[Code of Federal Regulations]

[Title 22, Volume 1]

[Revised as of April 1, 2006]

From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access

[CITE: 22CFR171.13]



[Page 753-754]

 

                       TITLE 22--FOREIGN RELATIONS

 

                     CHAPTER I--DEPARTMENT OF STATE

 

PART 171_AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION AND RECORDS TO THE PUBLIC--Table 

of Contents

 

             Subpart B_Freedom of Information Act Provisions

 

Sec.  171.13  Business information.



    (a) Business information obtained by the Department from a submitter 

will be disclosed under the FOIA only in compliance with this section.

    (b) Definitions. For purposes of this section:

    (1) Business information means information obtained by the 

Department from a submitter that arguably may be exempt from disclosure 

as privileged or confidential under Exemption 4 of the FOIA.

    (2) Submitter means any person or entity from which the Department 

obtains business information. The term includes corporations, 

partnerships, sole proprietorships; State, local, and tribal 

governments; and foreign governments.

    (c) Designation of business information. A submitter of information 

will use good-faith efforts to designate, by appropriate markings, 

either at the time of submission or at a reasonable time thereafter, any 

portions of its submission that it considers exempt from disclosure 

under Exemption 4. These designations will expire ten years after the 

date of the submission unless the submitter requests, and provides 

justification for, a longer designation period.

    (d) Notice to submitters. The Department shall provide a submitter 

with prompt written notice of a FOIA request or administrative appeal of 

a denial of such a request that seeks its information whenever required 

under paragraph (e) of this section, except as provided in paragraph (f) 

of this section, in order to give the submitter an opportunity to object 

to disclosure of any specified portion of that information. The notice 

shall either describe the information requested or include copies of the 

requested records or record portions containing the information.

    (e) When notice is required. Notice shall be given to a submitter 

whenever:

    (1) The information has been designated in good faith by the 

submitter as information considered protected from disclosure under 

Exemption 4; or

    (2) The Department has reason to believe that the information may 

not be protected from disclosure under Exemption 4.

    (f) When notice is not required. The notice requirements of 

paragraphs (d) and (e) of this section shall not apply if:

    (1) The Department determines that the information should not be 

disclosed;

    (2) The information lawfully has been published or has been 

officially made available to the public;

    (3) Disclosure of the information is required by statute (other than 

the FOIA) or by a regulation issued in accordance with the requirements 

of Executive Order 12600; or

    (4) The designation made by the submitter under paragraph (c) of 

this section appears obviously frivolous--except that, in such a case, 

the Department shall, within a reasonable time prior to a specified 

disclosure date, give the submitter written notice of any final decision 

to disclose the information.

    (g) Opportunity to object to disclosure. The Department will allow a 

submitter a reasonable time to respond to the notice described in 

paragraph (d) of this



[[Page 754]]



section and will specify that time period in the notice. If a submitter 

has any objection to disclosure, a detailed written statement in support 

of the objection must be submitted. The statement must specify all 

grounds for withholding any portion of the information under any 

exemption of the FOIA and, in the case of Exemption 4, it must show why 

the information is a trade secret or commercial or financial information 

that is privileged or confidential. In the event that a submitter fails 

to respond to the notice within the time specified in it, the submitter 

will be considered to have no objection to disclosure of the 

information. Information provided by a submitter under this paragraph 

may itself be subject to disclosure under the FOIA.

    (h) Notice of intent to disclose. The Department shall consider a 

submitter's objections and specific grounds for nondisclosure in 

deciding whether to disclose business information. Whenever the 

Department decides to disclose business information over the objection 

of a submitter, it shall give the submitter written notice, which shall 

include:

    (1) A statement of the reason why each of the submitter's disclosure 

objections was not sustained;

    (2) A description of the information to be disclosed; and

    (3) A specified disclosure date, which shall be a reasonable time 

subsequent to the notice.

    (i) Notice of lawsuit. Whenever a requester files a lawsuit seeking 

to compel the disclosure of information, the Department shall promptly 

notify the submitter.

    (j) Notice to requester. Whenever the Department provides a 

submitter with notice and an opportunity to object to disclosure under 

paragraph (d) of this section, the Department shall also notify the 

requester. Whenever the Department notifies a submitter of its intent to 

disclose requested information under paragraph (h) of this section, the 

Department shall also notify the requester. Whenever a submitter files a 

lawsuit seeking to prevent the disclosure of business information, the 

Department shall notify the requester.