The Privacy Act

The Office of the Secretary (OS) FOIA Program, in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs (ASPA), processes first-party requests for access to records covered by the Privacy Act of 1974 under both the Privacy Act and FOIA.

The Privacy Act of 1974, as amended (5 U.S.C. 552a),

  • Protects records about individuals retrieved by personal identifiers such as a name, social security number, or other identifying number or symbol. An individual has rights under the Privacy Act to seek access to and request correction (if applicable) or an accounting of disclosures of any such records maintained about him or her.
  • Prohibits disclosure of such records without the prior, written consent of the individual(s) to whom the records pertain, unless one of the thirteen disclosure exceptions enumerated in subsection (b) of the Act applies.
  • Requires such records to be described in System of Records Notices (SORNs) published in the Federal Register and posted to the Internet.
  • Includes rules (in Statutory Notes) governing collection of the Social Security Number (SSN), which apply regardless of whether the SSN will be included in records retrieved by personal identifier.
  • With limited exceptions, prohibits maintenance of records describing how an individual exercises First Amendment rights.
  • Binds only federal agencies and covers only records under the control of federal agencies (and, by contract, also applies to contractor personnel and systems used by a federal agency to maintain the records).
  • HHS Privacy Act regulations (45 CFR Part 5b)

For assistance with a Privacy Act question or complaint involving a specific HHS Operating Division’s records, you may contact the appropriate HHS Privacy Act Contacts.

To submit a Privacy Act request to HHS, please follow these instructions: How to Make a Privacy Act Request.

Privacy Act Resources

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