2012-103. Privacy Act of 1974, as Amended

AGENCY:

Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection.

ACTION:

Notice of Proposed Privacy Act System of Records.

SUMMARY:

In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, hereinto referred to as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB” or the “Bureau”), gives notice of the establishment of a Privacy Act System of Records.

DATES:

Comments must be received no later than February 8, 2012. The new system of records will be effective February 21, 2012 unless the comments received result in a contrary determination.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments, identified by Docket No. CFPB-2011-0045, by any of the following methods:

• Electronic: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
• Mail: Claire Stapleton, Chief Privacy Officer, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, 1700 G Street NW., Washington, DC 20006.
• Hand Delivery/Courier in Lieu of Mail: Claire Stapleton, Chief Privacy Officer, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, 1700 G Street NW., Washington, DC 20006.

All submissions must include the agency name and docket number for this notice. In general all comments received will be posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov. In addition, comments will be available for public inspection and copying at 1700 G Street NW., Washington, DC 20006 on official business days between the hours of 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Eastern Time. You can make an appointment to inspect comments by telephoning [phone]. All comments, including attachments and other supporting materials, will become part of the public record and subject to public disclosure. You should submit only information that you wish to make available publicly.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Claire Stapleton, Chief Privacy Officer Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, 1700 G Street NW., Washington, DC 20006, [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (“Act”), Public Law 111-203, Title X, established the CFPB to administer and enforce Federal consumer financial protection law. The CFPB will maintain the records covered by this notice.

The new system of records described in this notice, CFPB.015—Ethics Program Records, will provide the CFPB with a single, agency-wide repository for questions submitted to the CFPB Ethics Office and requests for advice or clarification. The Ethics Program Records will allow the CFPB to manage and appropriately document the CFPB's compliance with government ethics program requirements. A description of the new system of records follows this Notice.

The report of a new system of records has been submitted to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of the House of Representatives, the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate, and the Office of Management and Budget, pursuant to Appendix I to OMB Circular A-130, “Federal Agency Responsibilities for Maintaining Records About Individuals,” dated November 30, 2000, and the Privacy Act, 5 U.S.C. 552a(r).

The system of records entitled, “CFPB.015—Ethics Program Records” is published in its entirety below.

Dated: January 4, 2011.

Claire Stapleton,

Chief Privacy Officer.

CFPB.015

System Name:

CFPB Ethics Program Records.

System Location:

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, 1700 G Street NW., Washington, DC 20006.

Categories of individuals covered by the system:

Individuals covered by this system include prospective, current and former CFPB employees.

Categories of records in the system:

Records maintained in this system may contain, without limitation, the following information about an individual: Name; address; telephone number; ethics advice; outside activity approvals (i.e. activities outside of, or not related to, a CFPB employee's current official work); ethics agreements; information in support of Public Financial Disclosure Reports and Confidential Financial Disclosure Reports which are not already covered by the government-wide SORNs Executive Branch Public Financial Disclosure Reports and Other Ethics Program Records (OGE/GOVT-1) and Confidential Statements of Employment and Financial Interests (OGE/GOVT-2); and any other name-retrieved Ethics Program Records. Information contained in the Ethics Program Records will be generated by CFPB employees who: Provide ethics advice; review and approve outside activities requests; create ethics agreements; and track completion of employee orientation and annual training sessions. Whenever practicable, the CFPB will collect information about an individual directly from that individual.

Authority for maintenance of the system:

Ethics in Government Act of 1978, 5 U.S.C. app.; Ethics Reform Act of 1989, Pub. L. 101-194; 5 CFR parts 735 & 2634, and other applicable ethics-related laws, rules, and Executive Orders; Pub. L. 111-203, Title X, Section 1012 codified at 12 U.S.C. 5492.^[1]

Purpose(s):

The information in the system is being collected to manage and appropriately document the CFPB's compliance with government ethics program requirements.

Routine uses of records maintained in the system, including categories of users and the purposes of such uses:

These records may be disclosed, consistent with the CFPB Disclosure of Records and Information Rules, promulgated at 12 CFR part 1070 et seq., to:

(1) Appropriate agencies, entities, and persons when: (a) The CFPB suspects or has confirmed that the security or confidentiality of information in the system of records has been compromised; (b) the CFPB 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 the CFPB or another agency or entity) that rely upon the compromised information; and (c) the disclosure made to such agencies, entities, and persons is reasonably necessary to assist in connection with the CFPB's efforts to respond to the suspected or confirmed compromise and prevent, minimize, or remedy such harm;

(2) Another Federal or state agency to: (a) Permit a decision as to access, amendment or correction of records to be made in consultation with or by that agency; or (b) verify the identity of an individual or the accuracy of information submitted by an individual who has requested access to, or amendment or correction of records;

(3) The Office of the President in response to an inquiry from that office made at the request of the subject of a record or a third party on that person's behalf;

(4) Congressional offices in response to an inquiry made at the request of the individual to whom the record pertains;

(5) Contractors, agents, or other authorized individuals performing work on a contract, service, cooperative agreement, job, or other activity on behalf of the CFPB or Federal Government and who have a need to access the information in the performance of their duties or activities;

(6) The U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) for its use in providing legal advice to the CFPB or in representing the CFPB in a proceeding before a court, adjudicative body, or other administrative body, where the use of such information by the DOJ is deemed by the CFPB to be relevant and necessary to the advice or proceeding, and in the case of a proceeding, such proceeding names as a party in interest:

(a) The CFPB;

(b) Any employee of the CFPB in his or her official capacity;

(c) Any employee of the CFPB in his or her individual capacity where DOJ has agreed to represent the employee; or

(d) The United States, where the CFPB determines that litigation is likely to affect the CFPB or any of its components;

(7) A grand jury pursuant either to a Federal or state grand jury subpoena, or to a prosecution request that such record be released for the purpose of its introduction to a grand jury, where the subpoena or request has been specifically approved by a court; and

(8) A court, magistrate, or administrative tribunal in the course of an administrative proceeding or judicial proceeding, including disclosures to opposing counsel or witnesses (including expert witnesses) in the course of discovery or other pre-hearing exchanges of information, litigation, or settlement negotiations, where relevant or potentially relevant to a proceeding, or in connection with criminal law proceedings; and

(9) Appropriate Federal, state, local, foreign, tribal, or self-regulatory organizations or agencies responsible for investigating, prosecuting, enforcing, implementing, issuing, or carrying out a statute, rule, regulation, order, policy, or license if the information may be relevant to a potential violation of civil or criminal law, rule, regulation, order, policy or license.

Policies and practices for storing, retrieving, accessing, retaining, and dispensing of records in the system:

Storage:

Paper and electronic records.

Retrievability:

Records are retrievable by a variety of fields including, but not limited to, the individual's name, address, phone number, or by some combination thereof.

Safeguards:

Access to electronic records is restricted to authorized personnel who have been issued non-transferrable access codes and passwords. Other records are maintained in locked file cabinets or rooms with access limited to those personnel whose official duties require access.

Retention and disposal:

The CFPB will maintain computer electronic and paper records indefinitely until the National Archives and Records Administration approves the CFPB's records disposition schedule.

System manager(s) and address:

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Ethics Officer, 1700 G Street NW., Washington, DC 20006.

Notification procedure:

Individuals seeking notification and access to any record contained in this system of records, or seeking to contest its content, may inquire in writing in accordance with instructions appearing in Title 12, Chapter 10 of the CFR, “Disclosure of Records and Information.” Address such requests to: Chief Privacy Officer, Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, 1700 G Street NW., Washington, DC 20006.

Record access procedures:

See “Notification Procedures” above.

Contesting record procedures:

See “Notification Procedures” above.

Record source categories:

Information in this system is obtained from individuals seeking and responding to requests about ethics issues.

Exemptions claimed for the system:

None.

Footnotes

1.  Section 1066 of the Act grants the Secretary of the Treasury interim authority to perform certain functions of the CFPB. Pursuant to that authority, Treasury published rules on the Disclosure of Records and Information within 12 CFR Chapter X. This SORN is published pursuant to those rules and the Privacy Act.