§ 8-7-1012 - Trade secrets.
8-7-1012. Trade secrets.
(a) A public employer may withhold the specific chemical identity, including the chemical name and other specific identification of a hazardous chemical, from a material safety data sheet or workplace chemical list only if all the following conditions are met:
(1) The claim that the information indicates that the specific chemical identity is being withheld as a trade secret;
(2) The material safety data sheet or the chemical indicates that the specific chemical identity is being withheld as a trade secret;
(3) All information contained in the material safety data sheet concerning the properties and effects of the hazardous chemical is disclosed; and
(4) The specific chemical identity is made available to health professionals, employees, and their designated representatives under the same conditions as are set out in the Hazard Communication Standard, 29 C.F.R. 1910.1200(i)(2)-(7), provided, the information disclosable to the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration under the Hazard Communication Standard shall also be disclosable to the directors.
(b) The Director of the Department of Labor, upon his initiative or upon request by an employee, designated representative, or public employer, shall request any or all of the data substantiating the trade secret claim to determine whether the claim is valid. The director shall protect from disclosure all information coming into his possession that is marked as confidential and shall return all information so marked at the conclusion of his determination.
(c) Any information marked confidential pursuant to subsection (b) of this section shall not be disclosed during any administrative or judicial proceeding held pursuant to this section. Administrative hearings held pursuant to this section shall not be open to the public, but otherwise shall be held in a manner consistent with that provided for in the Arkansas Administrative Procedure Act, 25-15-201 et seq., for hearings in contested cases. The proponent of disclosure shall also have the right to be heard.
(d) No employee of the State of Arkansas shall disclose any information designated as a trade secret other than within the provisions of this subchapter.
(e) Nothing in this section shall be construed as requiring the disclosure under any circumstances of process or percentages of mixture information that is a trade secret.