View all text of Part 1008 [§ 1008.1 - § 1008.24]

§ 1008.20 - Petitions for amendment: Processing and initial decision.

(a) Decisions on petitions. In reviewing a record in response to a petition for amendment, the accuracy, relevance, timeliness and completeness of the record shall be assessed against the criteria set out in § 1008.4.

(b) Authority to decide. A decision on a petition for amendment shall be made by the Privacy Act Officer in consultation with the General Counsel.

(c) Acknowledgment of receipt. Unless processing of a petition is completed within ten working days, the receipt of the petition for amendment shall be acknowledged in writing by the Privacy Act Officer.

(d) Inadequate petitions. (1) If a petition does not meet the requirements of § 1008.19, the petitioner shall be so advised and shall be told what additional information must be submitted to meet the requirements of § 1008.19.

(2) If the petitioner fails to submit the additional information within a reasonable time, the petition may be rejected. The rejection shall be in writing and shall meet the requirements of paragraph (e) of this section.

(e) Form of decision. (1) A decision on a petition for amendment shall be in writing and shall state concisely the basis for the decision.

(2) If the petition for amendment is rejected, in whole or part, the petitioner shall be informed in a written response which shall:

(i) State concisely the basis for the decision;

(ii) Advise the petitioner that the rejection may be appealed to the Executive Director, The Presidio Trust, P.O. Box 29052, San Francisco, CA 94129-0052; and

(iii) State that the appeal must be received by the foregoing official within 20 working days of the decision.

(3) If the petition for amendment involves records which fall under the jurisdiction of another agency and is rejected, in whole or part, the petitioner shall be informed in a written response which shall:

(i) State concisely the basis for the decision;

(ii) Include the name, position title, and address of the official responsible for the denial; and

(iii) Advise the individual that an appeal of the rejection may be made only to the appropriate official of the relevant agency, and include that official's name, position title, and address.

(4) Copies of rejections of petitions for amendment made pursuant to paragraphs (e)(2) and (e)(3) of this section will be provided to the Privacy Act Officer.

(f) Implementation of initial decision. If a petition for amendment is accepted, in whole or part, the system manager maintaining the record shall:

(1) Correct the record accordingly and,

(2) Where an accounting of disclosures has been made pursuant to § 1008.10, advise all previous recipients of the record that the correction was made and the substance of the correction.