7 U.S.C. § 136h

Protection of trade secrets and other information

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(a) In general

In submitting data required by this subchapter, the applicant may (1) clearly mark any portions thereof which in the applicant’s opinion are trade secrets or commercial or financial information and (2) submit such market material separately from other material required to be submitted under this subchapter.

(b) Disclosure

Notwithstanding any other provision of this subchapter and subject to the limitations in subsections (d) and (e) of this section, the Administrator shall not make public information which in the Administrator’s judgment contains or relates to trade secrets or commercial or financial information obtained from a person and privileged or confidential, except that, when necessary to carry out the provisions of this subchapter, information relating to formulas of products acquired by authorization of this subchapter may be revealed to any Federal agency consulted and may be revealed at a public hearing or in findings of fact issued by the Administrator.

If the Administrator proposes to release for inspection information which the applicant or registrant believes to be protected from disclosure under subsection (b), the Administrator shall notify the applicant or registrant, in writing, by certified mail. The Administrator shall not thereafter make available for inspection such data until thirty days after receipt of the notice by the applicant or registrant. During this period, the applicant or registrant may institute an action in an appropriate district court for a declaratory judgment as to whether such information is subject to protection under subsection (b).

(d) Limitations(1) All information concerning the objectives, methodology, results, or significance of any test or experiment performed on or with a registered or previously registered pesticide or its separate ingredients, impurities, or degradation products, and any information concerning the effects of such pesticide on any organism or the behavior of such pesticide in the environment, including, but not limited to, data on safety to fish and wildlife, humans and other mammals, plants, animals, and soil, and studies on persistence, translocation and fate in the environment, and metabolism, shall be available for disclosure to the public. The use of such data for any registration purpose shall be governed by section 136a of this title. This paragraph does not authorize the disclosure of any information that—(A) discloses manufacturing or quality control processes,(B) discloses the details of any methods for testing, detecting, or measuring the quantity of any deliberately added inert ingredient of a pesticide, or(C) discloses the identity or percentage quantity of any deliberately added inert ingredient of a pesticide,unless the Administrator has first determined that disclosure is necessary to protect against an unreasonable risk of injury to health or the environment.(2) Information concerning production, distribution, sale, or inventories of a pesticide that is otherwise entitled to confidential treatment under subsection (b) of this section may be publicly disclosed in connection with a public proceeding to determine whether a pesticide, or any ingredient of a pesticide, causes unreasonable adverse effects on health or the environment, if the Administrator determines that such disclosure is necessary in the public interest.(3) If the Administrator proposes to disclose information described in clause (A), (B), or (C) of paragraph (1) or in paragraph (2) of this subsection, the Administrator shall notify by certified mail the submitter of such information of the intent to release such information. The Administrator may not release such information, without the submitter’s consent, until thirty days after the submitter has been furnished such notice. Where the Administrator finds that disclosure of information described in clause (A), (B), or (C) of paragraph (1) of this subsection is necessary to avoid or lessen an imminent and substantial risk of injury to the public health, the Administrator may set such shorter period of notice (but not less than ten days) and such method of notice as the Administrator finds appropriate. During such period the data submitter may institute an action in an appropriate district court to enjoin or limit the proposed disclosure. The court may enjoin disclosure, or limit the disclosure or the parties to whom disclosure shall be made, to the extent that—(A) in the case of information described in clause (A), (B), or (C) of paragraph (1) of this subsection, the proposed disclosure is not required to protect against an unreasonable risk of injury to health or the environment; or(B) in the case of information described in paragraph (2) of this subsection, the public interest in availability of the information in the public proceeding does not outweigh the interests in preserving the confidentiality of the information.(e) Disclosure to contractors

Information otherwise protected from disclosure to the public under subsection (b) of this section may be disclosed to contractors with the United States and employees of such contractors if, in the opinion of the Administrator, such disclosure is necessary for the satisfactory performance by the contractor of a contract with the United States for the performance of work in connection with this subchapter and under such conditions as the Administrator may specify. The Administrator shall require as a condition to the disclosure of information under this subsection that the person receiving it take such security precautions respecting the information as the Administrator shall by regulation prescribe.

(f) Penalty for disclosure by Federal employees(1) Any officer or employee of the United States or former officer or employee of the United States who, by virtue of such employment or official position, has obtained possession of, or has access to, material the disclosure of which is prohibited by subsection (b) of this section, and who, knowing that disclosure of such material is prohibited by such subsection, willfully discloses the material in any manner to any person not entitled to receive it, shall be fined not more than $10,000 or imprisoned for not more than one year, or both. Section 1905 of title 18 shall not apply with respect to the publishing, divulging, disclosure, or making known of, or making available, information reported or otherwise obtained under this subchapter. Nothing in this subchapter shall preempt any civil remedy under State or Federal law for wrongful disclosure of trade secrets.(2) For the purposes of this section, any contractor with the United States who is furnished information as authorized by subsection (e) of this section, or any employee of any such contractor, shall be considered to be an employee of the United States.(g) Disclosure to foreign and multinational pesticide producers(1) The Administrator shall not knowingly disclose information submitted by an applicant or registrant under this subchapter to any employee or agent of any business or other entity engaged in the production, sale, or distribution of pesticides in countries other than the United States or in addition to the United States or to any other person who intends to deliver such data to such foreign or multinational business or entity unless the applicant or registrant has consented to such disclosure. The Administrator shall require an affirmation from any person who intends to inspect data that such person does not seek access to the data for purposes of delivering it or offering it for sale to any such business or entity or its agents or employees and will not purposefully deliver or negligently cause the data to be delivered to such business or entity or its agents or employees. Notwithstanding any other provision of this subsection, the Administrator may disclose information to any person in connection with a public proceeding under law or regulation, subject to restrictions on the availability of information contained elsewhere in this subchapter, which information is relevant to a determination by the Administrator with respect to whether a pesticide, or any ingredient of a pesticide, causes unreasonable adverse effects on health or the environment.(2) The Administrator shall maintain records of the names of persons to whom data are disclosed under this subsection and the persons or organizations they represent and shall inform the applicant or registrant of the names and affiliations of such persons.(3)Section 1001 of title 18 shall apply to any affirmation made under paragraph (1) of this subsection.(June 25, 1947, ch. 125, § 10, as added Pub. L. 92–516, § 2, Oct. 21, 1972, 86 Stat. 989; amended Pub. L. 95–396, § 15, Sept. 30, 1978, 92 Stat. 829; Pub. L. 98–620, title IV, § 402(4)(B), Nov. 8, 1984, 98 Stat. 3357; Pub. L. 100–532, title VIII, § 801(f), Oct. 25, 1988, 102 Stat. 2682; Pub. L. 102–237, title X, § 1006(b)(1), (2), (3)(J), Dec. 13, 1991, 105 Stat. 1895, 1896.)Editorial NotesPrior Provisions

A prior section 10 of act June 25, 1947, was classified to section 135h of this title prior to amendment of act June 25, 1947, by Pub. L. 92–516.

Amendments

1991—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 102–237, § 1006(b)(3)(J), substituted “the applicant’s” for “his”.

Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 102–237, § 1006(b)(2), substituted “the Administrator’s” for “his”.

Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 102–237, § 1006(b)(1), substituted “the Administrator” for “he” before “shall notify”.

1988—Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 100–532 in par. (1), substituted “public. The use” for “public: Provided, That the use” and “title. This paragraph” for “title: Provided further, That this paragraph”, and in par. (3), “notice. Where” for “notice: Provided, That where”.

1984—Subsec. (d)(3). Pub. L. 98–620 struck out provisions requiring the court to give expedited consideration to actions involving injunctions or limitations of proposed disclosure.

1978—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 95–396, § 15(1), made disclosure of information by the Administrator subject to the limitations of subsecs. (d) and (e) of this section.

Subsecs. (d) to (g). Pub. L. 95–396, § 15(2), added subsecs. (d) to (g).

Statutory Notes and Related SubsidiariesEffective Date of 1988 Amendment

Amendment by Pub. L. 100–532 effective on expiration of 60 days after Oct. 25, 1988, see section 901 of Pub. L. 100–532, set out as a note under section 136 of this title.

Effective Date of 1984 Amendment

Amendment by Pub. L. 98–620 not applicable to cases pending on Nov. 8, 1984, see section 403 of Pub. L. 98–620, set out as an Effective Date note under section 1657 of Title 28, Judiciary and Judicial Procedure.

Effective Date

For effective date of section, see section 4 of Pub. L. 92–516, set out as a note under section 136 of this title.

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 32 cases, 1975–2020 · leading case: Ruckelshaus v. Monsanto Co., 467 U.S. 986 (1984).

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Ruckelshaus v. Monsanto Co., 467 U.S. 986 (1984). · cites it 2× “Also in 1978, Congress added a new subsection, § 10(d), 7 U. S. C. § 136h(d), that provides for disclosure of all health, *996 safety, and environmental data to qualified requesters, notwithstanding the prohibition against disclosure of trade secrets contained in § 10(b).”

Thomas v. Union Carbide Agric. Prods. Co., 473 U.S. 568 (1985). · cites it 2× “FIFRA contains no provision explicitly authorizing a party to invoke judicial process to compel arbitration or enforce an award.”

Mobay Chem. Corp. v. Costle, 517 F. Supp. 254 (W.D. Pa. 1981). · cites it 12× “Disclosure is subject to the trade secret provisions of § 10, 7 U.S.C.A. § 136h. Section 10, as mentioned earlier, permits data submitters to mark portions of their data which they consider to be trade secrets and, until the 1978 amendments, generally prohibited the EPA from…”

Syngenta Corp Prot., Inc. v. Helliker, 42 Cal. Rptr. 3d 191 (Cal. Ct. App. 2006). · cites it 2× “) The referenced FIFRA provision (7 U.S.C. § 136h(d)(l)) states generally that all information concerning tests performed on a pesticide or pesticide ingredient and all information concerning the effects of the pesticide on any organism or its behavior in the environment is…”

Indian Brand Farms, Inc. v. Novartis Crop Prot. Inc., 617 F.3d 207 (3rd Cir. 2010). · cites it 2× “See 7 U.S.C. § 136h(d)(1)(C); 40 C.F.R. § 156.”

Mobay Chem. Corp. v. Costle, 447 F. Supp. 811 (W.D. Mo. 1978). · cites it 4× “§ 136a(c)(l)(D), and § 10 of FIFRA, as amended, 7 U.S.C. § 136h, is October 21, 1972; and it is further ORDERED and declared that the term “trade secret” as utilized in § 10 of FIFRA, as amended, means “ .”

In re \Agent Orange\" Prod. Liab. Litig.", 104 F.R.D. 559 (E.D.N.Y 1985). · cites it 2× “Various statutes also protect many of the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) documents, such as the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, 7 U.S.C. § 136h (Supp. V 1981), the Trade Secrets Act, 18 U.”

Union Carbide Agric. Prods. Co. v. Ruckleshaus, 571 F. Supp. 117 (S.D.N.Y. 1983). · cites it 6× “First, plaintiffs challenge new section 10 of FIFRA, 7 U.S.C. § 136h — the “disclosure” provision — which allows the EPA to disclose certain information to the public which had been submitted by plaintiffs prior to 1978 and which prior to that date had been insulated from public…”

Nw. Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides v. Browner, 941 F. Supp. 197 (D.D.C. 1996). · cites it 6× “” FIERA also states that EPA is not to make public information which in the Administrator’s judgment contains or relates to trade secrets or commercial or financial information obtained from a person and privileged and confidential, FIFRA § 10(b), 7 U.S.C. § 136h(b). In addition…”

United States v. George Vernon Hansen, 772 F.2d 940 (D.C. Cir. 1985). “, the Federal Pesticide Act of 1978, 7 U.S.C. § 136h(g)(3) (1982). They infer from this a constant congressional belief that § 1001 does not apply to new reporting statutes in the absence of express provision, so that that absence here is determinative.”

Monsanto Co. v. William Ruckelshaus, Adm'r, Env't Prot. Agency, 753 F.2d 649 (8th Cir. 1985). · cites it 4× “7 U.S.C. § 136h(b). 6 Monsanto argues that the information is not confidential and, therefore, in fact, not protected from disclosure by the EPA, and that FIFRA requires EPA to disclose the identity of the registration applicant and the active ingredient.”

Dow Chem. Co. v. Train, 423 F. Supp. 1359 (E.D. Mich. 1976). · cites it 4× “See the entirety of 7 U.S.C. §§ 136h and 136(a)(2). This the Administrator has not done.”

Show all 32 citing cases →

— 7 U.S.C. § 136h(a) — 2 cases

Dow Chem. Co. v. Train, 423 F. Supp. 1359 (E.D. Mich. 1976). “See the entirety of 7 U.S.C. §§ 136h and 136(a)(2). This the Administrator has not done.”

Dow Chem. Co. v. Costle, 464 F. Supp. 395 (E.D. Mich. 1978).

— 7 U.S.C. § 136h(b) — 8 cases

Mobay Chem. Corp. v. Costle, 447 F. Supp. 811 (W.D. Mo. 1978). “§ 136a(c)(l)(D), and § 10 of FIFRA, as amended, 7 U.S.C. § 136h, is October 21, 1972; and it is further ORDERED and declared that the term “trade secret” as utilized in § 10 of FIFRA, as amended, means “ .”

Monsanto Co. v. William Ruckelshaus, Adm'r, Env't Prot. Agency, 753 F.2d 649 (8th Cir. 1985). “7 U.S.C. § 136h(b). 6 Monsanto argues that the information is not confidential and, therefore, in fact, not protected from disclosure by the EPA, and that FIFRA requires EPA to disclose the identity of the registration applicant and the active ingredient.”

Nw. Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides v. Browner, 941 F. Supp. 197 (D.D.C. 1996). “” FIERA also states that EPA is not to make public information which in the Administrator’s judgment contains or relates to trade secrets or commercial or financial information obtained from a person and privileged and confidential, FIFRA § 10(b), 7 U.S.C. § 136h(b). In addition…”

Nw. Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides v. Browner, 965 F. Supp. 59 (D.D.C. 1997).

Amchem Prods., Inc. v. GAF Corp., 391 F. Supp. 124 (N.D. Ga. 1975).

— 7 U.S.C. § 136h(c) — 3 cases

Thomas v. Union Carbide Agric. Prods. Co., 473 U.S. 568 (1985). “FIFRA contains no provision explicitly authorizing a party to invoke judicial process to compel arbitration or enforce an award.”

Chevron Chem. Co. v. Costle, 443 F. Supp. 1024 (N.D. Cal. 1978).

Dow Chem. Co. v. Train, 423 F. Supp. 1359 (E.D. Mich. 1976). “See the entirety of 7 U.S.C. §§ 136h and 136(a)(2). This the Administrator has not done.”

— 7 U.S.C. § 136h(d) — 11 cases

Ruckelshaus v. Monsanto Co., 467 U.S. 986 (1984). “Also in 1978, Congress added a new subsection, § 10(d), 7 U. S. C. § 136h(d), that provides for disclosure of all health, *996 safety, and environmental data to qualified requesters, notwithstanding the prohibition against disclosure of trade secrets contained in § 10(b).”

Union Carbide Agric. Prods. Co. v. Ruckleshaus, 571 F. Supp. 117 (S.D.N.Y. 1983). “First, plaintiffs challenge new section 10 of FIFRA, 7 U.S.C. § 136h — the “disclosure” provision — which allows the EPA to disclose certain information to the public which had been submitted by plaintiffs prior to 1978 and which prior to that date had been insulated from public…”

Ruckelshaus, Adm'r, United States Env't Prot. Agency v. Monsanto Co., 463 U.S. 1315 (1983).

Chevron Chem. Co. v. Douglas M. Costle, 641 F.2d 104 (3rd Cir. 1981).

New York v. United States Env't Prot. Agency, 350 F. Supp. 2d 429 (S.D.N.Y. 2004).

— 7 U.S.C. § 136h(d)(1) — 1 case

— 7 U.S.C. § 136h(d)(1)(C) — 2 cases

Indian Brand Farms, Inc. v. Novartis Crop Prot. Inc., 617 F.3d 207 (3rd Cir. 2010). “See 7 U.S.C. § 136h(d)(1)(C); 40 C.F.R. § 156.”

— 7 U.S.C. § 136h(d)(3) — 2 cases

Mobay Chem. Corp. v. Costle, 517 F. Supp. 254 (W.D. Pa. 1981). “Disclosure is subject to the trade secret provisions of § 10, 7 U.S.C.A. § 136h. Section 10, as mentioned earlier, permits data submitters to mark portions of their data which they consider to be trade secrets and, until the 1978 amendments, generally prohibited the EPA from…”

Petrolite Corp. v. United States Env't Prot. Agency, 519 F. Supp. 966 (D.D.C. 1981).

— 7 U.S.C. § 136h(d)(l) — 5 cases

Syngenta Corp Prot., Inc. v. Helliker, 42 Cal. Rptr. 3d 191 (Cal. Ct. App. 2006). “) The referenced FIFRA provision (7 U.S.C. § 136h(d)(l)) states generally that all information concerning tests performed on a pesticide or pesticide ingredient and all information concerning the effects of the pesticide on any organism or its behavior in the environment is…”

Petrolite Corp. v. United States Env't Prot. Agency, 519 F. Supp. 966 (D.D.C. 1981).

Nat. Resources Def. Council v. Johnson, 461 F.3d 164 (2d Cir. 2006).

— 7 U.S.C. § 136h(d)(l)(C) — 2 cases

Ctr. for Env't Health v. McCarthy, 192 F. Supp. 3d 1036 (N.D. Cal. 2016).

Mortellite v. Novartis Crop Prot., Inc., 278 F. Supp. 2d 390 (D.N.J. 2003).

— 7 U.S.C. § 136h(e) — 2 cases

Mobay Chem. Corp. v. Gorsuch, 682 F.2d 419 (3rd Cir. 1982).

— 7 U.S.C. § 136h(f) — 2 cases

Monsanto Co. v. Acting Adm'r, United States EPA, 564 F. Supp. 552 (E.D. Mo. 1983).

— 7 U.S.C. § 136h(g) — 3 cases

Uniroyal Chem. Co. v. Drexel Chem. Co., 931 F. Supp. 132 (D. Conn. 1996).

Mobay Chem. Corp. v. Gorsuch, 682 F.2d 419 (3rd Cir. 1982).

— 7 U.S.C. § 136h(g)(3) — 3 cases

United States v. Anderez, 502 F. Supp. 67 (S.D. Fla. 1980).

Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.