[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 220 (Thursday, November 18, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 64597-64600]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-25153]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Office of the Secretary

[Docket No. OST-2021-0135]


Privacy Act of 1974; DOT/ALL 028; Employee Accommodations Files

AGENCY: Office of the Departmental Chief Information Officer, Office of 
the Secretary of Transportation, Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Notice of a new system of records.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974, the U.S. 
Department of Transportation (DOT) intends to establish a new system of 
records titled Employee Accommodations Files. This system allows DOT to 
collect, use, maintain, and disseminate the records needed to process, 
manage, maintain, and resolve reasonable accommodation requests from 
employees or applicants for employment based on a medical condition/
disability or a sincerely held religious belief, practice, or 
observance. This includes requests for a medical or religious 
accommodation to decline the COVID-19 vaccination. The information will 
be used to determine whether accommodations are legally required in 
accordance with the Rehabilitation Act and Title VII of the Civil 
Rights Act of 1964.

DATES: This new system of records is effective upon publication; 
however, comments on the Routine Uses will be accepted on or before 
December 20, 2021. The Routine Uses will become effective at the close 
of the comment period. The Department may publish an amended System of 
Records Notice (SORN) in light of any comments received.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by docket number OST-
2021-0135 by any of the following methods:
     Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE, West Building Ground Floor, 
Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
     Hand Delivery or Courier: West Building Ground Floor, Room 
W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET, Monday 
through Friday, except Federal Holidays.
     Instructions: You must include the agency name and docket 
number OST-2021-0135.
     All comments received will be posted without change to 
https://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information 
provided.
    Privacy Act: Anyone is able to search the electronic form of all 
comments received in any of our dockets by the name of the individual 
submitting the comment (or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf 
of an association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review the 
DOT's complete Privacy Act statement in the Federal Register published 
on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477-78), or you may visit https://DocketsInfo.dot.gov.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to https://www.regulations.gov or to the street 
address listed above. Follow the online instructions for accessing the 
docket.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For general and privacy questions, 
please contact: Karyn Gorman, Acting Departmental Chief Privacy 
Officer, Department of Transportation, S-83, Washington, DC 20590, 
Email: [email protected], Tel. (202) 366-3140.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974, 5 U.S.C. 552a, the U.S. 
Department of Transportation (DOT), Office of the Secretary, is 
proposing a new system of records titled Employee Accommodations Files. 
The Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, 29 U.S.C. 791 and Title VII 
of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 2000e, require 
DOT to grant employee requests for medical/disability accommodations or 
religious accommodations because of a sincerely held religious belief, 
practice or observance unless an undue hardship would result. DOT is 
similarly required in some circumstances to grant employee requests for 
medical accommodations because of disability. The government-wide 
policy requiring all Federal employees as defined in 5 U.S.C. 2105 to 
be vaccinated against COVID-19 is expected to generate many requests 
for medical/disability and religious accommodations.
    In order to process and make a determination on an accommodation 
request, DOT is required to collect information from Federal employees 
and applicants for federal employment making such requests.
    This system will collect information related to individuals 
requesting medical/disability and religious accommodations. These 
accommodation requests include but are not limited to requests for 
exemptions from vaccines. By requesting an accommodation, individuals 
are authorizing DOT to collect and maintain a record of the information 
submitted to support the request for the accommodation. The information 
contained within this system of records will be collected directly from 
the individual employees or applicants for federal employment who have 
requested accommodations. This new system will be included in DOT's 
inventory of record systems.
    DOT has also included DOT General Routine Uses, to the extent they 
are compatible with the purposes of this System. As recognized by the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in its Privacy Act Implementation 
Guidance and Responsibilities (65 FR 19746 (July 9, 1975)), the routine 
uses include proper and necessary uses of information in the system, 
even if such uses occur infrequently. DOT has included in this notice 
routine uses for disclosures to law enforcement when the record, on its 
face, indicates a violation of law, to DOJ for litigation purposes, or 
when necessary in investigating or responding to a breach of this 
system or other agencies' systems. DOT may disclose to Federal, State, 
local, or foreign agency information relevant to law enforcement, 
litigation, and proceedings before any court or adjudicative or 
administrative body. OMB has long recognized that these types of 
routine uses are ``proper and necessary'' uses of

[[Page 64598]]

information and qualify as compatible with agency systems (65 FR 19476, 
April 11, 2000). In addition, OMB Memorandum M-17-12 directed agencies 
to include routine uses that will permit sharing of information when 
needed to investigate, respond to, and mitigate a breach of a Federal 
information system. DOT also has included routine uses that permit 
sharing with the National Archives and Records Administration when 
necessary for an inspection, or to any federal government agency 
engaged in audit or oversight related to this system. These types of 
disclosures are necessary and proper uses of information in this system 
because they further DOT's obligation to fulfil its records management 
and program management responsibilities by facilitating accountability 
to agencies charged with oversight in these areas.

Privacy Act

    The Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552a) governs the means by which the 
federal government agencies collect, maintain, use, and disseminate 
individuals' records. The Privacy Act applies to information that is 
maintained in a ``system of records.'' A ``system of records'' is a 
group of any records under the control of an agency from which 
information is retrieved by the name of an individual or by some 
identifying number, symbol, or other identifying particular assigned to 
the individual. The Privacy Act extends rights and protections to 
individuals who are U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents. 
Additionally, the Judicial Redress Act (JRA) provides a covered person 
with a statutory right to make requests for access and amendment to 
covered records, as defined by the JRA, along with judicial review for 
denials of such requests. In addition, the JRA prohibits disclosures of 
covered records, except as otherwise permitted by the Privacy Act.
    Below is the description of the Employee Accommodations Files 
System of Records. In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552a(r), DOT has 
provided a report of this system of records to the OMB and to Congress.

SYSTEM NAME AND NUMBER:
    DOT/ALL 28; Employee Accommodations Files.

SECURITY CLASSIFICATION:
    Unclassified.

SYSTEM LOCATION:
    Records are maintained in a FedRAMP-certified third-party cloud 
environment. Records may also be kept in other components and sub-
offices of DOT.

SYSTEM MANAGER(S):
    Office of Civil Rights, at Department of Transportation at 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590. Yvette Rivera, Associate 
Director, Equity and Access Division, Departmental Office of Civil 
Rights, 202-366-5131. For the Federal Aviation Administration, the 
Office of Civil Rights, 800 Independence Ave. SW, Washington, DC 20591. 
Michael Looney, Program Manager, (202) 267-3258.

AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:
     Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 42 U.S.C. 2000e.
     Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, 29 U.S.C. 791.
     Executive Order 13164.
     29 CFR parts 1605, 1614.

PURPOSE(S) OF THE SYSTEM:
    The purpose of the system is to collect information from 
individuals seeking medical/disability and/or religious accommodations 
in order to approve or deny their requests.

CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE SYSTEM:
    Categories of individuals within this system include: Individuals 
who are current DOT employees and applicants for federal employment who 
have requested medical/disability and/or religious accommodations.

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:
    Records include the name of the individual seeking accommodations, 
nature of the accommodation sought, including but not limited for 
religious accommodations, how complying with such a requirement would 
burden religious exercise, how long the belief has been held and the 
reason for seeking exemption.
    For accommodations based on medical/disability, the records will 
include information such as nature of the medical condition/disability, 
functional limitations caused by the medical condition/disability, how 
the requested accommodation would address the functional limitations, 
medical documentation of the medical condition/disability, and other 
information specific to the requested accommodation to determine 
whether DOT is legally required to grant the request.
    PII elements: Name, title, email address, phone number, operating 
administration, pay grade or band, supervisor information, other 
information collected from requesters to make a determination regarding 
a specific medical and/or religious accommodation request.

RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:
    DOT employees and applicants seeking medical/disability and/or 
religious accommodations.

ROUTINE USES OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES 
OF USERS AND PURPOSES OF SUCH USES:
    Department General Routine Uses
    1. In the event that a system of records maintained by DOT to carry 
out its functions indicates a violation or potential violation of law, 
whether civil, criminal or regulatory in nature, and whether arising by 
general statute or particular program pursuant thereto, the relevant 
records in the system of records may be referred, as a routine use, to 
the appropriate agency, whether Federal, State, local or foreign, 
charged with the responsibility of investigating or prosecuting such 
violation or charged with enforcing or implementing the statute, or 
rule, regulation, or order issued pursuant thereto.
    2a. Routine Use for Disclosure for Use in Litigation. It shall be a 
routine use of the records in this system of records to disclose them 
to the Department of Justice or other federal agency conducting 
litigation when--(a) DOT, or any agency thereof, or (b) Any employee of 
DOT or any agency thereof, in his/her official capacity, or (c) Any 
employee of DOT or any agency thereof, in his/her individual capacity 
where the Department of Justice has agreed to represent the employee, 
or (d) The United States or any agency thereof, where DOT determines 
that litigation is likely to affect the United States, is a party to 
litigation or has an interest in such litigation, and the use of such 
records by the Department of Justice or other federal agency conducting 
the litigation is deemed by DOT to be relevant and necessary in the 
litigation, provided, however, that in each case, DOT determines that 
disclosure of the records in the litigation is a use of the information 
contained in the records that is compatible with the purpose for which 
the records were collected.
    2b. Routine Use for Agency Disclosure in Other Proceedings. It 
shall be a routine use of records in this system to disclose them in 
proceedings before any court or adjudicative or administrative body 
before which DOT or any agency thereof, appears, when--(a) DOT, or any 
agency thereof, or (b) Any employee of DOT or any agency thereof in 
his/her official capacity, or (c) Any employee of DOT or any agency 
thereof in his/her individual capacity where DOT has

[[Page 64599]]

agreed to represent the employee, or (d) The United States or any 
agency thereof, where DOT determines that the proceeding is likely to 
affect the United States, is a party to the proceeding or has an 
interest in such proceeding, and DOT determines that use of such 
records is relevant and necessary in the proceeding, provided, however, 
that in each case, DOT determines that disclosure of the records in the 
proceeding is a use of the information contained in the records that is 
compatible with the purpose for which the records were collected.
    3. Disclosure may be made to a Congressional office from the record 
of an individual in response to an inquiry from the Congressional 
office made at the request of that individual. In such cases, however, 
the Congressional office does not have greater rights to records than 
the individual. Thus, the disclosure may be withheld from delivery to 
the individual where the file contains investigative or actual 
information or other materials which are being used, or are expected to 
be used, to support prosecution or fines against the individual for 
violations of a statute, or of regulations of the Department based on 
statutory authority. No such limitations apply to records requested for 
Congressional oversight or legislative purposes; release is authorized 
under 49 CFR 10.35(9).
    4. One or more records from a system of records may be disclosed 
routinely to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) in 
records management inspections being conducted under the authority of 
44 U.S.C. 2904 and 2906.
    5. DOT may make available to another agency or instrumentality of 
any government jurisdiction, including State and local governments, 
listings of names from any system of records in DOT for use in law 
enforcement activities, either civil or criminal, or to expose 
fraudulent claims, regardless of the stated purpose for the collection 
of the information in the system of records. These enforcement 
activities are generally referred to as matching programs because two 
lists of names are checked for match using automated assistance. This 
routine use is advisory in nature and does not offer unrestricted 
access to systems of records for such law enforcement and related 
antifraud activities. Each request will be considered on the basis of 
its purpose, merits, cost effectiveness and alternatives using 
Instructions on reporting computer matching programs to the Office of 
Management and Budget, OMB, Congress, and the public, published by the 
Director, OMB, dated September 20, 1989.
    6. DOT may disclose records from this system, as a routine use, to 
appropriate agencies, entities, and persons when (1) DOT suspects or 
has confirmed that the security or confidentiality of information in 
the system of records has been compromised; (2) DOT 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 DOT or another agency or entity) that 
rely upon the compromised information; and (3) the disclosure made to 
such agencies, entities, and persons is reasonably necessary to assist 
in connection with DOT's efforts to respond to the suspected or 
confirmed compromise and prevent, minimize, or remedy such harm.
    7. DOT may disclose records from this system, as a routine use, to 
the Office of Government Information Services for the purpose of (a) 
resolving disputes between FOIA requesters and federal agencies and (b) 
reviewing agencies' policies, procedures, and compliance in order to 
recommend policy changes to Congress and the President.
    8. DOT may disclose records from the system, as a routine use, to 
contractors and their agents, experts, consultants, and others 
performing or working on a contract, service, cooperative agreement, or 
other assignment for DOT, when necessary to accomplish an agency 
function related to this system of records.
    9. DOT may disclose records from this system, as a routine use, to 
an agency, organization, or individual for the purpose of performing 
audit or oversight operations related to this system of records, but 
only such records as are necessary and relevant to the audit or 
oversight activity. This routine use does not apply to intra-agency 
sharing authorized under Section (b)(1) of the Privacy Act.
    10.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORAGE OF RECORDS:
    Records relating to requests for accommodation relating to 
mandatory COVID-19 vaccination are stored in the USDOT Vaccination 
Application. Records relating to other disability-related requests for 
accommodation are stored in the Reasonable Accommodation Management 
System (RAMS). Requests for religious accommodations may be stored in 
RAMS, or in systems at component or sub-office level.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETRIEVAL OF RECORDS:
    Records on individuals will be retrieved by name.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR RETENTION AND DISPOSAL OF RECORDS:
    Records will be held in accordance with NARA General Records 
Control Schedule 2.3, Employee Relations Records, item 20, Reasonable 
accommodation case files. Individual employee files created, received, 
and maintained by EEO reasonable accommodation, diversity/disability 
programs, employee relations coordinators, supervisors, administrators, 
or Human Resource specialists containing records of requests for 
reasonable accommodation and/or assistive technology devices and 
services that have been requested for or by an employee. Includes: 
Request, approvals and denials, notice of procedures for informal 
dispute resolution or appeal processes, forms, correspondence, records 
of oral conversations, policy guidance documents, medical records, 
supporting notes and documentation. These records are temporary and 
will be destroyed 3 years after employee separation from the agency or 
all appeals are concluded, whichever is later; however, longer 
retention is authorized if required for business use.

ADMINISTRATIVE, TECHNICAL, AND PHYSICAL SAFEGUARDS:
    Records in this system are safeguarded in accordance with 
applicable rules and policies, including all applicable DOT automated 
systems security and access policies. Strict controls have been imposed 
to minimize the risk of compromising the information that is being 
stored. Data is encrypted at rest and in transit. Access to records in 
this system is limited to those individuals who have a need to know the 
information for the performance of their official duties and who have 
appropriate clearances or permissions.

RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURES:
    Individuals seeking notification of and access to any record 
contained in this system of records, or seeking to contest its content, 
may submit a request in writing to the System Manager at the address 
identified in ``System Manager and Address'' above.
    When seeking records about yourself from this system of records or 
any other Departmental system of records your request must conform with 
the Privacy

[[Page 64600]]

Act regulations set forth in 49 CFR part 10. You must sign your 
request, and your signature must either be notarized or submitted under 
28 U.S.C. 1746, a law that permits statements to be made under penalty 
of perjury as a substitute for notarization. While no specific form is 
required, you may obtain forms for this purpose from the Chief Freedom 
of Information Act Officer, http://www.dot.gov/foia or 202.366.4542. In 
addition, you should provide the following:
     An explanation of why you believe the Department would 
have information on you;
     Identify which component(s) of the Department you believe 
may have the information about you;
     Specify when you believe the records would have been 
created;
     Provide any other information that will help the FOIA 
staff determine which DOT component agency may have responsive records; 
and
    If your request is seeking records pertaining to another living 
individual, you must include a statement from that individual 
certifying his/her agreement for you to access his/her records.
    Without this bulleted information the component(s) may not be able 
to conduct an effective search, and your request may be denied due to 
lack of specificity or lack of compliance with applicable regulations.

CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES:
    See Record Access Procedures.

NOTIFICATION PROCEDURES:
    See Record Access Procedures.

EXEMPTIONS PROMULGATED FOR THE SYSTEM:
    None.

HISTORY:
    None.

    Issued in Washington, DC.
Karyn Gorman,
Acting Departmental Chief Privacy Officer.
[FR Doc. 2021-25153 Filed 11-17-21; 8:45 am]
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