (42 U.S.C.
8013); or
(v) Section 101 of the Housing and Urban
Development Act of 1965 (12 U.S.C. 1701s);
The Refinement of Income and Rent
Determination Requirements in Public
and Assisted Housing Programs:
Implementation of the Enterprise
Income Verification (EIV) System—
Amendments; Final rule published at 74
FR 68924 on December 29, 2009,
requires program administrators to use
HUD’s EIV system to verify tenant
employment and income information
during mandatory re-examinations or
recertification’s of family composition
and income and reduce administrative
and subsidy payment errors in
accordance with HUD administrative
guidance (HUD regulation at 24 CFR
5.233).
This matching program also assists
HUD in complying with the following
Federal laws, requirements, and
guidance related to identifying and
reducing improper payments:
1. Improper Payments Elimination and
Recovery Act of 2010 (IPERA) (Pub. L. 111–
204);
2. Presidential Memorandum on Enhancing
Payment Accuracy Through a ‘‘Do Not Pay
List’’ (June 18, 2010)
3. Office of Management and Budget M–
10–13, Issuance of Part III to OMB Circular
A–123, appendix C;
4. Presidential Memorandum on Finding
and Recapturing Improper Payments (March
10, 2010);
5. Reducing Improper Payments and
Eliminating Waste in Federal Programs
(Executive Order 13520, November 2009);
6. Improper Payments Information Act of
2002 (Pub. L. 107–300); and
7. Office of Management and Budget M–
03–13, Improper Payments Information Act
of 2002 Implementation Guide
This matching program is also
authorized by subsections 453(j)(7)(A),
(C)(i), and (D)(i) of the Social Security
Act (as amended and authorized by
Section 217 of the Consolidated
Appropriations Act of 2004 (Pub. L.
108–199)). Specifically, the
aforementioned law authorizes HHS to
compare information provided by HUD
with data contained in the NDNH and
report the results of the data match to
HUD. The Social Security Act gives
HUD the authority to disclose this
information to CAs, O/As, and PHAs for
the purpose of verifying the
employment and income of individuals
receiving benefits in the above
programs. HUD shall not seek, use or
disclose information relating to an
individual without the prior written
consent of that individual, and HUD has
the authority to require consent as a
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condition of participating in HUD rental
housing assistance programs.
The NDNH contains new hire,
quarterly wage, and unemployment
insurance information furnished by
state and Federal agencies and is
maintained by HHS’ Office of Child
Support Enforcement (OCSE) in its
system of records ‘‘OCSE National
Directory of New Hires,’’ No. 09–80–
0381, published in the Federal Register
at 80 FR 17894 (specifically pages
17906–17909) on April 2, 2015. The
aforementioned published system of
records notice authorizes disclosure of
NDNH information to HUD pursuant to
Routine Use (12) ‘‘for the purpose of
verifying the employment and income
of the individuals and, after removal of
personal identifiers, for the purpose of
conducting analyses of the employment
and income reporting of such
individuals.’’
The HUD records used in the
information comparison are retrieved
from the Tenant Rental Assistance
Certification System (TRACS) covered
under HUD’s Tenant Housing
Assistance and Contract Verification
Data System (HUD/H–11), published on
March 13, 1997 (62 FR 11909); and the
Inventory Management System (IMS),
also known as the Public and Indian
Housing (PIH) Information Center (PIC)
(HUD/PIH.01), published on April 13,
2012 (77 FR 22337). The results of the
information comparison are maintained
within, the HUD system of records,
Enterprise Income Verification System
(EIV), No. HUD/PIH–5, last published in
the Federal Register at 71 FR 45066 on
August 8, 2006, and updated on
September 1, 2009, at 74 FR 45235.
‘‘Routine use’’ (1) of the system of
records authorizes disclosure of HUD
records to HHS.
II. Covered Programs
This notice of computer matching
program applies to the following rental
assistance programs:
A. Disaster Housing Assistance Program
(DHAP)
B. Public Housing
C. Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers (HCV)
D. Project-Based Vouchers
E. Section 8 Moderate Rehabilitation
F. Project-Based Section 8
1. New Construction
2. State Agency Financed
3. Substantial Rehabilitation
4. Sections 202/8
5. Rural Housing Services Section 515/8
6. Loan Management Set-Aside (LMSA)
7. Property Disposition Set-Aside (PDSA)
G. Section 101 Rent Supplement
H. Section 202/162 Project Assistance
Contract (PAC)
I. Section 202 Project Rental Assistance
Contract (PRAC)
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Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 49 / Monday, March 14, 2016 / Notices
J. Section 811 Project Rental Assistance
Contract (PRAC)
K. Section 236 Rental Assistance Program
L. Section 221(d)(3) Below Market Interest
Rate (BMIR)
housing assistance programs. The study
will not contain personally identifiable
information of individuals.
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Note: This notice does not apply to the
Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) or
the Rural Housing Services Section 515
without Section 8 programs.
III. Objectives To Be Met by the
Matching Program
HUD’s primary objective of the
computer matching program is to verify
the employment and income of
individuals participating in the housing
programs identified in Section II above,
to determine the appropriate level of
rental assistance, and to detect, deter
and correct fraud, waste, and abuse in
rental housing assistance programs. In
meeting these objectives, HUD also is
carrying out a responsibility under 42
U.S.C. Sec. 1437f(K) to ensure that
income data provided to PHAs, and
O/As, by household members is
complete and accurate. HUD’s various
rental housing assistance programs
require that participants meet certain
income and other criteria to be eligible
for rental assistance. In addition, tenants
generally are required to report and
recertify the amounts and sources of
their income at least annually. However,
under the QHWRA of 1998, PHAs
operating Public Housing programs may
offer tenants the option to pay a flat
rent, or an income-based rent. Those
tenants who select a flat rent will be
required to recertify income at least
every three years. In addition, the
changes to the Admissions and
Occupancy final rule (March 29, 2000
(65 FR 16692)) specified that household
composition must be recertified
annually for tenants who select a flat
rent or income-based rent.
An additional objective of this
computer matching program is to
facilitate the statistical measurement of
subsidy error by completing an annual
QC study. The QC study provides
national estimates of the extent,
severity, costs, and sources of rent errors
for rental assistance programs,
administered by the Offices of Housing
and Public and Indian Housing. This
study is designed to measure the extent
of administrative errors by housing
providers and tenant income reporting
errors. The errors evaluated in this
study affect the rent contributions
tenants should have been charged. HUD
will use NDNH information resulting
from this data comparison and
disclosure solely for the purpose of
conducting aggregate analyses of
employment and income reporting of
individuals participating in the rental
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IV. Program Description
In this computer matching program,
tenant-provided information included
in HUD’s automated systems of records
known as Tenant Rental Assistance
Certification System (TRACS) covered
under HUD’s Tenant Housing
Assistance and Contract Verification
Data System (HUD/H–11), Inventory
Management System, formerly the
Public and Indian Housing Information
Center (PIC) (commonly referred to as
IMS/PIC) (HUD/PIH–4), and Enterprise
Income Verification (EIV) System (HUD/
PIH–5) will be compared to data from
the NDNH database. HUD will disclose
to HHS only tenant personal identifiers,
i.e., full name, Social Security Number,
and date of birth. HHS will match the
HUD-provided personal identifiers to
personal identifiers included in the
National Directory of New Hires
(NDNH) contained within their systems
of records known as ‘‘OCSE National
Directory of New Hires’’, System
Number 09–80–0381. HHS will provide
employment information and income
data to HUD only for individuals with
matching personal identifiers.
A. Income Verification
Any disparity between tenantreported income and/or sources and the
income and sources derived from the
match (i.e., a ‘‘hit’’) will be further
reviewed by HUD, the program
administrator, or the HUD Office of
Inspector General (OIG) to determine
whether the income reported by tenants
to the program administrator is correct
and complies with HUD and program
administrator requirements.
Specifically, current or prior wage
information and other data will be
sought directly from employers and/or
tenants.
B. Administrative or Legal Actions
With respect to the ‘‘hits’’ that will
occur as a result of this matching
program, HUD requires program
administrators to take appropriate
action in consultation with tenants to:
(1) Resolve income disparities between
tenant-reported and independent
income source data, and (2) use correct
income amounts in determining housing
rental assistance.
Program administrators must compute
the rent in full compliance with all
applicable occupancy regulations.
Program administrator must ensure that
they use the correct income and
correctly compute the rent. The program
administrator may not suspend,
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13405
terminate, reduce, or make a final denial
of any housing assistance to any tenant
as the result of information produced by
this matching program until: (a) The
tenant has received notice from the
program administrator of its findings,
and tenants are informed of the
opportunity to contest such findings
and (b) either the expiration of any
notice period provided in applicable
HUD requirements of the program or the
30-day period beginning on the date on
which notice of adverse findings was
mailed or otherwise provided to the
tenant. In all cases, program
administrators will resolve income
discrepancies in consultation with
tenants. Additionally, serious
violations, which program
administrators, HUD program staff, or
HUD OIG verify, should be referred for
full investigation and appropriate civil
and/or criminal proceedings.
V. Records To Be Matched
HHS will conduct the matching of
tenant SSNs, full names, and dates of
births (DOBs) to tenant data HUD
supplies from its Tenant Rental
Assistance Certification System
(TRACS) (HUD/H–11) and the Public
and Indian Housing Information Center
(PIC) (HUD/PIH–4). Program
administrators utilize the form HUD–
50058 module within the PIC and the
form HUD–50059 module within the
TRACS to provide HUD with the tenant
data.
HHS will match the tenant records
included in HUD/H–11 and HUD/PIH–
4 to NDNH records contained in HHS’
‘‘OCSE National Directory of New
Hires,’’ System Number 09–80–0381.
HUD will place the resulting matched
data into its Enterprise Income
Verification (EIV) system (HUD/PIH–5).
VI. Period of the Match
The matching program will become
effective and the matching may
commence after the respective Data
Integrity Boards (DIBs) of both agencies
approve and sign the computer
matching agreement, and after, the later
of the following: (1) 40 Days after report
of the matching program is sent to
Congress and OMB; (2) at least 30 days
after publication of this notice in the
Federal Register, unless comments are
received, which would result in a
contrary determination. The computer
matching program will be conducted
according to agreement between HUD
and HHS. The computer matching
agreement for the planned match will
terminate either when the purpose of
the computer matching program is
accomplished, or 18 months from the
effective date. The agreement may be
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Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 49 / Monday, March 14, 2016 / Notices
[FR Doc. 2016–05695 Filed 3–11–16; 8:45 am]
the proposed forms or other available
information. Persons with hearing or
speech impairments may access this
number through TTY by calling the tollfree Federal Relay Service at (800) 877–
8339.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Theodore F. Toon, Director Multifamily
Housing Development, Department Of
Housing and Urban Development, 451
7th Street, SW., Washington, DC 20410,
email Theodore.F.Toon@hud.gov or
telephone 202–402–1142. This is not a
toll-free number. Persons with hearing
or speech impairments may access this
number through TTY by calling the tollfree Federal Relay Service at (800) 877–
8339.
Copies of available documents
submitted to OMB may be obtained
from Ms. Pollard.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This
notice informs the public that HUD is
seeking approval from OMB for the
information collection described in
Section A.
BILLING CODE 4210–67–P
A. Overview of Information Collection
renewed for one 12-month period, with
the mutual agreement of all involved
parties, if the following conditions are
met:
(1) Within 3 months of the expiration date,
all Data Integrity Boards (DIBs) review the
agreement, find that the program will be
conducted without change, and find a
continued favorable examination of benefit/
cost results;
(2) All parties certify that the program has
been conducted in compliance with the
agreement.
The agreement may be terminated,
prior to accomplishment of the
computer matching purpose or 18
months from the date the agreement is
signed (whichever comes first), by the
mutual agreement of all involved parties
within 30 days of written notice.
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 552a; 88 Stat. 1896; 42
U.S.C. 3535(d).
Dated: March 3, 2016.
Patricia A. Hoban-Moore,
Chief Administrative Officer.
DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND
URBAN DEVELOPMENT
[Docket No. FR–5913–N–06]
60-Day Notice of Proposed Information
Collection: Multifamily Contractor’s/
Mortgagor’s Cost Breakdowns and
Certifications
Office of the Assistant
Secretary for Housing—Federal Housing
Commissioner, HUD.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
HUD is seeking approval from
the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) for the information collection
described below. In accordance with the
Paperwork Reduction Act, HUD is
requesting comment from all interested
parties on the proposed collection of
information. The purpose of this notice
is to allow for 60 days of public
comment.
SUMMARY:
DATES:
Comments Due Date: May 13,
2016.
Interested persons are
invited to submit comments regarding
this proposal. Comments should refer to
the proposal by name and/or OMB
Control Number and should be sent to:
Colette Pollard, Reports Management
Officer, QDAM, Department of Housing
and Urban Development, 451 7th Street,
SW., Room 4176, Washington, DC
20410–5000; telephone 202–402–3400
(this is not a toll-free number) or email
at Colette.Pollard@hud.gov for a copy of
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ADDRESSES:
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Title of Information Collection:
Multifamily Contractor’s/Mortgagor’s
Cost Breakdowns and Certifications.
OMB Approval Number: 2502–0044.
Type of Request: Extension of
currently approved collection.
Form Number: HUD–92330–A, HUD–
2328, HUD–2205–A.
Description of the need for the
information and proposed use:
Contractors use the form HUD–2328 to
establish a schedule of values of
construction items on which the
monthly advances or mortgage proceeds
are based. Contractors use the form
HUD–92330–A to convey actual
construction costs in a standardized
format of cost certification. In addition
to assuring that the mortgage proceeds
have not been used for purposes other
than construction costs, HUD–92330–A
further protects the interest of the
Department by directly monitoring the
accuracy of the itemized trades on form
HUD–2328. This form also serves as
project data to keep Field Office cost
data banks and cost estimates current
and accurate. HUD–2205A is used to
certify the actual costs of acquisition or
refinancing of projects insured under
Section 223(f) program.
Respondents: Business or other for
profit. Not for profit institutions.
Estimated Number of Respondents:
1807.
Estimated Number of Responses:
3739.
Frequency of Response: 1.
Average Hours per Response: 19.
Total Estimated Burdens: 29,287.
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B. Solicitation of Public Comment
This notice is soliciting comments
from members of the public and affected
parties concerning the collection of
information described in Section A on
the following:
(1) Whether the proposed collection
of information is necessary for the
proper performance of the functions of
the agency, including whether the
information will have practical utility;
(2) The accuracy of the agency’s
estimate of the burden of the proposed
collection of information;
(3) Ways to enhance the quality,
utility, and clarity of the information to
be collected; and
(4) Ways to minimize the burden of
the collection of information on those
who are to respond; including through
the use of appropriate automated
collection techniques or other forms of
information technology, e.g., permitting
electronic submission of responses.
HUD encourages interested parties to
submit comment in response to these
questions.
Authority: Section 3507 of the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995, 44 U.S.C. Chapter 35.
Dated: March 7, 2016.
Janet M. Golrick,
Associate General Deputy Assistant Secretary
for Housing-Associate Deputy Federal
Housing Commissioner.
[FR Doc. 2016–05697 Filed 3–11–16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210–67–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS–HQ–R–2015–N237; FF09D00000–
FXGO1664091HCC0–167]
Wildlife and Hunting Heritage
Conservation Council; Charter
Renewal
Fish and Wildlife Service,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
Under the Federal Advisory
Committee Act (FACA), following
consultation with the General Services
Administration, the Secretary of the
Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture
have renewed the Wildlife and Hunting
Heritage Conservation Council
(Council).
SUMMARY:
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Joshua Winchell, Council Coordinator,
Fish and Wildlife Service, (703) 358–
2639.
The
Council provides recommendations on
wildlife and habitat management,
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
E:\FR\FM\14MRN1.SGM
14MRN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 49 (Monday, March 14, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13403-13406]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-05695]
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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
[Docket No. FR-5921-N-01]
Privacy Act of 1974; Computer Matching Program Between the
Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of
Health and Human Services: Matching Tenant Data in Assisted Housing
Programs
AGENCY: Office of Administration, Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
ACTION: Notice of a new computer matching agreement between HUD and
Health and Human Services (HHS).
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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the Computer Matching and Privacy Protection Act
of 1988, as amended, HUD is providing notice of its intent to execute a
new computer matching agreement with HHS for a recurring matching
program with HUD's Office of Public and Indian Housing (PIH) and Office
of Housing, involving comparisons of information provided by
participants in any authorized HUD rental housing assistance program
with the independent sources of income information available through
the National Directory of New Hires (NDNH) maintained by HHS. HUD will
obtain HHS data and make the results available to: (1) Program
administrators such as public housing agencies (PHAs) and private
owners and management agents (O/As) (collectively referred to as POAs)
to enable them to verify the accuracy of income reported by the tenants
(participants) of HUD rental assistance programs and (2) contract
administrators (CAs) overseeing and monitoring O/A operations as well
as independent public auditors (IPAs) that audit both PHAs and O/As.
The most recent renewal of the current matching agreement expires
on March 15, 2016.
DATES: HUD will file a report of the subject matching program with the
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of the House of
Representatives, the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs of the Senate, and Office of Management and Budget's (OMB),
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. The matching program will
become effective as cited in Section VI of this notice.
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 20410-0500. Communications should refer to the
above docket number and title. Facsimile (FAX) comments are not
acceptable. A copy of each communication submitted will be available
for public inspection and copying between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.
weekdays at the above address.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For Privacy Act Inquiries: Office of
Administration, Office of the Executive Secretariat, contact Frieda B.
Edwards, Acting Chief Privacy Officer, Department of Housing and Urban
Development, 451 Seventh Street SW., Room 10139, Washington, DC 20410,
telephone number (202) 402-6828. For program information: Office of
Public and Indian Housing, contact Larry Tipton, Project Manager for
the Real Estate Assessment Center, Department of Housing and Urban
Development, 451 Seventh Street SW., Room PCFL2, Washington, DC 20410,
telephone number (202) 475-8746; and for the Office of Housing, contact
Danielle Garcia, Director of the Housing Oversight Division, Department
of Housing and Urban Development, 451 Seventh Street SW., Room 6134,
Washington, DC 20410, telephone number (202) 402-2768. (These are not
toll-free numbers.) A telecommunications device for hearing- and
speech-impaired individuals (TTY) is available at (800) 877-8339
(Federal Information Relay Service).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On March 11, 2009, Section 239 of HUD's 2009
Appropriations Act modified Section 904 of the Stewart B. McKinney Act
of 1988, as amended, to include the Disaster Housing Assistance Program
(DHAP) as a ``program'' of HUD for the purpose of income verifications
and computer matching. As such, pursuant to the Computer Matching and
Privacy Protection Act (CMPPA) of 1988, as amended; OMB's guidance on
this statute entitled, ``Final Guidance Interpreting the Provisions of
Public Law 100-503''; and OMB Circular No. A-130, Appendix 1 to OMB's
Revisions of Circular No. A-130, ``Transmittal Memorandum No. 4,
Management of Federal Information Resources''; HUD is providing the
public with notice of a new computer matching agreement with HHS
(previous notice of a computer matching program between HUD and HHS was
previously published at 78 FR 47336 on August 5, 2013). The first HUD-
HHS computer matching program was conducted in September 2005, with
HUD's Office of Public and Indian Housing. The scope of the HUD-HHS
computer matching program was extended to include HUD's Office of
Housing in December 2007, and the participants of HUD's DHAP in January
2011.
The matching program will be carried out only to the extent
necessary to: (1) Verify the employment and income of individuals
participating in programs identified in Section II below, to correctly
determine the amount of their rent and assistance, (2) identify,
prevent, and recover improper payments made on behalf of tenants, and
(3) after removal of personal identifiers, to conduct analyses of the
employment and income reporting of individuals participating in any HUD
authorized rental housing assistance program.
HUD will make the results of the computer matching program
available to public housing agencies (PHAs), private housing owners and
management agents (O/As) administering HUD rental assistance programs
to enable them to verify employment and income and correctly determine
the rent and assistance levels for individuals participating in those
programs, and contract administrators (CAs) overseeing and monitoring
O/A operations. This information also may be disclosed to the HUD
Office of Inspector General (HUD/OIG) and the Attorney General in
detecting and investigating potential cases of fraud, waste, and abuse
within HUD rental assistance programs.
In addition to the above noted information disclosures, limited
redisclosure of reports containing NDNH information may be redisclosed
to the following persons and/or entities: (1) Independent auditors for
the sole purpose of performing an audit of whether these HUD authorized
entities verified tenants' employment and/or income and calculated the
subsidy and rent correctly; and (2) entities and/or individuals
associated with grievance procedures and judicial proceedings (i.e.
lawyers, court personnel, agency personnel, grievance hearing officers,
etc.) relating to independently verified unreported income identified
through this matching program.
HUD and its third party administrators (PHAs, O/As, and CAs) will
use this matching authority to identify, reduce or eliminate improper
payments in HUD's rental housing
[[Page 13404]]
assistance programs, while continuing to ensure that HUD rental housing
assistance programs serve and are accessible by its intended program
beneficiaries.
I. Authority
This matching program is being conducted pursuant to Section 217 of
the Consolidated Appropriation Act of 2004 (Pub. L. 108-199, Approved
January 23, 2004), which amended Section 453(j) of the Social Security
Act (42 U.S.C. 653(j)), Sections 3003 and 13403 of the Omnibus Budget
Reconciliation Act of 1993 (Pub. L. 103-66, approved August 10, 1993);
Section 542(b) of the 1998 Appropriations Act (Pub. L. 105-65); Section
904 of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Amendments Act of
1988, as amended by Section 239 of HUD's 2009 Appropriations, effective
March 11, 2009 (42 U.S.C. 3544); Section 165 of the Housing and
Community Development Act of 1987 (42 U.S.C. 3543); the National
Housing Act (12 U.S.C. 1701-1750g); the United States Housing Act of
1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437-1437z); Section 101 of the Housing and Community
Development Act of 1965 (12 U.S.C. 1701s); the Native American Housing
Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4101 et seq.);
and the Quality Housing and Work Responsibility Act of 1998 (42 U.S.C.
1437a(f)).
The Housing and Community Development Act of 1987 authorizes HUD to
require applicants and participants (as well as members of their
household 6 years of age and older) in HUD-administered programs
involving rental housing assistance to disclose to HUD their Social
Security Numbers (SSNs) as a condition of initial or continuing
eligibility for participation in the programs. Effective January 31,
2010, all applicants and participants under the age of 6, are required
to disclose their SSN to HUD, in accordance with regulatory revisions
made to 24 CFR 5.216, as published at 74 FR 68924, on December 29,
2009.
Section 217 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2004 (Pub. L.
108-199, approved January 23, 2004) authorizes HUD to provide to HHS
information on persons participating in any programs authorized by:
(i) The United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437 et
seq.);
(ii) Section 202 of the Housing Act of 1959 (12 U.S.C. 1701q);
(iii) Section 221(d)(3), 221(d)(5) or 236 of the National
Housing Act (12 U.S.C. 17151(d) and 1715z-1);
(iv) Section 811 of the Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable
Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 8013); or
(v) Section 101 of the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1965
(12 U.S.C. 1701s);
The Refinement of Income and Rent Determination Requirements in
Public and Assisted Housing Programs: Implementation of the Enterprise
Income Verification (EIV) System--Amendments; Final rule published at
74 FR 68924 on December 29, 2009, requires program administrators to
use HUD's EIV system to verify tenant employment and income information
during mandatory re-examinations or recertification's of family
composition and income and reduce administrative and subsidy payment
errors in accordance with HUD administrative guidance (HUD regulation
at 24 CFR 5.233).
This matching program also assists HUD in complying with the
following Federal laws, requirements, and guidance related to
identifying and reducing improper payments:
1. Improper Payments Elimination and Recovery Act of 2010
(IPERA) (Pub. L. 111-204);
2. Presidential Memorandum on Enhancing Payment Accuracy Through
a ``Do Not Pay List'' (June 18, 2010)
3. Office of Management and Budget M-10-13, Issuance of Part III
to OMB Circular A-123, appendix C;
4. Presidential Memorandum on Finding and Recapturing Improper
Payments (March 10, 2010);
5. Reducing Improper Payments and Eliminating Waste in Federal
Programs (Executive Order 13520, November 2009);
6. Improper Payments Information Act of 2002 (Pub. L. 107-300);
and
7. Office of Management and Budget M-03-13, Improper Payments
Information Act of 2002 Implementation Guide
This matching program is also authorized by subsections
453(j)(7)(A), (C)(i), and (D)(i) of the Social Security Act (as amended
and authorized by Section 217 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of
2004 (Pub. L. 108-199)). Specifically, the aforementioned law
authorizes HHS to compare information provided by HUD with data
contained in the NDNH and report the results of the data match to HUD.
The Social Security Act gives HUD the authority to disclose this
information to CAs, O/As, and PHAs for the purpose of verifying the
employment and income of individuals receiving benefits in the above
programs. HUD shall not seek, use or disclose information relating to
an individual without the prior written consent of that individual, and
HUD has the authority to require consent as a condition of
participating in HUD rental housing assistance programs.
The NDNH contains new hire, quarterly wage, and unemployment
insurance information furnished by state and Federal agencies and is
maintained by HHS' Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE) in its
system of records ``OCSE National Directory of New Hires,'' No. 09-80-
0381, published in the Federal Register at 80 FR 17894 (specifically
pages 17906-17909) on April 2, 2015. The aforementioned published
system of records notice authorizes disclosure of NDNH information to
HUD pursuant to Routine Use (12) ``for the purpose of verifying the
employment and income of the individuals and, after removal of personal
identifiers, for the purpose of conducting analyses of the employment
and income reporting of such individuals.''
The HUD records used in the information comparison are retrieved
from the Tenant Rental Assistance Certification System (TRACS) covered
under HUD's Tenant Housing Assistance and Contract Verification Data
System (HUD/H-11), published on March 13, 1997 (62 FR 11909); and the
Inventory Management System (IMS), also known as the Public and Indian
Housing (PIH) Information Center (PIC) (HUD/PIH.01), published on April
13, 2012 (77 FR 22337). The results of the information comparison are
maintained within, the HUD system of records, Enterprise Income
Verification System (EIV), No. HUD/PIH-5, last published in the Federal
Register at 71 FR 45066 on August 8, 2006, and updated on September 1,
2009, at 74 FR 45235. ``Routine use'' (1) of the system of records
authorizes disclosure of HUD records to HHS.
II. Covered Programs
This notice of computer matching program applies to the following
rental assistance programs:
A. Disaster Housing Assistance Program (DHAP)
B. Public Housing
C. Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers (HCV)
D. Project-Based Vouchers
E. Section 8 Moderate Rehabilitation
F. Project-Based Section 8
1. New Construction
2. State Agency Financed
3. Substantial Rehabilitation
4. Sections 202/8
5. Rural Housing Services Section 515/8
6. Loan Management Set-Aside (LMSA)
7. Property Disposition Set-Aside (PDSA)
G. Section 101 Rent Supplement
H. Section 202/162 Project Assistance Contract (PAC)
I. Section 202 Project Rental Assistance Contract (PRAC)
[[Page 13405]]
J. Section 811 Project Rental Assistance Contract (PRAC)
K. Section 236 Rental Assistance Program
L. Section 221(d)(3) Below Market Interest Rate (BMIR)
Note: This notice does not apply to the Low-Income Housing Tax
Credit (LIHTC) or the Rural Housing Services Section 515 without
Section 8 programs.
III. Objectives To Be Met by the Matching Program
HUD's primary objective of the computer matching program is to
verify the employment and income of individuals participating in the
housing programs identified in Section II above, to determine the
appropriate level of rental assistance, and to detect, deter and
correct fraud, waste, and abuse in rental housing assistance programs.
In meeting these objectives, HUD also is carrying out a responsibility
under 42 U.S.C. Sec. 1437f(K) to ensure that income data provided to
PHAs, and O/As, by household members is complete and accurate. HUD's
various rental housing assistance programs require that participants
meet certain income and other criteria to be eligible for rental
assistance. In addition, tenants generally are required to report and
recertify the amounts and sources of their income at least annually.
However, under the QHWRA of 1998, PHAs operating Public Housing
programs may offer tenants the option to pay a flat rent, or an income-
based rent. Those tenants who select a flat rent will be required to
recertify income at least every three years. In addition, the changes
to the Admissions and Occupancy final rule (March 29, 2000 (65 FR
16692)) specified that household composition must be recertified
annually for tenants who select a flat rent or income-based rent.
An additional objective of this computer matching program is to
facilitate the statistical measurement of subsidy error by completing
an annual QC study. The QC study provides national estimates of the
extent, severity, costs, and sources of rent errors for rental
assistance programs, administered by the Offices of Housing and Public
and Indian Housing. This study is designed to measure the extent of
administrative errors by housing providers and tenant income reporting
errors. The errors evaluated in this study affect the rent
contributions tenants should have been charged. HUD will use NDNH
information resulting from this data comparison and disclosure solely
for the purpose of conducting aggregate analyses of employment and
income reporting of individuals participating in the rental housing
assistance programs. The study will not contain personally identifiable
information of individuals.
IV. Program Description
In this computer matching program, tenant-provided information
included in HUD's automated systems of records known as Tenant Rental
Assistance Certification System (TRACS) covered under HUD's Tenant
Housing Assistance and Contract Verification Data System (HUD/H-11),
Inventory Management System, formerly the Public and Indian Housing
Information Center (PIC) (commonly referred to as IMS/PIC) (HUD/PIH-4),
and Enterprise Income Verification (EIV) System (HUD/PIH-5) will be
compared to data from the NDNH database. HUD will disclose to HHS only
tenant personal identifiers, i.e., full name, Social Security Number,
and date of birth. HHS will match the HUD-provided personal identifiers
to personal identifiers included in the National Directory of New Hires
(NDNH) contained within their systems of records known as ``OCSE
National Directory of New Hires'', System Number 09-80-0381. HHS will
provide employment information and income data to HUD only for
individuals with matching personal identifiers.
A. Income Verification
Any disparity between tenant-reported income and/or sources and the
income and sources derived from the match (i.e., a ``hit'') will be
further reviewed by HUD, the program administrator, or the HUD Office
of Inspector General (OIG) to determine whether the income reported by
tenants to the program administrator is correct and complies with HUD
and program administrator requirements. Specifically, current or prior
wage information and other data will be sought directly from employers
and/or tenants.
B. Administrative or Legal Actions
With respect to the ``hits'' that will occur as a result of this
matching program, HUD requires program administrators to take
appropriate action in consultation with tenants to: (1) Resolve income
disparities between tenant-reported and independent income source data,
and (2) use correct income amounts in determining housing rental
assistance.
Program administrators must compute the rent in full compliance
with all applicable occupancy regulations. Program administrator must
ensure that they use the correct income and correctly compute the rent.
The program administrator may not suspend, terminate, reduce, or make a
final denial of any housing assistance to any tenant as the result of
information produced by this matching program until: (a) The tenant has
received notice from the program administrator of its findings, and
tenants are informed of the opportunity to contest such findings and
(b) either the expiration of any notice period provided in applicable
HUD requirements of the program or the 30-day period beginning on the
date on which notice of adverse findings was mailed or otherwise
provided to the tenant. In all cases, program administrators will
resolve income discrepancies in consultation with tenants.
Additionally, serious violations, which program administrators, HUD
program staff, or HUD OIG verify, should be referred for full
investigation and appropriate civil and/or criminal proceedings.
V. Records To Be Matched
HHS will conduct the matching of tenant SSNs, full names, and dates
of births (DOBs) to tenant data HUD supplies from its Tenant Rental
Assistance Certification System (TRACS) (HUD/H-11) and the Public and
Indian Housing Information Center (PIC) (HUD/PIH-4). Program
administrators utilize the form HUD-50058 module within the PIC and the
form HUD-50059 module within the TRACS to provide HUD with the tenant
data.
HHS will match the tenant records included in HUD/H-11 and HUD/PIH-
4 to NDNH records contained in HHS' ``OCSE National Directory of New
Hires,'' System Number 09-80-0381. HUD will place the resulting matched
data into its Enterprise Income Verification (EIV) system (HUD/PIH-5).
VI. Period of the Match
The matching program will become effective and the matching may
commence after the respective Data Integrity Boards (DIBs) of both
agencies approve and sign the computer matching agreement, and after,
the later of the following: (1) 40 Days after report of the matching
program is sent to Congress and OMB; (2) at least 30 days after
publication of this notice in the Federal Register, unless comments are
received, which would result in a contrary determination. The computer
matching program will be conducted according to agreement between HUD
and HHS. The computer matching agreement for the planned match will
terminate either when the purpose of the computer matching program is
accomplished, or 18 months from the effective date. The agreement may
be
[[Page 13406]]
renewed for one 12-month period, with the mutual agreement of all
involved parties, if the following conditions are met:
(1) Within 3 months of the expiration date, all Data Integrity
Boards (DIBs) review the agreement, find that the program will be
conducted without change, and find a continued favorable examination
of benefit/cost results;
(2) All parties certify that the program has been conducted in
compliance with the agreement.
The agreement may be terminated, prior to accomplishment of the
computer matching purpose or 18 months from the date the agreement is
signed (whichever comes first), by the mutual agreement of all involved
parties within 30 days of written notice.
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 552a; 88 Stat. 1896; 42 U.S.C. 3535(d).
Dated: March 3, 2016.
Patricia A. Hoban-Moore,
Chief Administrative Officer.
[FR Doc. 2016-05695 Filed 3-11-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210-67-P
