of the agency, who has the authority to decide Privacy Act matters relative to each system of records maintained by the Office.

§297.103 Designations of authority by system manager.

The responsible Office system manager having jurisdiction over a system of records may designate in writing an Office employee to evaluate and issue the Office's decision on Privacy Act matters relating to either internal, central, or Governmentwide systems of records.

$297.104 Types of records.

The Office manages three generic types of personnel records systems:

(a) Internal systems of records are under the Office's physical control and are established and maintained by the Office solely on its own employees and, when appropriate, on others in contact with the Office regarding matters within its authority.

(b) Centralized systems of personnel records are physically established and maintained by the Office with regard to most current and former Federal employees and some applicants for Federal employment.

(c) Governmentwide systems of personnel records are maintained by the Office, and through Office delegations of authority, by Federal agencies with regard to their own employees or applicants for employment. Although they are Office records, they are in the physical custody of those agencies. Though in the physical custody of agencies, the Office retains authority under its record management authority and under the Privacy Act to decide appeals of initial agency determinations regarding access to and amendment of material in these systems.

$297.105 Agency and Office responsibilities for systems of records and applicability of the regulations.

(a) These regulations apply to processing requests from both current and former Office employees for records contained in internal, central, and Governmentwide systems of records managed by the Office.

(b) Agencies are solely and totally responsible for processing requests re

garding records maintained in their internal systems of records. Agency regulations, and not these Office regulations, govern the implementation of the Privacy Act for agency internal systems; there is no right of appeal to the Office from an agency's determination regarding its internal agency records.

(c) For records maintained in the Office's central systems of records, the data subject should contact the appropriate Office system manager concerning Privacy Act matters. These regulations will apply to inquiries regarding records located in the central systems of records.

(d) For records maintained within the Office's Governmentwide systems of records, each agency is responsible, unless specifically excepted by the Office, for responding to initial Privacy Act access and amendment requests from its own current employees. For records in Office Governmentwide systems, including those in Official Personnel Folders, Employee Performance Folders, and Employee Medical Folders, the Office is responsible for responding to initial Privacy Act access and amendment requests from former Federal employees.

(e) The procedures in this part apply to all such requests. The procedures in this part also apply to appeals from an agency initial determination regarding access to or amendment of records contained in the Office's Governmentwide systems of records.

(f) The Office follows the procedures in this part when

(1) Processing initial requests regarding access to or amendment of records by its own employees and others that the Office is maintaining information on in its systems of records, including requests from former employees of an agency whose records properly reside in an Office Governmentwide system of records.

(2) Processing Privacy Act appeals regarding access to and amendment of records generated by another Federal agency, but which are contained in the Office's Governmentwide systems of records, after an agency has issued the initial decision.

(3) Processing initial requests and appeals concerning access to and amendment of records contained in the central systems of records.

(g) For requests concerning records and material of another agency that are in the custody of the Office, but not under its control or ownership, the Office reserves the right to either refer the request to the agency primarily responsible for the material or to notify the individual of the proper agency that should be contacted.

$297.106 Contact point for Privacy Act matters.

To determine what records the Office maintains in its system of records, requesters must write to the Assistant Director for Workforce Information, Personnel Systems and Oversight Group, Office of Personnel Management, 1900 E Street, NW., Washington, DC 20415. Using the Office's response, requesters can contact the particular system manager indicated in the Office's notices of its systems published in the FEDERAL REGISTER for further assistance in determining if the Office maintains information pertaining to them.

Subpart B-Request for Access

$297.201 General provisions.

(a) Individual's requesting access to records pertaining to them that are maintained in a system of records should submit a written request to the appropriate system manager and state that the request is being made pursuant to the Privacy Act of 1974.

(b) The Office or agency will require proof of identity from a requester. The Office or agency reserves the right to determine the adequacy of any such proof. The general identifying items the Office will require a requester to provide when a request is made to the Office are

(1) Full name, signature, and home address;

(2) Social security number (for systems of records that include this identifier);

(3) Current or last place and dates of Federal employment, when appropriate and,

(4) Date and place of birth.

(c) An individual may be represented by another when requesting access to records.

$297.202 Methods of access.

(a) The methods for allowing access to records, when such access has been granted by the Office or agency, are:

(1) Inspection in person in the designated office during the hours specified by the Office or agency; or

(2) Transfer of records at the option of the Office or agency to another more convenient Federal facility.

(b) Generally, Office of Personnel Management offices will not furnish certified copies of records. When copies are to be furnished, they may be provided as determined by the Office and may require payment of any fee levied in accordance with the Office's established fee schedule.

(c) When the requester seeks to obtain original documentation, the Office reserves the right to limit the request to copies of the original records. Original records should be made available for review only in the presence of the system manager or designee. An agency should consult with the Office when it receives a request for original documentation. Section 2701(a) of title 18 of the United States Code makes it a crime to conceal, mutilate, obliterate, or destroy any record filed in a public office, or to attempt to do so.

$297.203 Access by the parent of a minor or by the legal guardian of an individual declared to be incompetent.

(a) A parent, legal guardian, or custodian of a minor, upon presentation of suitable personal identification, may access on behalf of a minor any record pertaining to the minor in a system of records maintained by the Office.

(b) A legal guardian, upon presentation of documentation establishing guardianship, may access on behalf of an individual declared to be incompetent by a court of competent jurisdiction, any record pertaining to that individual in a system of records maintained by the Office.

(c) Minors are not precluded from exercising personally those rights provided them by the Privacy Act.

A record may be disclosed to a representative of the individual to whom the record pertains after the system manager receives written authorization from the individual who is the subject of the record.

$297.205 Access to medical records.

When a request for access involves medical or psychological records that the system manager believes requires special handling, the requester should be advised that the material will be provided only to a physician designated by the data subject. Upon receipt of the designation and upon verification of the physician's identity, the records will be made available to the physician, who will have full authority to disclose those records to the data subject when appropriate.

$297.206 Fees charged by the Office.

(a) No fees will be charged for search and review time expended by the Office to produce a record, or for making a photostatic copy of the record, or for having it personally reviewed by the data subject, when a record is retrieved from a system of records pertaining to that data subject. Additional copies provided may be charged under the Office's established fee schedule.

(b) When the fees chargeable under this section will amount to more than $25, the requester will be notified and payment of fees may be required before the records are provided.

(c) Remittance should be made by either a personal check, bank draft, or a money order that is made payable to the U.S. Office of Personnel Management and addressed to the appropriate system manager.

§ 297.207 Denials of access and appeals with respect to such denials.

(a) If an access request is denied, the Office or agency response will be in writing and will include a statement of the reasons for the denial and the procedures available to appeal the denial, including the name, position title, and address of the Office official responsible for the review.

(b) Nothing in this part should be construed to entitle a data subject the

right to access any information compiled in reasonable anticipation of a civil action or proceeding.

(c) For denials of access made under this subpart, the following procedures apply:

(1) For initial denials made by an agency, when the record is maintained in an Office Governmentwide system of records, a request for adminstrative review should be made only to the Assistant Director for Workforce Information, Personnel Systems and Oversight Group, U.S. Office of Personnel Management, 1900 E Street NW., Washington, DC 20415.

(2) For denials initially made by an Office official, when a record is maintained in an internal or central system of records, a request for administrative review should be made to the Information and Privacy Appeals Counsel, Office of the General Counsel, U.S. Office of Personnel Management, 1900 E Street NW., Washington, DC 20415.

(3) Any administrative review decision that either partially or fully supports the initial decision and denies access to the material the individual originally sought should state the requester's right to seek judicial review of the final administrative decision.

$297.208 Judicial review.

Upon receipt of notification that the denial of access has been upheld on administrative review, the requester has the right to judicial review of the decision for up to 2 years from the date on which the cause of action arose. Judicial review may be sought in the district court of the United States in the district in which

(a) The requester resides;

(b) The requester has his or her principal place of business; or

(c) The agency records are situated; or it may be sought in the district court of the District of Columbia.

Subpart C-Amendment of Records

§ 297.301 General provisions.

(a) Individuals may request, in writing, the amendment of their records maintained in an Office system of records by contacting the appropriate system manager. The Office or agency

will require proof of identity from a requester. The Office or agency reserves the right to determine the adequacy of any such proof. The general identifying items the Office will require a requester to provide when a request is made to the Office are

(1) Full name, signature, and home address;

(2) Social security number (for systems of records that include this identifier);

(3) Current or last place and dates of Federal employment, when appropriate; and

(4) Date and place of birth.

(b) An individual may be represented by another party when requesting amendment of records.

(c) A request for amendment should include the following:

(1) The precise identification of the records to be amended;

(2) The identification of the specific material to be deleted, added, or changed; and

(3) A statement of the reasons for the request, including all available material substantiating the request.

of

(d) Requests for amendment records should include the words "PRIVACY ACT AMENDMENT REQUEST" in capital letters on both the envelope and at the top of the request letter.

(e) A request for administrative review of an agency denial to amend a record in the Office's systems of records should be addressed to the Assistant Director for Workforce Information, Personnel Systems and Oversight Group, U.S. Office of Personnel Management, 1900 E Street NW., Washington, DC 20415.

(f) A request for administrative review of a denial to amend a record by an Office official should be addressed to the Information and Privacy Appeals Counsel, Office of the General Counsel, U.S. Office of Personnel Management, 1900 E Street NW., Washington, DC 20415.

(g) The burden of proof demonstrating the appropriateness of the requested amendment rests with the requester; and, the requester must provide relevant and convincing evidence in support of the request.

(a) The amendment procedures are not intended to allow a challenge to material that records an event that actually occurred nor are they designed to permit a collateral attack upon that which has been or could have been the subject of a judicial, quasi-judicial, or administrative proceeding. The amendment procedures are also not designed to change opinions in records pertaining to the individual.

(b) The amendment procedures apply to situations when an occurrence that is documented was challenged through an established judicial, quasi-judicial, or administrative procedure and found to be inaccurately described; when the document is not identical to the individual's copy; or when the document is not created in accordance with the applicable recordkeeping requirements. (For example, the amendment provisions are not designed to allow a challenge to the merits of an agency adverse action that is documented in an individual's Official Personnel Folder.)

$297.304 Approval of requests to amend records.

(a) If the system manager determines that amendment of a record is appropriate, the system manager will take the necessary steps to have the necessary changes made and will see that the individual receives a copy of the amended record.

(b) When practicable and appropriate, the system manager will advise all prior recipients of the fact that an amendment of a record has been made.

§ 297.305 Denial of requests to amend records.

(a) If the Office or agency system manager decides not to amend the record in the manner sought, the requester should be notified in writing of the reasons for the denial.

(b) The decision letter should also include the requester's right to appeal the denial and the procedures for appealing the denial to the appropriate official.

$297.306 Appeal of a denial of a request to amend a record.

(a) An individual who disagrees with an initial denial to amend a record may file a written appeal of that denial to the appropriate official. In submitting an appeal, the individual should provide a copy of the original request for amendment, a copy of the initial denial decision, and a statement of the specific reasons why the initial denial is believed to be in error. Any appeal should be submitted to the official designated in the initial decision letter. The appeal should include the words "PRIVACY ACT APPEAL" in capital letters on the envelope and at the top of the letter of appeal.

(b) The reviewing official should complete the review and make a final determination in writing no later than 30 working days from the date on which the appeal is received. When circumstances warrant, this timeframe may be extended.

(c) If the Office grants the appeal, it will take the necessary steps either to amend the record itself or to require the originating agency to amend the record. When appropriate and possible, prior recipients of the record should be notified of the Office's action.

(d) The Office reserves the right to hold in abeyance any Privacy Act appeal concerning a record when an individual is involved in challenging an action involving that record in another administrative, judicial, or quasi-judicial forum. At the conclusion of such a challenge, the individual can resubmit the appeal.

(e) If the Office denies the appeal, it will include in the decision letter notification of the appellant's right to judicial review.

$297.307 Statement of disagreement.

(a) Upon receipt of a final administrative determination denying a request to amend a record, the requester may file a concise statement of disagreement. Such a statement should be filed with the appropriate system man

ager and should include the reasons why the requester believes the decision to be incorrect.

(b) The statement of disagreement should be maintained with the record to be amended and any disclosure of the record must include a copy of the statement of disagreement.

(c) When practicable and appropriate, the system manager should provide a copy of the statement of disagreement to any individual or agency to whom the record was previously disclosed as noted by the disclosure accounting.

§ 297.308 Judicial review.

Upon receipt of notification that the denial to amend a record has been upheld on administrative review, the requester has the right to judicial review of the decision for up to 2 years from the date the cause of action arose. Judicial review may be sought in the district court of the United States in the district in which

(a) The requester resides;

(b) The requester has his or her principal place of business; or

(c) The agency records are situated; or it may be sought in the district court of the District of Columbia.

Subpart D-Disclosure of Records §297.401 Conditions of disclosure.

An official or employee of the Office or agency should not disclose a record retrieved from a Governmentwide system of records to any person, another agency, or other entity without the express written consent of the subject individual unless disclosure is

(a) To officers or employees of the Office who have a need for the information in the performance of their duties.

(b) Required by the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act.

(c) For a routine use as published in the FEDERAL REGISTER.

(d) To the Bureau of the Census for uses pursuant to title 13 of the United States Code.

(e)(1) To a recipient who has provided the agency with advance adequate written assurance that the record will be used solely as a statistical research or reporting record. The record will be transferred in a form that is not individually identifiable. The written