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System of Records (SOR)
17VA26 - Loan Guaranty Fee Personnel and Program Participant Records-VA
System location:
Records on nonsuspended fee personnel and program participants
are maintained at VA regional offices, medical and regional office
centers, VA offices and VA centers having loan guaranty activities.
Records of nonsupervised lenders and subsidiaries of supervised
lenders having authority to process VA loans automatically are
maintained in VA Central Office. National Control List of suspended
program participants and fee personnel are maintained at VA regional
offices, medical and regional office centers, VA offices and VA
centers having loan guaranty activities. A Master Control list is
maintained only at VA Central Office. Address locations are listed in
Appendix 1 at the end of this document.
Categories of individuals covered by the system:
The following categories of individuals will be covered by this
system: (1) Fee personnel who may be paid by the VA or by someone
other than the VA (i.e., appraisers, compliance inspectors,
management brokers, loan closing and fee attorneys who are not VA
employees but are paid for actual case work performed), and (2)
program participants (i.e., property management brokers and agents,
real estate sales brokers and agents, participating lenders and their
employees, title companies whose fees are paid by someone other than
the VA, and manufactured home dealers, manufacturers, and
manufactured home park or subdivision owners).
Categories of records in the system:
Records (or information contained in records) may include: (1)
Applications by individuals to become VA-approved fee basis
appraisers, compliance inspector, fee attorneys, or management
brokers. These applications include information concerning
applicant's name, address, business phone numbers, social security
numbers or taxpayer identification number, and professional
qualifications; (2) applications by non-supervised lenders for
approval to close guaranteed loans without the prior approval of VA
(automatically); (3) applications by lenders supervised by Federal or
State agencies for designation as supervised automatic lenders in
order that they may close loans without the prior approval
(automatically) of the VA; applications for automatic approval or
designation (i.e., (2) and (3)) contain information concerning the
corporate structure of the lender, professional qualifications of the
lender's officers or employees, financial data such as profit and
loss statements and balance sheets to insure the firm's financial
integrity; (4) identifying information such as names, business names
(if applicable), addresses, phone numbers and professional resumes of
corporate officials or employees; (5) corporate structure information
on prior approval lenders, participating real estate sales brokers or
agents, developers, builders, investors, closing attorneys or other
program participants as necessary to carry out the functions of the
Loan Guaranty Program; (6) records of performance concerning
appraisers, compliance inspectors, management brokers, or fee
attorneys on both firms and individual employees; (7) records of
performance including disciplinary proceedings, concerning program
participants; e.g., lenders, investors, real estate brokers,
builders, fee appraisers, compliance inspectors and developers both
as to the firm and to individual employees maintained on an as-needed
basis to carry out the functions of the Loan Guaranty program; (8)
National Control Lists which identify suspended real estate brokers
and agents, lenders and their employees, investors, manufactured home
dealers and manufacturers, and builders or developers; and (9) a
master record of the National Control List (i.e., Master Control
List) which includes information regarding parties previously
suspended but currently reinstated to participation in the Loan
Guaranty program in addition to all parties currently suspended.
Authority for maintenance of the system:
Title 38, United States Code, chapter 3, section 210(c)(1); title
38, United States, Code, chapters 21 and 37.
Routine uses of records maintained in the system, including
categories of users and the purposes of such uses:
- The record of an individual who is covered by this system may
be disclosed to a member of Congress or staff person acting for the
member when the member or staff person requests the record on behalf
of and at the request of that individual.
- Any information in this system may be disclosed to a Federal,
State or local agency, upon its official request, to the extent the
agency has demonstrated that it is relevant and necessary to that
agency's decision on: The hiring, transfer or retention of an
employee; the issuance of a security clearance; the letting of a
contract; or the issuance or continuance of a license, grant or other
benefit by that agency.
- Any information in this system may be disclosed to a Federal,
State or local agency maintaining civil or criminal violation
records, or other pertinent information such as prior employment
history, prior Federal employment background investigations, and
personal or educational background in order for the VA to obtain
information from that agency relevant to the hiring, transfer or
retention of an employee, the letting of a contract, the granting of
a security clearance, or the issuance of a grant or other benefit.
- Any information in this system which is relevant to a
suspected violation or reasonably imminent violation of law, whether
civil, criminal or regulatory in nature and whether arising by
general or program statute or by regulation, rule or order issued
pursuant thereto, may be disclosed to a Federal, State, local or
foreign agency charged with the responsibility of investigating or
prosecuting such violation, or charged with enforcing or implementing
the statute, rule, regulation or order issued pursuant thereto.
- Identifying information and the reasons for the suspension of
builders, developers, lenders, lender employees, real estate sales
brokers and agents, manufactured home dealers, manufacturers, or
other program participants suspended from participation in the Loan
Guaranty Program may be disclosed to the Department of Housing and
Urban Development (HUD), and the Federal Housing Administration
(FHA), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Farmers Home
Administration (FHA) or other Federal, State or local agencies to
enable that agency to consider imposing similar restrictions on these
suspended persons and/or firms.
- Identifying information and the performance records of
qualified fee appraisers and compliance inspectors, including any
information regarding their termination, non-redesignation, temporary
suspension or resignation from participation in the Loan Guaranty
Program, including the records of any disciplinary proceedings, may
be disclosed to Federal, State or local, or non-government agencies,
businesses, and professional organizations, to permit these entities
to employ, continues to employ or contract for the services of
qualified fee personnel, monitor the performance of such personnel,
and take any appropriate disciplinary action.
- Identifying information as well as other information such as
educational background and former business associations may be
disclosed to business and professional organizations in order for the
VA to obtain these organizations' recommendations concerning the
performance, character, professional activities and other
qualifications relating to participation in the VA Loan Guaranty
Program.
- Identifying information and information concerning amounts
paid to contractors, fee personnel and other contractors, fee
personnel and other program participants may be released to the
Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, where required
by law.
- Any information in this system may be disclosed to a Federal
Grand jury, a Federal court or a party in litigation, or a Federal
agency or party to an administrative proceeding being conducted by a
Federal agency, in order for the VA to respond to and comply with the
issuance of a Federal subpoena.
- Any information in this system may be disclosed to a State or
municipal Grand jury, a State or municipal court or a party in
litigation, or to a State or municipal administrative agency
functioning in a quasi-judicial capacity or a party to a proceeding
being conducted by such agency, in order for the VA to respond to and
comply with the issuance of a State or municipal subpoena; provided,
that any disclosure of claimant information made under this routine
use must comply with the provisions of 38 CFR 1.511.
- Identifying information and the reasons for suspension of
individuals and/or firms suspended from the VA Loan Guaranty Program
may be disclosed to other participants in the Loan Guaranty Program
in order that they may decide whether or not to employ, or continue
to employ or contract with a suspended individual or firm.
- Identifying information and information concerning the
performance of contractors, fee personnel and other program
participants may be released to consumer reporting agencies in order
that the VA may obtain information on their prior dealings with other
Government agencies and so that other Government agencies may have
the benefit of VA's experience with such parties.
- The names and addresses of debarred or suspended loan
guaranty program participants as well as the effective date and term
of the exclusion may be disclosed to the General Services
Administration to compile and maintain the ``Lists of Parties
Excluded from Federal Procurement or Nonprocurement Programs.''
Policies and practices for storing, retrieving, accessing,
retaining, and disposing of records in the system:
Storage:
Records on fee personnel and program participants are kept on
paper documents and maintained in file folders. The National Control
List of suspended program participants is also maintained on magnetic
disk at Central Office.
Retrievability:
All records are indexed or cross-indexed by the name of the
individual or the firm.
Safeguards:
Access to VA working spaces and record file storage areas is
restricted to VA employees on a ``need to know'' basis. Generally, VA
file areas are locked after normal duty hours and are protected from
outside acess by the Federal Protective Service or other VA security
personnel. Sensitive files involving pending suspension or a legal
action are stored in separate locked files.
Retention and disposal:
File cards and paper documents on suspended fee personnel and
program participants are maintained until there has been a
notification that the suspension has been terminated and the party
reinstated into the VA Loan Guaranty Program, at which time these
records are destroyed by VA regional offices or centers. The Master
Control List records are retained indefinitely. Records on fee
personnel and program participants are retained for various periods
extending up to two years after all loans have been liquidated.
Destruction of all the above records is accomplished by either
shredding or burning.
System manager(s) and address:
Director, Loan Guaranty Service (26), VA Central Office,
Washington, DC 20420.
Notification procedure:
An individual who wishes to determine whether a record is being
maintained in this system under his or her name or other personal
identifier or wants to determine the contents of such record should
submit a written request or apply in person to the nearest Veterans
Administration regional office or center. Address locations are
listed in VA Appendix 1 at the end of this document. All inquiries
must reasonably identify the relationship of the individual with the
VA loan program. Inquiries should include the individual's name,
address, firm represented, if any, and capacity in which the
individual participates or participated in the VA loan program.
However, some of the records in this system are exempt from the
notification requirement under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k). To the extent that
records in this system of records are not subject to exemption, they
are subject to notification. A determination as to whether an
exemption applies shall be made at the time a request for
notification is received.
Record access procedures:
An individual seeks access to or wishes to contest records
maintained under his or her name on this system may write, call or
visit the nearest Veterans Administration regional office or center.
Address locations are listed in VA Appendix 1 at the end of this
document. However, some of the records in this system are exempt from
the record access and contesting requirements under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k).
To the extent that records in this system of records are not subject
to exemption, they are subject to access and contest. A determination
as to whether an exemption applies shall be made at the time a
request for access or contest is received.
Contesting record procedures:
(See Records access procedures above.)
Record source categories:
The information and the records in this system are obtained from
the applicant, lenders, brokers and builder/sellers, credit and
financial reporting agencies, an applicant's credit sources,
depository institutions and employers, independent auditors and
accountants, hazard insurance companies, taxing authorities, title
companies, fee personnel, business and professional organizations,
other VA records, other Federal, State and local agencies, and other
parties of interest involving VA-guaranteed, insured, vendee or
direct loans or specially adapted housing.
Systems exempted from certain provisions of the act:
The Administrator of Veterans Affairs has exempted this system of
records from the following provisions of the Privacy Act of 1974, as
permitted by 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(2) and (5).
5 U.S.C. 552a(c)(3)
5 U.S.C. 552a(d)
5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(1)
5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(4)(G), (H) and (I)
5 U.S.C. 552a(f)
Reasons for exemptions:
The exemption of information and material
in this system of records is necessary in order to accomplish the law
enforcement functions of the Loan Guaranty Service to prevent
subjects of internal audit investigations for potential fraud and
abuse in the VA Loan Guaranty Program from frustrating the
investigatory process, to fulfill commitments made to protect the
confidentiality of sources, to maintain access to sources of
information and to avoid endangering these sources. This information
is also being exempted to maintain the confidentiality and integrity
of material compiled solely for the purpose of determining the
suitability, eligibility or the qualifications of prospective VA
program participants.
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