The purpose of this part is to establish the procedures and standards by which NHTSA will consider claims that information submitted to the agency is entitled to confidential treatment under 5 U.S.C. 552(b), most often because it constitutes confidential business information as described in 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(4), and to address the treatment of information determined to be entitled to confidential treatment.

(a) This part applies to all information submitted to NHTSA, except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, for which a determination is sought that the material is entitled to confidential treatment under 5 U.S.C. 552(b), most often because it constitutes confidential business information as described in 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(4), and should be withheld from public disclosure.

(b) Information received as part of the procurement process is subject to the Federal Acquisition Regulation, 48 CFR Chapter 1, as well as this part. In any case of conflict between the Federal Acquisition Regulation and this part, the provisions of the Federal Acquisition Regulation prevail.

Whenever used in this part:

(a) Administrator means the Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

(b) Chief Counsel means the Chief Counsel of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

(c) Confidential business information means trade secrets or commercial or financial information that is privileged or confidential, as described in 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(4).

(1) A trade secret is a secret, commercially valuable plan, formula, process, or device that is used for the making, preparing, compounding, or processing of trade commodities and that can be said to be the end product of either innovation or substantial effort.

(2) Commercial or financial information is considered confidential if it has not been publicly disclosed and:

(i) If the information was required to be submitted and its release is likely to impair the Government's ability to obtain necessary information in the future, or is likely to cause substantial harm to the competitive position of the person from whom the information was obtained; or

(ii) if the information was voluntarily submitted and is the kind of information that is customarily not released to the public by the person from whom it was obtained.

(d) NHTSA means the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

(e) “Substantial competitive harm” includes “significant competitive damage” under Chapter 329 of Title 49 of the United States Code, Automobile Fuel Economy, 49 U.S.C. 32910(c).