National Driver Registry (NDR) Problem Driver Pointer System (PDPS) PIA

Title 49 of U.S. Code, Chapter 303, § 30302, requires that the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) establish and maintain a National Driver Register (NDR). The purpose of the NDR is to assist chief driver licensing officials of all 50 states and the District of Columbia (D.C.) (hereafter referred to as "Jurisdictions") in exchanging information about the motor vehicle driving records of individuals. NHTSA developed Problem Driver Pointer System (PDPS) system, to provide a centralized repository of information on individuals whose privilege to operate a motor vehicle have been revoked, suspended, cancelled, denied, or who have been convicted of serious traffic‐related offenses. Licensing officials are required to submit information to PDPS. Any time a person applies for a new driver’s license or the renewal of an existing license, the Jurisdiction’s driver licensing officials search PDPS to determine if the license or privilege to drive a motor vehicle has been withdrawn. Allowing Jurisdictions to identify problem drivers prior to licensing supports NHTSA’s mission to ensure the safety of the general driving public.

A Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) is required for PDPS, as it contains personally identifiable information (PII) on members of the public. The previous PIA was published November 17, 2003. NHTSA updated this document because PDPS was modernized from a main‐frame environment to a client server architecture. DOT and NHTSA also wish to provide greater transparency to the public regarding the system operations.