Confidential Business Information

The Treatment of Confidential Business Information (CBI) Final Rule, effective on June 10, 2015, established procedures for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to collect confidential business information on an as needed basis in its notice-and-comment rulemaking. This rule enhances the Agency’s ability to issue regulations that are data-driven and evidence-based.

Information for Submitters of CBI:

• CBI is defined as trade secrets or commercial or financial information that is privileged or confidential under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
• FMCSA has discretionary authority to define classes of information that are presumptively confidential and thus protected from public disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) on an as needed basis.
• Parties who voluntarily submit CBI to FMCSA in connection with notice-and-comment rulemaking must substantiate their request for confidential treatment.
• The Agency will not disclose CBI in the public docket or in response to a FOIA request, provided that the CBI is submitted according to the qualifying requirements.
• The CBI Final Rule offers transparency by ensuring that the public is adequately informed of how the Agency uses CBI in formulating a final rule.
• 49 CFR part 389, section 389.9 defines the standards and procedures by which FMCSA solicits and receives CBI.