European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - August 8, 1988, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 10 the stars and stripes Reader asks about enforcement of privacy act of 1974 can you find somebody to please explain to me the intent of the privacy act of 1974"? is it we do important things with the requested information and Promise to keep it confidential or is it we will trash your request without action if every Blank on the form is not  my particular pet Peeve is the profusion of requests for my own and my dependent s birthplaces. On Acci Dent reports class registrations co applications who looks at this and Why Are there really regulations making distinctions Between . Citizens born in Tupelo miss., and others born in Rawlings mont., or the . Base in Ankara Turkey in my office of seven co workers not one of us lived More than one year in our cities of nativity. Why does anybody conceivably care i tried to leave it out of a form when reporting some vandalism once. The sergeant of maps taking the report nearly chewed my posterior through. The privacy act always refers to code this title that and Public Law something else but i can t Check that out just give me a reason. And How about s9cial Security numbers now even 5-year-Olds not paying into the system and who will live to see it bankrupt before drawing their entitle ments not Only have social Security numbers but have to provide them right and left. I tried to buy a savings Bond. I put my father As beneficiary and Nei ther knowing nor caring to look up his social Security number i left that part of the application Well Blank. The whole action was bounced unprocessed. And is anybody serious about keeping this stuff confidential How do i keep winding up with junk mail addressed with my san comparing the benefits of retirement in Florida to that in my Home of record or advising a switch Between my current life insurance and their commercial kind How do these firms get into my government files it seems to me either the privacy act is serious and we Are allowed to choose whether to provide information or it is a Complete joke and creates a lot of unnecessary printing and paper costs to put on All govern ment forms. I would be very interested in finding a spokesman who could Tell me something More. Name and location withheld in the interests of privacy editor s note Normand Labonte office of the Deputy chief of staff information management he Usa eur replies the intent of the privacy act of 1974 is to protect the privacy of United states citizens from unwarranted intrusion. The privacy act permits individuals to know what records about them Are collected maintained used or disseminated by Federal agencies and prohibits unauthorized release. It allows individuals to see obtain co pies of and Correct or Amend erroneous records about themselves. The army is serious about protecting personal information and use of the data is strictly regulated. The army is bound to comply with the act which is Public Law. It is department of defense and army policy that personnel Are expected to comply with provisions of the privacy act. Personal information protected by the act is not released to unauthorized individuals and this includes commercial enterprises. One of the key features of the privacy act is its prohibition with certain exceptions against secret sys tems of records. The privacy act requires that when a Federal Agency solicits personal information from an individual that will become part of a system of records retrieved by reference to the individual s name or other personal identifier it must Tell the individual five things in writing the statute or executive order of the president that authorizes the Agency to solicit the information whether it is mandatory or voluntary that the individual provide the information the principal purposes for which the information is intended to be used the routine use which May be made of the information As published in the record system notice in the Federal Register the effects if any on the individual for not provid ing the information. This notice is commonly referred to As the privacy act  this statement is usually placed some where on the form being completed or on a separate attached Sheet. Where similar information is being collected continually such As at Check cashing facilities a sign containing the advice May be posted. Places of birth and social Security account numbers Are personal identifiers and Are reliable sources of information for positive identification that Federal and state agencies have available when attempting to identify and locate someone for important personal matters such As inheritance benefits social Security taxes Etc. Such identifiers often provide the Only reliable method of distinguishing persons with the same or very similar names. Thank you for giving us the Opportunity to explain some of the provisions of the privacy act. Reader gets explanation of cafes new car sales program i recently purchased a car from cafes new car sales and feel the experience May be of interest to fellow cafes Consumers. Cafes car sales offices Are conveniently located next to your local Exchange Bear the cafes name on their building in their adverts and even on the car sales receipt. They also talk of cafes guaranteed discount Price and sales personnel will quickly Tell you if there Are any problems cafes will make it right and you can Trust the cafes  i say Consumers beware from the prob lems at delivery to the repeated problems that still exist for me six months and 5,000 Miles later cafes has shown me they Are the first ones to Back out and say cafes did t sell you the car and they re not  perhaps you will have no problems at delivery and the dealer can Correct your problems on the first or second attempt but let me Tell you when the transmission has to be replaced and the squeaks and rattles get worse you better be ready to play the squeaky wheel routine to get any Oil from cafes. I m convinced you re not in the car business cafes now please take Down your signs. . Hudson Ramstein a West Germany editor s note col. Donald e. Gilbert vice commander he cafes Europe replies the cafes new car sales program is just that a program whereby cafes has contracted with All us. Motor vehicle manufacturers for Sale of their North american built vehicles through the cafes overseas system. Under contract terms the manufacturer is responsible for All warranty claims per Taining to the vehicle As is the Case with most major appliances you Purchase. Car manufacturers have contracted a network of warranty repair facilities throughout Europe to handle such claims for customers. The repair facilities Are not cafes. Cafes acts As an intermediary to re solve disputes that May occur Between the contractors and the customers. However the actual claim is with the manufacturer of the vehicle and not cafes. We try our Best to mediate differences to the satisfaction of the new car customers. As with any major Purchase the Cus Tomer is advised to research the product very carefully before making such a commitment. Potential customers should read automobile enthusiast magazines such As automobile Road and track and car & Driver and should also consult consumer advocate magazines such As consumer reports. Although the enthusiast magazines rely heavily on advertising reve Nues they generally Don t pull punches in telling it like it is. The consumer magazines May not be As enthusiast oriented but they do track resale values and War Ranty records on most vehicles. Also when considering the Purchase of a motor vehicle it s Best not to make any rash decisions without first talking to other owners checking resale values and shopping around. It is absolutely imperative that cafes customers read the cafes Plain talk new cars special orders brochure prior to making a Purchase or visiting a sales representative. This brochure out lines the program in depth and should answer most of your questions. If you should come across a Deal which sounds too Good to be True Back off. It probably is too Good to be True. If the sales representative makes promises he or she is unwilling to put in writing Stop the buying procedure and notify your local Exchange manager. Remember owning an american vehicle in Europe is much different than own ing one in America. The popularity is not the same Here so subsequently you will not find an american Dealership on every Corner. If you can accept those facts make a solid and educated decision on what you want to buy and gute fart Usa eur policy on smoking clarified pen pals i am writing about the policy on smoking in office build Ings throughout Usa eur. I have observed several practices concerning this policy All within the Heidelberg area. The employees of Kil Brume and Tompkins Barracks Are not allowed to smoke inside their buildings at All whereas the practices at Campbell Barracks Range from no smoking in the buildings to smok ing in the offices occupied Only by smokers even though non smokers May have to walk through these offices or into them on a regular basis. I have also observed smoking in hallways and stairwells. I can understand being Able to smoke in the stairwells but hallways should not be designated smoking areas for obvious reasons non smokers have to walk through them and breathe in second hand smoke. Several individuals also make it a practice to smoke in the bathrooms. Asked if this is allowed one of the individuals answered not  decided this situation should be checked into. I was informed by an installation coordinator that the building coordinator is the one who establishes designated smoking areas. However the determination of where to smoke is made at a higher level within each staff Agency. I think this is a bad practice. If the military or civilian Leader happens to be a smoker he will be More Likely to allow Liberal smoking  clarify the policy for me and several of my non smoking colleagues. We would really appreciate it As we would rather work in a smoke free environment. With All the research done on the subject we feel we have a right to  withheld Heidelberg West German editor s note it col. James Harris chief leadership and wellness Branch human resources Divi Sion office of the Deputy chief of staff personnel he Usa eur replies the us. Army Europe policy on controlling smoking is contained in a letter from the Usa eur chief of staff Date nov. 9,1987. The department of army policy is contained in army regulation 603, army health promotion pro Gram. Both documents prohibit smoking in department of the army occupied space except in designated  methods of controlling smoking at Kilbourne Cavern is authorized by the policy. Commanders do not have to designate a smoking area if space is not available. The policy also authorizes hallways and stairwells to be designated a smoking areas if ventilation is adequate. The primary intent of the policy is to ensure non smokers Are protected from secondhand smoke. A non smoker s complaint that smoke is bothersome is sufficient evidence that ventilation is inadequate. If you Are bothered by smoke in hallways or stairwells you shouldering this to the attention of the building coordinator. Contrary to the situation you describe the policy do snot authorize designating offices that non smokers must enter regularly As part of their duties As smoking  areas will not be designated in restrooms. I Hope this reply answers your questions and clarifies the army policy on controlling smoking. I would like to have pen pals. I am 22 years old and a born again Christian. My hobbies Are Reading dancing writing and swimming. Be Marie Tuble College of nursing Silliman University Dumaguet City 6501, Philippines please include my name in your pen pal column. Rosalina r. Vergara Quitain Law offices 171 Anda Street Davao City 8000, Philippines i am a 24-year-old California woman. I enjoy writing to people very much. I enjoy cooking outdoors camping swimming running and Many other sports. I m working on my masters degree in Law. Terry Tomsin 1635kirklanddr. Sunnyvale Calif. 94086 i would love to hear from anyone who would care to write. I am 35 years old. Some of the things i enjoy Are Summers on the Beach cooking different types of foods movies exercise and most types of music. I like to read just about anything but i prefer autobiographies and mysteries. Diane vollono75kayevuedr.,apt1k Hamden Conn. 06514 i would like pen pals. I am 24 years old. Ana Marie Trinidad 37 Istanbul st., of Homes que metro Manila Philippines please list my name in your pen pal column. I am 18 years old. Dourlyn cant Labato Makusay Gui Huangan Negros Oriental 6214 Philippines please list my name in your pen pal column. I am 21 years old. My interests Are Long Countryside walks Reading and horseback Riding. I would like to have pen pals from All Over the world. Matthew s. Kenned Box 1112, hic 4th in 7th inf . 09162 please publish my name in your list of pen pals. I am 27 years old. Leah l. Carullo Merida vocational school Merlda Leyte Philippines