03-21566. Privacy Act of 1974; Notice of Matching Program

AGENCY:

Department of Veterans Affairs.

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

Notice is hereby given that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) intends to conduct a recurring computer program matching Internal Revenue Service (IRS) records with VA pension and parents' dependency and indemnity compensation (DIC) records.

The purpose of this match is to compare income status as reported to VA with records maintained by IRS. The legal authority for this match is section 6103(l)(7) of the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. 6103(l)(7)) and 38 U.S.C. 5317.

VA plans to match records of veterans, surviving spouses and children who receive pension, and parents who receive DIC, with data from the IRS income tax return information as it relates to unearned income.

VA will use this information to adjust VA benefit payments as prescribed by law. The proposed matching program will enable VA to ensure accurate reporting of income.

Records To Be Matched: VA records involved in the match are the VA system of records, Compensation, Pension, Education and Rehabilitation Records—VA (58 VA 21/22). The IRS records will come from the Wage and Information Returns (IRP) Processing File, Treas/IRS 22.061, hereafter referred to as the Information Return Master File (IRMF), as published at 66 FR 63797 (December 10, 2001) through the Disclosure of Information to Federal, State and Local Agencies (DIFSLA) program. In accordance with Title 5 U.S.C. subsection 552a(o)(2) and (r), copies of the agreement are being sent to both Houses of Congress and to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

This notice is provided in accordance with the provisions of the Privacy Act of 1974 as amended by P.L. 100-503.

DATES:

The match will start no sooner than 30 days after publication of this Notice in the Federal Register, or 40 days after copies of this Notice and the agreement of the parties are submitted to Congress and OMB, whichever is later, and end not more than 18 months after the agreement is properly implemented by the parties. The involved agencies' Data Integrity Boards (DIB) may extend this match for 12 months provided the agencies certify to their DIBs within three months of the ending date of the original match that the matching program will be conducted without change and that the matching program has been conducted in compliance with the original matching program.

ADDRESSES:

Mail or hand-deliver written comments to: Director, Regulations Management (00REG1), Department of Veterans Affairs, 810 Vermont Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20420. All comments received will be available for public inspection in the Office of Regulation Policy and Management, Room 1158, 810 Vermont Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20420, between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday except holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Paul Trowbridge (212B), [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

This information is required by Title 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(12), the Privacy Act of 1974. A copy of this notice has been provided to both Houses of Congress and OMB.

Approved: August 4, 2003.

Anthony J. Principi,

Secretary of Veterans Affairs.