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Division of Personnel Security
and Access Control

Helpdesk: 301-402-9755
e-QIP: 301-402-9735
Appointment Line: 301-496-0051
Email: orspersonnelsecurity@mail.nih.gov

This is the August 26, 2009 issue of the DPSAC NEWS

Credit Bureau Security Freezes Hampering National Credit Bureau Credit Checks

“The Office of Personnel Management (OPM), Federal Investigative Services Division (FISD), has experienced an increase in the number of national credit bureau checks that are unobtainable due to individuals of investigation placing a security freeze on their credit file,” writes Barbara Hardy, Lead Personnel Security Specialist, DPSAC, in an open letter to the AO community. “When OPM-FISD is unable to obtain a tri-bureau credit report due to one, two, or all three bureaus having a security freeze, the overall effect is an incomplete investigation,” she notes.

“In order to ensure the quality of OPM’s investigative products, effective immediately, if you have a security freeze in place, it must be temporarily lifted prior to submission of the e-QIP to the DPSAC office,” states Hardy. “This requirement applies to national credit bureau checks which are conducted as extra coverage for positions of 'public trust' or higher," she adds.

Below is the contact information for the three major credit bureaus. “You should advise (the bureaus) to temporarily lift the freeze on your credit file at the time of submission of the e-QIP form to DPSAC and for 40 days thereafter,” Hardy advises.

• Equifax – telephone 800-685-1111 or contact them via e-mail from their website: www.equifax.com
• Experian – telephone 888-397-3742 or contact them via e-mail from their website: http://www.experian.com/freeze
• TransUnion – telephone 888-909-8872 or contact them via e-mail from their website: http;//www.transunion.com

AOs - Are You Ready?

As most DPSAC News readers are aware, DPSAC will begin ‘forcing’ badge renewals for the general NIH population starting in early September. In order to identity proof, enroll and badge all 34,000 employees, contractors and affiliates (fellows, guest researchers and special volunteers) by June 2010, DPSAC will need to process approximately 800 individuals (or more) each week!

This nearly four-fold increase in volume (about 220 individuals are currently processed each week), will present challenges to both DPSAC and the AO community.
 

In anticipating the increased workload, DPSAC plans to open satellite enrollment and badge issuance stations to handle the increased workload (see DPSAC News, June 12, 2009 to read about their locations). DPSAC is also in the process of hiring additional personnel security and access control professionals to staff these new and additional Enrollment and Badge Issuance stations.

DPSAC wants to remind AOs that they too will be facing increased challenges. Demands on AOs undoubtedly will increase as the volume of badge renewal tasks appearing in their NED in-boxes increase. AOs will be required to complete these tasks in order to keep the badge renewal process moving forward.

It’s important to note that DPSAC cannot enroll (fingerprint and photograph) anyone with the new machines until the badge renewal task has been completed and approved by an AO and the person has been sponsored in NED. Until they are sponsored, DPSAC cannot see the individuals in their database.

Any individual who comes to the DPSAC office for the new badge who is not sponsored will be instructed to contact their AO.

The HSPD-12 Program Office and DPSAC will continue to keep the the AO community and the general NIH population informed as Enrollment and Badging activities progress toward the June 2010 deadline. Toward this end, DPSAC published an article in the August 21, 2009 NIH Record describing in detail the rollout of the HHS ID Badge to the general NIH population.

In the article, Acting DPSAC Director Richie Taffet pointed out that  “One of the more critical elements of this huge effort will be for everyone to keep their enrollment and badge issuance appointments."

"DPSAC reserves 20-minute blocks of time exclusively for each individual to complete the enrollment and badge issuance processes. DPSAC is depending on everyone to keep their appointments or notify DPSAC early to reschedule." 

“Only by maintaining a very tight schedule will we be able to meet the June 10, 2010 deadline for issuing HHS ID Badges to all 34,000 employees, contractors and affiliates who are currently holding NIH badges” said Taffet. “Every missed appointment really impedes our progress since DPSAC will not be able to fill the missed appointment with someone else” he concluded.

Revised Advisory - NIH Technical Support Staff Receive Revised Instructions for Installing ActivClients Software to Enable PIV Smartcard

As reported in the August 12 issue of DPSAC News , OD CIO staff recently notified NIH Technical support staff that they must install ActivClient software to enable the use of the PIV smartcard. Since this article ran, however, the OD CIO staff updated ActivClient instructions in response to helpdesk calls indicating that the process to manually publish the smartcard certificates to the GAL (when the user has no other certificates) is occasionally failing. The revised instructions are posted at the following links:

1. https://isdp.nih.gov/openaccess/ai/ActivClientInstallationInstructions.doc
2. The instructions imbedded in the self-extracting file located at https://isdp.nih.gov/openaccess/ai/ActivClient.exe

You can also view these instructions by clicking on: ActivClientInstallationInstructions   

FY 2010 Investigation Rates Remain Unchanged

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) recently announced that the billing rates for fiscal year 2010 have not increased from the current 2009 rates. According to the announcement, “Thanks to OPM and other Federal agencies’ abilities to make processes more efficient through information technology initiatives, rates do not need to be increased this year!” To view the current investigation rates click on: http://www.idbadge.nih.gov/background/pricing.asp

Acceptable Forms of ID

To complete the HHS ID Badge enrollment process at NIH, you are required to present two forms of acceptable identification, one of which must be a photo ID. A list of acceptable identification documents (as provided on the Federal I-9 form) is posted on the idbadge website at: http://www.idbadge.nih.gov/badge/docs/Table.pdf. Please note: all documents must be unexpired.

First and Last Names Must Match Identically on Both IDs

The two forms of ID that you present to the Personnel Security specialist at your Enrollment appointment must show identical first and last names. Below are examples of what’s OK and what isn’t. 
 

Allowable: 

John S. Doe (shown on ID form #1) & John Doe (shown on ID form #2); 

John Samuel Doe (shown on ID form #1) & John Doe (shown on ID form #2)

Unless your legal name begins with a letter (e.g., your Social Security card reads J. Samuel Doe), your two IDs must show your full first name and full last name.

Forgot Your SmartCard PIN?

If you’ve forgotten your HHS SmartCard PIN and you need it reset, please e-mail facilityaccesscontrol@mail.nih.gov and provide your full name, IC, and phone number. An Access Control specialist will contact you to help you reset your PIN.

Helpful Tips

AOs Must Use their Smartcard for Sponsorship Tasks in NED
As of August 17, AO Sponsors are required to login to NED using their new HHS ID Badge (PIV Card) to sponsor people for ID badges and NIH network accounts. Please note: This deadline does not apply for AOs who have not yet received their new HHS ID Badge.

For technical problems, including the installation of the USB Card Reader or completion of NED tasks, please contact the NIH Helpdesk at (301) 496-4357; for all other questions related to the process, please contact the HSPD-12 Program Office at (301) 496-3067 or HSPD12@mail.nih.gov.

FAQs

Q. Why do I have to complete forms OF-306 and OF-612 if I’ve already completed e-QIP -- especially since I’ve been a Federal employee for 18 years and am not applying for a new job or position. Some of the information requested on these forms doesn’t seem to be necessary.
A. Your question is shared by many other veteran NIH employees. It turns out that it is a requirement set forth by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) that the OF-612 and the OF-306 be filled out even though you are completing the e-QIP questionnaire. Unfortunately, OPM will return the application if all the requisite forms are not completed and submitted to them. Only after they are in receipt of all completed forms will they complete the background checks. No exceptions. Sorry.

The two forms can be found at the following links:
http://www.opm.gov/forms/pdf_fill/of0306.pdf and http://www.opm.gov/forms/pdf_fill/of612.pdf
 

A biweekly e-newsletter from the Office of Research Services, Division of Personnel Security and Access Control (ORS/DPSAC) to keep you informed as NIH rolls out "Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12" (HSPD-12) establishing a common identification standard to better safeguard NIH and its workforce.