§ 3.1-249.68. (Repealed effective October 1, 2008) Protection of trade secrets and other information
A. In submitting data required by this chapter, the applicant may (i) clearly mark any portions thereof which in his opinion are trade secrets or commercial or financial information and (ii) submit such marked materials separately from other material required to be submitted under this chapter.
B. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, and subject to the limitations in subsections D and E of this section, the Commissioner shall not make public information which in his 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 chapter, information relating to formulas of products acquired by authorization of this chapter may be revealed to any federal, state or local agency consulted and may be revealed at a public hearing or in findings of fact issued by the Commissioner or Board.
C. If the Commissioner proposes to release for inspection information which the applicant or registrant believes to be protected from disclosure under subsection B of this section, he shall notify the applicant or registrant, in writing, by certified mail. The Commissioner 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 circuit court for a declaratory judgment as to whether such information is subject to protection under subsection B.
D. 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 Article 2 (§ 3.1-249.35 et seq.) of this chapter. This subsection does not authorize the disclosure of any information that:
a. Discloses manufacturing or quality control process,
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 Commissioner 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 Commissioner determines that such disclosure is necessary in the public interest.
3. If the Commissioner proposes to disclose information described in subdivisions D 1 a, b, or c or subdivision D 2 of this section, the Commissioner shall notify by certified mail the submitter of such information of the intent to release such information. The Commissioner shall not release such information, without the submitter's consent, until thirty days after the submitter has been furnished such notice. Where the Commissioner finds that disclosure of information described in subdivisions D 1 a, b, or c is necessary to avoid or lessen an imminent and substantial risk or injury to the public health, the Commissioner may set such shorter period of notice and such method of notice as the Commissioner finds appropriate. During such period the data submitter may institute an action in an appropriate circuit court to enjoin or limit the proposed disclosure. The court shall give expedited consideration to any such action. 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 subdivision D 1 a, b, or c, 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 subdivision D 2 of this section, 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. Information otherwise protected from disclosure to the public under subsection B of this section may be disclosed to contractors with the Commonwealth and employees of such contractors if, in the opinion of the Commissioner, such disclosure is necessary for the satisfactory performance by the contractor of a contract with the Commonwealth for the performance of work in connection with this chapter and under such conditions as the Commissioner may specify. The Commissioner shall require as a condition to the disclosure of information under this section that the person receiving it take such security precautions respecting the information as the Board shall by regulation prescribe.
F. The Commissioner shall not knowingly disclose information submitted by an applicant or registrant under this chapter 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 Commissioner 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 section the Commissioner 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 chapter, which information is relevant to the determination by the Commissioner with respect to whether a pesticide, or any ingredient of a pesticide, causes unreasonable adverse effects on health or the environment.
The Commissioner shall maintain records of the names of persons to whom data are disclosed under this section and the persons or organizations they represent and shall inform the applicant or registrant of the names and affiliation of such persons.
G. Any person, who, with intent to defraud, uses or reveals information relative to formulas of products acquired pursuant to this chapter shall be guilty of a Class 6 felony.
(Code 1950, § 3-208.36; 1966, c. 702; 1975, c. 102, § 3.1-238; 1989, c. 575.)
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