12 1 examination material used solely to determine individual 2 qualifications for employment, promotion, or licensing, the 3 disclosure of which would jeopardize law enforcement, nego4 tiations, protection of Government officials, or examinations, 5 and further, including reports describing the vulnerability to 6 criminal interference of facilities or activities of Government 7 or of persons engaged in interstate or foreign commerce.". 8 9 BUSINESS CONFIDENTIALITY SEC. 8. Section 552(b)(4) of title 5, United States Code, 10 is amended to read as follows: 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 "(4) trade secrets and commercial research, or financial information, or other commercially valuable information obtained from any person and privileged or confidential where release may impair the legitimate private, competitive, financial, research, or business in terests of any person or where release may impair the government's ability to obtain such information in the future;". BUSINESS CONFIDENTIALITY PROCEDURES SEC. 9. Section 552(a) of title 5, United States Code, is 21 amended by inserting immediately after paragraph (6) the fol22 lowing new paragraph: 23 "(7)(A)(i) Whenever an agency receives a request for 24 records containing or based on information which is or may 25 be subject to exemption 4 (5 U.S.C. 552(b)(4)) and the 13 1 agency has not decided to withhold such records, the agency 2 shall, within ten working days from the date of receipt of 3 such request, give written notice to the submitter of the infor4 mation contained in the record, or on which the record is 5 based, of such request. This notice shall describe the nature 6 and scope of the request and advise the submitter of his right 7 to submit written objections and his right to an informal ex 8 parte hearing pursuant to this paragraph. 9 "(ii) For the purposes of this section, the term 'submit10 ter' includes the private source who provided the requested 11 record or the information contained in the requested record or 12 on which the requested record is based, the private proprietor 13 or such information, and the individually indentifiable private 14 party who is the subject of such information. 15 "(B)(i) The submitter may, within ten working days 16 after receipt of the notice, provide the agency with written 17 objections to disclosure of records requested, clearly and suc18 cinctly describing legal grounds for the objections. 19 "(ii) Upon proper request by the submitter made within 20 five working days after receipt of the notice, the agency shall 21 provide the submitter with an opportunity for an informal ex 22 parte hearing at a location suitable for the interests of the 23 submitter and of the agency, except that the agency may 24 deny a request for hearing upon a written determination that 25 on the particular facts of the case the request is clearly frivo 14 1 lous, the requested hearing would severely prejudice specifi2 cally stated interests of the agency or identified third parties, 3 or the requested hearing has been rendered unnecessary by 4 virtue of a determination to deny the underlying request for 5 disclosure. This hearing shall be held no later than thirty 6 days after the agency receives the request for a hearing, but 7 not earlier than a reasonable time for the submitter to pre8 pare his presentation for the hearing. 9 "(iii) The time limits set forth in this subparagraph may 10 be extended by the agency where required by the circum11 stances of the case to permit development of the evidence for 12 the record or where required by other exceptional circum13 stances. When an agency extends such time limits, it shall 14 make a written finding of such circumstances and why such. 15 circumstances justifies an extension of the applicable time 16 limits. The agency shall send the submitter a copy of this 17 finding by certified or registered mail. 18 “(C)(i) Within thirty days after the agency receives the 19 written objections of the submitter, or, if an informal ex parte 20 hearing was held, within thirty days after the conclusion of 21 the hearing, the agency shall make a final decision regarding 22 disclosure of the requested agency records, unless such time 23 limitations are extended by the agency due to the existence 24 of exceptional circumstances justifying such extension. When 25 the agency extends such time limitations, it shall make a 87-749 O- 824 15 1 written finding of such circumstances and why such circum2 stances justifies an extension of the applicable time limits. 3 The agency shall send the submitter a copy of this finding by 4 certified or registered mail. 5 "(ii) When the agency makes its final decision, it shall 6 give the submitter written notice of its decision by certified or 7 registered mail. Where the agency has decided to disclose the 8 records requested, this notice shall clearly describe the 9 factual and legal grounds on which the agency based its 10 decision. 11 "(D) An agency may not disclose records which are sub12 ject to the provisions of this paragraph unless 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 "(i) more than ten working days have passed since the submitter received notice of the request for disclosure and the submitter has not provided the agency with written objections to the disclosure of the records requested or requested an informal ex parte hearing. "(ii) more than ten working days have passed since the submitter received notice of the final decision 21 of the agency following submission of written objec 228 23 24 tions where the submitter has not requested an infor mal ex parte hearing, or where the request of the submitter for such hearing was denied, or 1 16 "(iii) more than ten working days have passed 2 since the submitter received notice of the final decision 3 4 of the agency following an informal ex parte hearing. “(E)(i) Whenever an agency gives a submitter written 5 notice of a request for agency records pursuant to this para6 graph, the agency shall also give the requester written notice 7 by certified or registered mail that the record requested is 8 subject to the provisions of this paragraph and that notice of 9 the request is being given to the submitter: Provided, how10 ever, That such notice shall not describe or identify in any 11 way the information contained in the requested record or on 12 which the record is based, or identify the submitter of such 13 information. 14 “(ii) Whenever an agency grants the request of a sub15 mitter for an informal ex parte hearing, the agency shall give 16 the requester written notice, by certified or registered mail, 17 that an informal hearing will be held pursuant to the provi18 sions of this paragraph. 19 “(iii) At the same time the agency gives notice of its 20 decision to the submitter, the agency shall give a similar 21 written notice of its decision to the requester by certified or 22 registered mail. Where the agency has decided not to disclose 23 the requested record or part thereof, the notice shall be made 24 in such a manner so as not to prejudice in any way the status |