Notice2024-06926
U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO): Disclosure of Information Potentially Containing Confidential Business Information
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
April 2, 2024
Issuing agencies
Environmental Protection Agency
Abstract
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or the Agency) is providing notice of disclosure to all potentially affected businesses under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) that have submitted information to EPA pursuant to TSCA section 5. In response to a request by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), EPA will disclose information to GAO which has been submitted to the Agency under TSCA section 5, and which is claimed to be, or has been determined to be, Confidential Business Information (CBI). The information to be disclosed includes portions of at least several TSCA section 5 submissions, which may include information that is claimed as, or has been determined to be, CBI.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 64 (Tuesday, April 2, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 64 (Tuesday, April 2, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22713-22714]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-06926]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-HQ-OPPT-2024-0160; FRL-11814-01-OCSPP]
U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO): Disclosure of
Information Potentially Containing Confidential Business Information
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or the Agency)
is providing notice of disclosure to all potentially affected
businesses under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) that have
submitted information to EPA pursuant to TSCA section 5. In response to
a request by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), EPA will
disclose information to GAO which has been submitted to the Agency
under TSCA section 5, and which is claimed to be, or has been
determined to be, Confidential Business Information (CBI). The
information to be disclosed includes portions of at least several TSCA
section 5 submissions, which may include information that is claimed
as, or has been determined to be, CBI.
DATES: EPA will disclose the material discussed in this document to
GAO, including any CBI therein, no earlier than April 12, 2024. At the
conclusion of GAO's review, all CBI-claimed documents will be
destroyed, deleted, or returned to EPA if applicable.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jessica Barkas, Program Management and
Operations Division (PMOD) 7407M, Office of Pollution Prevention and
Toxics, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW,
Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: (202) 250-8880; email address:
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#cfadaebda4aebce1a5aabcbca6acae8faabfaee1a8a0b9"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="402221322b21336e2a253333292321002530216e272f36">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In connection with a GAO review, EPA
received a request under 40 CFR 2.209(b) from GAO for certain records
submitted to EPA under TSCA from October 1, 2021, through the date of
this notice. According to the request, GAO is initiating a review of
EPA's practices for managing and accessing the performance of EPA's New
Chemicals Review program under TSCA section 5.
[[Page 22714]]
To fulfill these objectives, GAO has requested access to records, data,
and documents submitted to EPA pursuant to TSCA, 15 U.S.C. 2601 et
seq., the Pollution Prevention Act (PPA), 42 U.S.C. 13101 et seq., and
other applicable statutes administered by EPA's Office of Pollution
Prevention and Toxics (OPPT) from October 1, 2021, through the date of
this notice. The requested information may include submissions that
have been claimed as, or have been determined to be, CBI. GAO has not
indicated which or how many TSCA section 5 submissions they may need to
access, but their planned review of this information will likely
require the viewing and analysis of some features of unredacted
submissions that have been claimed as CBI. Consequently, GAO staff may
view CBI material in TSCA section 5 submissions incidental to their
review and examination of EPA's New Chemical Review program. EPA also
intends to disclose to GAO any information related to data systems that
house new chemicals review information to assess the reliability of
system data.
To fulfill the request, EPA expects to provide GAO temporary access
to the requested TSCA section 5 submissions via remote access to EPA's
TSCA CBI LAN beginning as early as 10 days following this notice. At
this point, EPA does not anticipate transferring physical custody of
any requested information or documents to GAO.
The disclosure of CBI is limited to GAO and further disclosure is
generally restricted by 31 U.S.C. 716(e) and subject to criminal
penalties under 18 U.S.C. 1905. At the conclusion of the GAO review,
all CBI-claimed documents will be destroyed, deleted, or returned to
EPA, if applicable.
Authority: 15 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.
Dated: March 27, 2024.
Pamela Myrick,
Director, Project Management and Operations Division, Office of
Pollution Prevention and Toxics.
[FR Doc. 2024-06926 Filed 4-1-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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