§ 16.41 - Privacy Act requests for access to records.

§ 16.41 Requests Privacy Act requests for access to records.

(a) How made and addressed. You may make a General information.

(1) The Department has a decentralized system for responding to Privacy Act requests for access to records, with each component designating an office to process Privacy Act requests for access to records maintained by that component. A requester may make a Privacy Act request for access to

a Department of Justice record about yourself by appearing in person or by

records about the requester by writing directly to the

Department

component that maintains the

record. Your

records. All components have the capability to receive requests electronically either through email or a web portal. The request should be sent or delivered to the component's

Privacy Act

office at the address listed in appendix I to this part

. In most cases

,

a component's central Privacy Act office is the place to send a Privacy Act request. For records held by a field office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) or the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), however, you must write directly to that FBI or INS field office address, which can be found in most telephone books or by calling the component's central Privacy Act office. (

or in accordance with the access procedures outlined in the corresponding SORN. The functions of each component are summarized in

Part

part 0 of this title and in the description of the Department and its components in the

“United

United States Government Manual,

”

which is

issued annually

updated on a year-round basis and is available

in most libraries, as well as for sale from the Government Printing Office's Superintendent of Documents. This manual also can be accessed electronically at the Government Printing Office's World Wide Web site (which can be found at http

free of charge at https://www.

access

usgovernmentmanual.

gpo.

gov/

su_docs). If you

.

(2) If a requester cannot determine where within the Department to send

your request, you

the Privacy Act request for access to records, the requester may send it by mail to the FOIA/PA Mail Referral Unit, Justice Management Division,

U.S.

Department of Justice, 950 Pennsylvania Avenue

,

NW

.

, Washington, DC 20530–0001

, and that office will forward it

; by email to [e-mail]; or by fax to (202) 616–6695. The Mail Referral Unit will forward the request to the component(s) it believes most likely to have the requested records

that you seek

. For the quickest possible handling,

you

the requester should mark both

your

the request letter and the envelope “Privacy Act Access Request.”

(b) Description of records sought. You Requesters must describe the records that you want sought in enough sufficient detail to enable Department personnel to locate the applicable system of records containing them with a reasonable amount of effort. Whenever To the extent possible, your request should describe the records sought, the time periods in which you believe they were compiled, and the requesters should include specific information that may assist a component in identifying the requested records, such as the name or identifying number of each system of records in which you believe they are keptthe requester believes the records are maintained, or the date, title, name, author, recipient, case number, file designation, reference number, or subject matter of the record. The Department publishes notices SORNs in the Federal Register that describe its components' systems of records. A description of the Department's systems of records also may be found as part of the “Privacy Act Compilation” published by the National Archives and Records Administration's Office of the Federal Register. This compilation is available in most large reference and university libraries. This compilation also can be accessed electronically at the Government Printing Office's World Wide Web site (which can be found at httpthe type and categories of records maintained in Department-wide and component-specific systems of records. Department SORNs may be found in published issues of the Federal Register and a list is available at https://www.accessjustice.gpo.gov/su_docs). opcl/doj-systems-records. Requesters may also request the record in a particular form or format.

(c) Agreement to pay fees. If you make a A Privacy Act request for access to records, it shall be considered an agreement by you to pay all applicable fees charged under may specify the amount of fees that the requester is willing to pay in accordance with § 16.49, up to $25. 00. The component responsible for responding to your the request ordinarily shall confirm this agreement in an acknowledgement letter. When making a request, you may specify a willingness to pay a greater or lesser amount. , in accordance with § 16.43.

(d) Verification of identity. When you make a

(1) A requester must verify the requester's identity when making a Privacy Act request for access

to records about yourself, you must verify your identity. You must state your

. The requester must state the requester's full name, current address, and date and place of birth.

You must sign your request and your

The requester must:

(i) Sign the request, and the signature must either be notarized or submitted by

you

the requester under 28 U.S.C. 1746, a law that permits statements to be made under penalty of perjury as a substitute for notarization; or

(ii) When available, use one of the Department's approved digital services, as indicated on the Department's Privacy Act Request web page, to verify the identity of the requester through identity proofing and authentication processes.

(2) While no specific form is required,

you

the requester may obtain forms for this purpose from the FOIA/PA Mail Referral Unit, Justice Management Division,

U.S.

Department of Justice, 950 Pennsylvania Avenue

,

NW

.

, Washington, DC 20530–0001

. In order to help the identification and location of requested records, you may also, at your option, include your social security number.

, or obtain the form at https://www.justice.gov/oip/doj-reference-guide-attachment-d-copies-forms.

(3) To help identify and locate requested records, a requester may also include, at the requester's option, any additional identifying information which may be helpful in identifying and locating the requested records. Components shall establish appropriate administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to ensure the security and confidentiality of information provided by the requester, and to protect against any anticipated threats, in accordance with § 16.51.

(e) Verification of guardianship. When making a request as the parent or guardian

(1) The parent of a minor, or

as

the legal guardian of

someone determined

an individual who has been declared incompetent due to physical or mental incapacity or age by a court

to be incompetent, for access to records about that individual, you

of competent jurisdiction, is permitted to act on behalf of the individual. In order for a parent of a minor or the legal guardian of an individual to make a Privacy Act request for access on behalf of the individual, the parent or legal guardian must establish:

(

1

i) The identity of the individual who is the subject of the

record

request, by stating the name, current address, date and place of birth, and, at

your option, the social security number of the individual;

(2) Your

the parent or legal guardian's option, any additional identifying information that may be helpful in identifying and locating the requested records;

(ii) The parent or legal guardian's own identity, as required in paragraph (d) of this section;

(

3) That you are the parent or guardian of that individual, which you may prove

iii) Proof of parentage or legal guardianship, which may be proven by providing a copy of the individual's birth certificate

showing your parentage

or by providing a court order establishing

your

legal guardianship; and

(

4

iv) That

you are

the parent or legal guardian is acting on behalf of that individual in making the request.

[Order No. 2156–98, 63 FR 29600, June 1, 1998; 63 FR 34965, June 26, 1998; 63 FR 51401, Sept. 25, 1998]

(2) Components shall establish appropriate administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to ensure the security and confidentiality of information provided by the parent or legal guardian, and to protect against any anticipated threats, in accordance with § 16.51.