SECTION 7: IMPORTANT NOTICES
Privacy Act Notice. The Privacy Act of 1974 (5
U.S.C. 552a) requires that the following notice be provided
to you:
The authorities for collecting the requested
information from and about you are §421 et seq. and §451
et seq. of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended
(20 U.S.C. 1071 et seq. and 20 U.S.C. 1087a et seq.), and
the authorities for collecting and using your Social Security
Number (SSN) are §§428B(f) and 484(a)(4) of the Higher
Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1078-2(f) and 1091(a)(4)) and 31
U.S.C. 7701(b). Participating in the Federal Family
Education Loan (FFEL) Program or the William D. Ford
Federal Direct Loan (Direct Loan) Program and giving us
your SSN are voluntary, but you must provide the
requested information, including your SSN, to participate.
The principal purposes for collecting the
information on this form, including your SSN, are to verify
your identity, to determine your eligibility to receive a loan
or a benefit on a loan (such as a deferment, forbearance,
discharge, or forgiveness) under the FFEL and/or Direct
Loan Programs, to permit the servicing of your loan(s), and,
if it becomes necessary, to locate you and to collect and
report on your loan(s) if your loan(s) becomes delinquent
or defaults. We also use your SSN as an account identifier
and to permit you to access your account information
electronically.
The information in your file may be disclosed, on a
case-by-case basis or under a computer matching program,
to third parties as authorized under routine uses in the
appropriate systems of records notices. The routine uses of
this information include, but are not limited to, its
disclosure to federal, state, or local agencies, to private
parties such as relatives, present and former employers,
business and personal associates, to consumer reporting
agencies, to financial and educational institutions, and to
guaranty agencies in order to verify your identity, to
determine your eligibility to receive a loan or a benefit on a
loan, to permit the servicing or collection of your loan(s), to
enforce the terms of the loan(s), to investigate possible
fraud and to verify compliance with federal student
financial aid program regulations, or to locate you if you
become delinquent in your loan payments or if you default.
To provide default rate calculations, disclosures may be
made to guaranty agencies, to financial and educational
institutions, or to state agencies. To provide financial aid
history information, disclosures may be made to
educational institutions. To assist program administrators
with tracking refunds and cancellations, disclosures may be
made to guaranty agencies, to financial and educational
institutions, or to federal or state agencies.
To provide a standardized method for educational
institutions to efficiently submit student enrollment statuses,
disclosures may be made to guaranty agencies or to financial
and educational institutions. To counsel you in repayment
efforts, disclosures may be made to guaranty agencies, to
financial and educational institutions, or to federal, state, or
local agencies.
In the event of litigation, we may send records to the
Department of Justice, a court, adjudicative body, counsel,
party, or witness if the disclosure is relevant and necessary to
the litigation. If this information, either alone or with other
information, indicates a potential violation of law, we may
send it to the appropriate authority for action. We may send
information to members of Congress if you ask them to help
you with federal student aid questions. In circumstances
involving employment complaints, grievances, or disciplinary
actions, we may disclose relevant records to adjudicate or
investigate the issues. If provided for by a collective
bargaining agreement, we may disclose records to a labor
organization recognized under 5 U.S.C. Chapter 71. Disclosures
may be made to our contractors for the purpose of performing
any programmatic function that requires disclosure of records.
Before making any such disclosure, we will require the
contractor to maintain Privacy Act safeguards. Disclosures may
also be made to qualified researchers under Privacy Act
safeguards.
Paperwork Reduction Notice. According to the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to
respond to a collection of information unless it displays a valid
OMB control number. The valid OMB control number for this
collection is 1845-0133. Public reporting burden for this
collection of information is estimated to average 5 minutes
(0.08 hours) per response, including the time for reviewing
instructions, searching existing data resources, gathering and
maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing
the collection of information. The obligation to respond to this
collection is required to obtain a benefit in accordance with 34
CFR 668.34(d). If you have questions regarding the status of
your individual submission of this form, contact your loan
holder (see Section 5).
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