Content created by Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Division
System name: Congressional Correspondence Unit, HHS/OS/ASL.
Security classification: None.
System location: Room 435G Humphrey Building, 200 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20201
Categories of individuals covered by the system: Members of Congress indexed by name.
Categories of records in the system: Control information recording, direct inquiries and referrals of constituents' inquiries from Members of Congress, and responses to those inquiries, regarding the Department's activities, including, but not necessarily limited to: a. General program activities of the Department; b. individual case problems of named persons, families or institutions; c. employment or appointment interests. Control slips identifying the correspondent, the constituent on whose behalf the inquiry is made, the constituent's social security number if inquiry relates to a social security case, and a summary of the subject matter of the inquiry.
Authority for maintenance of the system: 5 U.S.C. 301.
Purpose(s):
To provide response to inquiries from a member of Congress made on behalf of a constituent regarding the Department's activities, including, but not limited to general program activities of the Department.
Routine uses of records maintained in the system, including categories of users and the purposes of such uses:
Inquiries which do not pertain to HHS, but fall under the jurisdiction of another Federal Agency, are transferred to that Agency with a request that a direct response be provided to the correspondent. 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 the event of litigation where the defendant is (a) the Department, any component of the Department, or any employee of the Department in his or her official capacity; (b) the United States where the Department determines that the claim, if successful, is likely to directly affect the operations of the Department
or any of its components; or (c) any Department employee in his or her individual capacity where the Justice Department has agreed to represent such employee, the Department 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.
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: Maintained on magnetic (floppy) disks.
Retrievability: Records are indexed alphabetically by name of the Members of Congress. Inquiries are forwarded to the HHS Agency which has jurisdiction over the subject matter for preparation of a response.
Safeguards: Records are kept in office with access limited to those whose official duties require access.
Retention and disposal: Records are reviewed biannually, and maintained for two years.
System manager(s) and address: Director, Congressional Liaison Office, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Legislation, Room 417 H Humphrey Bldg, 200 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20201.
Notification procedure: System Manager; address same as above. The name of the person who corresponded with the Department with reference to the constituent and the approximate date of that correspondence must be provided.
Record access procedures: Same as notification procedures. Requesters should also reasonably specify the record contents being sought. (These access procedures are in accordance with Department Regulations (45 CFR 5b.5(a)(2)) Federal Register, October 8, 1975, page 47410.)
Contesting record procedures: Contact the official at the address specified under notification procedures 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 Department Regulations (45 CFR 5b.7) Federal Register, October 8, 1975, page 47411.)
Record source categories: The information in CCU files is provided by the correspondent and by the agency which prepares the final response.
Systems exempted from certain provisions of the act: None.