42 U.S.C. § 11041 — Relationship to other law

Page 8107 TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE § 11042 These actions should continue unless specifically pro- hibited by law. The head of each executive department or agency shall assist the Environmental Protection Agency in implementing this directive as quickly as possible. This directive is for the internal management of the executive branch and does not create any right or ben- efit, substantive or procedural, enforceable by any party against the United States, its agencies or instru- mentalities, its officers or employees, or any person. The Director of the Office of Management and Budget is authorized and directed to publish this Memorandum in the Federal Register. WILLIAM J. CLINTON. SUBCHAPTER III—GENERAL PROVISIONS § 11041. Relationship to other law (a) In general Nothing in this chapter shall— (1) preempt any State or local law, (2) except as provided in subsection (b), oth- erwise affect any State or local law or the au- thority of any State or local government to adopt or enforce any State or local law, or (3) affect or modify in any way the obliga- tions or liabilities of any person under other Federal law. (b) Effect on MSDS requirements Any State or local law enacted after August 1, 1985, which requires the submission of a mate- rial safety data sheet from facility owners or op- erators shall require that the data sheet be iden- tical in content and format to the data sheet re- quired under subsection (a) of section 11021 of this title. In addition, a State or locality may require the submission of information which is supplemental to the information required on the data sheet (including information on the loca- tion and quantity of hazardous chemicals present at the facility), through additional sheets attached to the data sheet or such other means as the State or locality considers appro- priate. (Pub. L. 99–499, title III, § 321, Oct. 17, 1986, 100 Stat. 1747.) § 11042. Trade secrets (a) Authority to withhold information (1) General authority (A) With regard to a hazardous chemical, an extremely hazardous substance, or a toxic chemical, any person required under section 11003(d)(2), 11003(d)(3), 11021, 11022, or 11023 of this title to submit information to any other person may withhold from such submittal the specific chemical identity (including the chemical name and other specific identifica- tion), as defined in regulations prescribed by the Administrator under subsection (c), if the person complies with paragraph (2). (B) Any person withholding the specific chemical identity shall, in the place on the submittal where the chemical identity would normally be included, include the generic class or category of the hazardous chemical, ex- tremely hazardous substance, or toxic chem- ical (as the case may be). (2) Requirements (A) A person is entitled to withhold informa- tion under paragraph (1) if such person— (i) claims that such information is a trade secret, on the basis of the factors enumer- ated in subsection (b), (ii) includes in the submittal referred to in paragraph (1) an explanation of the reasons why such information is claimed to be a trade secret, based on the factors enumer- ated in subsection (b), including a specific description of why such factors apply, and (iii) submits to the Administrator a copy of such submittal, and the information with- held from such submittal. (B) In submitting to the Administrator the information required by subparagraph (A)(iii), a person withholding information under this subsection may— (i) designate, in writing and in such man- ner as the Administrator may prescribe by regulation, the information which such per- son believes is entitled to be withheld under paragraph (1), and (ii) submit such designated information separately from other information sub- mitted under this subsection. (3) Limitation The authority under this subsection to with- hold information shall not apply to informa- tion which the Administrator has determined, in accordance with subsection (c), is not a trade secret. (b) Trade secret factors No person required to provide information under this chapter may claim that the informa- tion is entitled to protection as a trade secret under subsection (a) unless such person shows each of the following: (1) Such person has not disclosed the infor- mation to any other person, other than a member of a local emergency planning com- mittee, an officer or employee of the United States or a State or local government, an em- ployee of such person, or a person who is bound by a confidentiality agreement, and such person has taken reasonable measures to protect the confidentiality of such informa- tion and intends to continue to take such measures. (2) The information is not required to be dis- closed, or otherwise made available, to the public under any other Federal or State law. (3) Disclosure of the information is likely to cause substantial harm to the competitive po- sition of such person. (4) The chemical identity is not readily dis- coverable through reverse engineering. (c) Trade secret regulations As soon as practicable after October 17, 1986, the Administrator shall prescribe regulations to implement this section. With respect to sub- section (b)(4), such regulations shall be equiva- lent to comparable provisions in the Occupa- tional Safety and Health Administration Hazard Communication Standard (29 C.F.R. 1910.1200) and any revisions of such standard prescribed by the Secretary of Labor in accordance with the final ruling of the courts of the United States in United Steelworkers of America, AFL–CIO–CLC v. Thorne G. Auchter.