Information presented on the MRP web site is considered public information and may be distributed or copied. Use of appropriate byline/photo/image credits is requested.

MRP is committed to maintaining a web site that protects the individual’s right to privacy. We do not require personal information from our visitors, nor do we collect any personally identifying information (name, email address, Social Security number, or other unique identifier) unless you knowingly provide it. Likewise, we do not give, sell, or transfer any personal information to a third party.

Data Collection for Statistics

To aid in web site management, certain information is collected for statistical purposes. MRP uses specialized software to create summary statistics, which are used for such purposes as assessing what information is of most and least interest to our customers, determining technical design specifications, and identifying system performance or problem areas.

We collect only the following information about your visit:

• The name of the domain from which you access the Internet (for example, "princeton.edu" if you are connecting from Princeton University’s domain, or "aol.com" if you are connecting from an America Online account);
• The web site from which you linked directly to our web site, if you have used another web site to reach the AMS web site;
• The operating system and web browser you use to view pages;
• The date and time you access our web site;
• The country from which you are connecting; and
• The pages viewed during your visit.

We use the information we collect to measure the number of visitors to the different sections of our web site, allowing us to make our web site more useful and accessible to visitors.

Information Collected from E-mails and Forms

You may decide to send us personally identifying information through e-mail messages or through on-line forms. Electronic communication allows us to collect information that will improve our web site for you, and we encourage it. You should know that we use information provided in e-mails and forms only for the purposes provided, and the information will be destroyed after its purpose has been fulfilled, in accordance with the National Archives and Records Administration General Schedule 20.

Security Checks

For web site security purposes and to ensure that this service remains available to all users, AMS employs software programs to monitor network traffic, identify unauthorized attempts to upload or change information, or otherwise cause damage. Unauthorized attempts to upload or change information on this web site are strictly prohibited and may be punishable under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act of 1986 and the National Information Infrastructure Protection Act.

If you have any questions or comments about the information presented here, please forward them to shannon.hamm@usda.gov