BILL NUMBER: SB 772 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 29, 2003
INTRODUCED BY Senator Bowen
FEBRUARY 21, 2003
An act to amend Section 25322 of the Public Resources Code,
relating to the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development
Commission.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 772, as amended, Bowen. State Energy Resources Conservation
and Development Commission: reports: confidentiality and
disclosure.
Existing law requires the State Energy Resources Conservation and
Development Commission to manage a data collection system for
obtaining information necessary to develop specified energy policy
reports and analyses and energy shortage contingency planning
efforts, and to support other duties of the commission, as
prescribed. Existing law requires that the data collection system
include specified requirements regarding the confidentiality of the
information collected by the commission. Subject to specified
confidentiality requirements, existing law authorizes the commission
to grant requests for disclosure of records of information collected
by the commission for the data collection system.
This bill would require the commission to grant a disclosure
request if disclosure will not result in an unfair competitive
disadvantage to the person that who
submitted the information, unless the public interest served by not
disclosing the information clearly outweighs the public interest
served by disclosing the information, or unless another applicable
provision of law exempts the information from disclosure. The
bill would exempt information withheld by the commission from
disclosure under the California Public Records Act.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 25322 of the Public Resources Code is amended
to read:
25322. (a) The data collection system managed pursuant to Section
25320 shall include the following requirements regarding the
confidentiality of the information collected by the commission:
(1) A person required to present information to the commission
pursuant to this section may request that specific information be
held in confidence. The commission shall grant the request in the
following circumstances:
(A) The information is exempt from disclosure under the California
Public Records Act, Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 6250) of
Division 7 of Title 1 of the Government Code.
(B) The information satisfies the confidentiality requirements of
Article 2 (commencing with Section 2501) of Chapter 7 of Division 2
of Title 20 of the California Code of Regulations, as those
regulations existed on January 1, 2002.
(C) On the facts of the particular case, the public interest
served by not disclosing the information clearly outweighs the public
interest served by disclosure of the information.
(2) The commission may, by regulation, designate certain
categories of information as confidential, which removes the
obligation to request confidentiality for that information.
(3) Confidential information pertinent to the responsibilities of
the commission specified in this chapter that is obtained by another
state agency , or the California Independent
System Operator or its successor, shall be available to the
commission and shall be treated in a confidential manner.
(4) Information presented to or developed by the commission and
deemed confidential pursuant to this section shall be held in
confidence by the commission. Confidential information shall be
aggregated or masked to the extent necessary to assure
confidentiality if public disclosure of the specific information
would result in an unfair competitive disadvantage to the person
supplying the information.
(b) Requests for records of information shall be handled as
follows:
(1) If the commission receives a written request to publicly
disclose information that is being held in confidence pursuant to
paragraph (1) or (2) of subdivision (a), the commission shall provide
the person making the request with written justification for the
confidential designation and a description of the process to seek
disclosure.
(2) If the commission receives a written request to publicly
disclose a disaggregated or unmasked record of information designated
as confidential under paragraph (1) or (2) of subdivision (a),
notice of the request shall be provided to the person that
who submitted the record. Upon receipt of the
notice, the person that who submitted
the record may, within five working days of receipt of the notice,
provide a written justification of the claim of confidentiality.
(3) The commission or its designee shall rule on a request made
pursuant to paragraph (2) on or before 20 working days after its
receipt. The commission shall deny the request if the disclosure
will result in an unfair competitive disadvantage to the person
that who submitted the information. If
disclosure will not result in an unfair competitive disadvantage to
the person that who submitted the
information, the commission shall grant the request unless the public
interest served by not disclosing the information clearly outweighs
the public interest served by disclosing the information, or unless
another applicable provision of law exempts the information from
disclosure.
(4) If the commission grants the request pursuant to paragraph
(3), it shall withhold disclosure for a reasonable amount of time,
not to exceed 14 working days, to allow the submitter of the
information to seek judicial review.
(c) Information submitted to the commission pursuant to this
section is not confidential if the person submitting the information
has made it public.
(d) The commission shall establish, maintain, and use appropriate
security practices and procedures to ensure that the information it
has designated as confidential, or received with a confidential
designation from another government agency, is protected against
disclosure other than that authorized using the procedures in
subdivision (b). The commission shall incorporate the following
elements into its security practices and procedures:
(1) Commission employees shall sign a confidential data disclosure
agreement providing for various remedies, including, but not limited
to, fines and termination for wrongful disclosure of confidential
information.
(2) Commission employees , or contract
employees of the commission , shall only have
access to confidential information when it is appropriate to their
job assignments and if they have signed a nondisclosure agreement.
(3) Computer data systems that hold confidential information shall
include sufficient security measures to protect the data from
inadvertent or wrongful access by unauthorized commission employees
and the public.
(e) Data collected by the commission on petroleum fuels in Section
25320 shall be subject to the confidentiality provisions of Sections
25364 to 25366, inclusive.
(f) Information withheld by the commission pursuant to this
section is not subject to disclosure under the California Public
Records Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 6250) of Division 7
of Title 1 of the Government Code).