Most of the data that county, tribal and employment services agencies collect about people are private data.

The person the data is about or that person’s authorized representative must be allowed access to the private data.

State law classifies some data as confidential.
This is a higher standard than private: the person the data is about CANNOT have access to that data.

When participants are asked to provide private or confidential data about themselves, they must be informed about:

· The purpose and intended use of the requested data.

· Whether they may refuse to share the data or whether the law requires them to supply the data.

· The consequences of supplying or refusing to supply the data.

· The identity of other people or entities authorized to receive the data.

Every employment services worker must complete annual data privacy training.
The state provides this training. It explains:

· The difference between private and confidential information.

· What practices meet data privacy standards.

The training can be accessed at https://data-securitytraining.dhs.mn.gov/Account/Login.

Official state forms contain the appropriate language for notifying participants and applicants about how their information will be used:

· The financial assistance Combined Application Form (CAF) (DHS-5223) (PDF). For links to non-English versions of this form, see 3.3 (Applying for MFIP).

· Employment Services Responsibilities, Rights and Consent (DHS-3172) (PDF).

· Notice of Privacy Practices form:

· Notice of Privacy Practices English (DHS-3979) (PDF).

· Notice of Privacy Practices Hmong (DHS-3979-HMN) (PDF).

· Notice of Privacy Practices Russian (DHS-3979-RUS) (PDF).

· Notice of Privacy Practices Somali (DHS-3979-SOM) (PDF).

· Notice of Privacy Practices Spanish (DHS-3979-SPA) (PDF).

· Notice of Privacy Practices Vietnamese (DHS-3979-VIE) (PDF).

Review the Responsibilities, Rights and Consent (DHS-3172) (PDF) every 12 months with the participant.

· Have the participant sign this form at enrollment with employment services.

· Have the participant sign a new statement every 12 months.

· Keep the signed copy in the employment services file.

Release of information forms:
Have participants sign these forms if you are ever requesting or sharing private information.
General Authorization for Release of Information  (DHS-2243A) (PDF).