What is confidential business information?

Under certain circumstances, a facility may claim that its “inputs to equations” for calculating GHG emissions give away company secrets. In that case, EPA may allow the facility to claim the information is confidential business information (CBI) and to submit the information privately. EPA used to make confidentiality determination on a case-by-case basis. However, because of the large numbers of facilities reporting under the GHGRP, the agency has begun the process of determining which categories of data elements will be protected as CBI.

According to Clean Air Act section 114(c), “emissions data” cannot be classified as CBI. EPA has proposed that inputs to GHGRP emissions equations meet the definition of “emissions data” and cannot be protected as CBI. The agency has received public comments that raise concerns about the public availability of some data that are used as inputs to emissions equations (e.g., raw materials used and production volume). For more information, see https://ccdsupport.com/confluence/pages/viewpage.action?pageId=95224011.