The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is establishing a new system of records to maintain child abuse and neglect investigation records for the Office of Refugee Resettlement's Unaccompanied Children Bureau. The rule exempts this system from certain Privacy Act requirements, like disclosure and access rights, to protect the integrity of investigations and secure sensitive information. HHS explains that these exemptions are necessary to prevent interference with investigations, safeguard the identities of children and informants, and maintain the effectiveness of investigative techniques. The rule will be effective by February 6, 2025, unless adverse comments are received by January 22, 2025.
Simple Explanation
The government wants to keep some information about kids, who are in special care, secret to make sure nobody messes up their investigations and to protect the kids and people helping them. They think this is important, but some people worry it might not be fair because it keeps things secret that people might want to see.