5 CFR § 2412.4 - Existence-of-records requests.

(a) If you want to know whether a system of records maintained by the Authority, the General Counsel, the IG, or the Panel contains a record pertaining to you, you may submit a written existence-of-records request by mail to the FLRA's Solicitor or IG, as appropriate, at the Authority's offices in Washington, DC, or by email to privacy@flra.gov.

(b) You should clearly and prominently identify your request as a Privacy Act request. If you submit the request by mail, it should bear the mark “Privacy Act Request” on the envelope or other cover, as well as your return address. If you submit the request by email, the subject line of the email should include the phrase “Privacy Act Request.” If you do not comply with the provisions of this paragraph, your request will not be deemed received until the time it is actually received by the FLRA's Solicitor or IG.

(c) An existence-of-records request must include your name and address and must reasonably describe the system of records in question. Whenever possible, the request should also describe the time periods in which you believe the records were compiled and the name or identifying number of each system of records in which you believe the records are kept. The Authority, the General Counsel, the IG, and the Panel have published descriptions of the systems of records they maintain in the Federal Register.

(d) When you make an existence-of-records request regarding records about yourself, you must verify your identity. You must state your full name, current address, and date and place of birth. You must sign your request and your signature must either be notarized or submitted by you under 28 U.S.C. 1746, a law that permits statements to be made under penalty of perjury as a substitute for notarization. In order to help the identification and location of requested records, you may also, at your option, include your social security number.

(e) When making an existence-of-records request as the parent or guardian of a minor or as the guardian of someone determined by a court to be incompetent, you must establish:

(1) The identity of the individual who is the subject of the record, by stating the name, current address, date and place of birth, and, at your option, the social security number of the individual;

(2) Your own identity, following the requirements of paragraph (d) of this section;

(3) That you are the parent or guardian of that individual, which you may prove by providing a copy of the individual's birth certificate showing your parentage or by providing a court order establishing your guardianship; and

(4) That you are acting on behalf of that individual in making the request.

(f) The Solicitor or IG, as appropriate, will advise you in writing within ten (10) working days from receipt of your request whether the system of records you identified contains a record pertaining to you or to the individual for whom you are a parent or guardian and, if so, the office in which that record is located. If the Solicitor or IG is prohibited from, or there is otherwise an exemption that prevents, disclosing whether a system of records contains a record pertaining to you or to the individual for whom you are a parent or guardian, you will be notified in writing of the reasons of that determination, and of your right to appeal that determination under the provisions § 2412.12.