SORN 09-90-0150
System name: Research and Demonstration Data System, HHS/OCSE.
Security classification: None.
System location: Office of Child Support Enforcement, Department of Health and Human Services, 6110 Executive Boulevard, Rockville, Maryland 20852. Contractor Sites: Contractor addresses may be obtained by writing to the System Manger at the address below.
Categories of individuals covered by the system: Records may be maintained on custodial parents, absent parents, and their children. Such persons may include those who are eligible
for and receiving AFDC, Food Stamps, Medicaid, and Title XX social services as well as those who are non-AFDC recipients of Child Support Enforcement (CSE) services and their relations.
Categories of records in the system: The system will maintain records which will be used for statistical and research analysis only, as well as other records which will be used to conduct program functions involving the research and demonstration projects. Participants will be informed at the time of data collection that information obtained by survey or interview exclusively for statistical and research purposes will be protected from disclosure for other purposes to the fullest extent permissible by law.
The information in this system may include for any person such items as name, social security number, date of birth, State case identification number, local identification number, type of case
(AFDC, non-AFDC, full service, locate only, paternity, etc.), sex, education, race, marital status, medical insurance, AFDC benefits, Food Stamp benefits, Medicaid benefits, gross earned income, work expenses, disregards, child care expenses, unearned income, shelter expenses, Title XX payments, child support obligated amount, child support payments paid and received, employment, assets, and other information as may from time to time be needed. The actual information obtained will vary from research project to research project and may include all, none, or some of the items listed.
Authority for maintenance of the system: Pub. L. 93-647; Pub. L. 96-272; Sec. 1110 of Social Security Act; Pub. L. 98-378.
Purpose(s):
To enable researchers to obtain data needed to conduct various research and demonstration projects in the area of child support enforcement. These projects are to add to existing knowledge and promote improvements or new methods and techniques in the area of child support enforcement operations.
Routine uses of records maintained in the system, including categories of users and the
purposes of such uses:
(1) Disclosure may be made to the Department of Justice in the event of litigation where the defendant is (a) the Department of Health and Human Service (HHS), any component of HHS, or any employee of HHS in his or her official capacity; (b) the United States where HHS determines that the claim, if successful, is likely to directly affect the operations of HHS or any of its components; or (c) any HHS employee in his or her individual capacity where the Justice Department has agreed to represent such employee. In these cases, HHS may disclose such records as it deems desirable or necessary to the Department of Justice to enable that department to present an effective defense, provided such disclosure is compatible with the purpose for which the records were collected.
(2) Disclosure may be made to a congressional office from the record of an individual in response to an inquiry from the congressional office at the request of the individual.
(3) Disclosure may be made to a contractor under contract to OCSE for the performance of research and statistical activities directly related to this system of records in conducting the research and demonstration projects and to provide a statistical data base for research studies.
(4) Records may be disclosed to student volunteers, individuals working under a personal services contract, and other individuals performing functions for the Department but technically not having the status of agency employees, if they need access to the records in order to perform their assigned agency functions.
Policies and practices for storing, retrieving, accessing, retaining, and disposing of records in the system:
Storage: Data may be maintained on disk, magnetic tape, paper records or other formats as appropriate for the individual research project.
Retrievability: Access to records will vary from project to project and may include such methods as name, social security number, State-assigned case number, etc.
Safeguards: All contractors must certify that they are in compliance with the Privacy Act of 1974 and the rules and regulations issued pursuant to that act in the design, development, or operation of any system of records on individuals in order to accomplish an agency function which the contract specifically identifies. All contractors are also subject to the provisions of a “Confidentiality of Information'' article. This article provides that “Unless otherwise specified, all financial, statistical, personnel and/or technical data which is furnished, produced, or otherwise available to the contractor during the performance of this contract are considered confidential and shall not be used for purposes other than performance of work under this contract nor released by the contractor without the prior written consent of the project officer. Any presentation of any statistical or analytical materials, or any reports based on information obtained from the studies covered by this contract, will be subject to review by the Government's project officer before publication or dissemination.''
In addition, where automated systems are used, safeguards shall be established in accordance with the Department's ADP Systems Manual, Part 6, ADP Systems Security.
Retention and disposal: At the conclusion of research and development studies, upon acceptance of the final report by OCSE, the identifying information will be separated from the records and stored in a locked file for a year, after which it will be destroyed.
System manager(s) and address: Director, Policy and Planning Division, Office of Child Support Enforcement, 6110 Executive Boulevard, Rockville, Maryland 20852.
Notification procedure: An individual can determine if this system contains a record about him or her by writing to the system manager at the above address and providing name, address and SSN. (Furnishing the SSN is voluntary, however, it would make searching for the individual's record easier and avoid delay. An individual who is unable or unwilling to furnish his or her SSN will be required to provide other information such as date and place of birth and both parents' names to enable us to locate the record. Also, it would be helpful but not absolutely necessary to identify the particular research project in which the individual participated.) These procedures are in accordance with HHS regulations, 45 CFR 5b.5.
Record access procedures: Same as notification procedures. Requesters should also reasonably specify the record contents being sought. These access procedures are in accordance with HHS regulations 45 CFR 5b.5.
Contesting record procedures: Contact the official at the address specified under System Manager and Address above, and reasonably identify the record and specify the information to be contested and corrective action sought with supporting justification. These procedures are in accordance with HHS regulations 45 CFR 5b.7.
Record source categories: Records in this system will be derived from individuals, program records of other Federal/State welfare programs (e.g., AFDC, Medicaid, Food Stamps, SSI), survey data collected by contractors, child support enforcement agencies, Health Care Financing Administration, employers, and other departments, agencies, or instrumentalities of the United States or any State.
Systems exempted from certain provisions of the act: None.