media, and your request is not for a commercial use, HHS will charge you only for the duplication of documents. Also, HHS will not charge you the copying costs for the first 100 pages of duplication.

(c) Other requesters. If your request is not the kind described by paragraph (a) or (b) of this section, then HHS will charge you only for the search and the duplication. Also, we will not charge you for the first two hours of search time or for the copying costs of the first 100 pages of duplication.

§ 5.42 Fees to be charged-general provisions.

(a) We may charge search fees even if the records we find are exempt from disclosure, or even if we do not find any records at all.

(b) If we are not charging you for the first two hours of search time, under §5.41(c), and those two hours are spent on a computer search, then the two free hours are the first two hours of the operator's own operation. If the operator spends less than two hours on the search, we well reduce the total search fees by the average hourly rate for the operator's time, multipled by two.

(c) If we are not charging you for the first 100 pages of duplication, under §5.41 (b) or (c), then those 100 pages are the first 100 pages of photocopies of standard size pages, or the first 100 pages of computer printout. If we cannot use this method to calculate the fee reduction, then we will reduce your total duplication fee by the normal charge for photocopying a standard size page, multiplied by 100.

(d) We will not charge you any fee at all if the costs of routine collection and processing of the fee are likely to equal or exceed the amount of the fee. As of May 1987, such costs among the units HHS ranged between $6.00 and $12.50.

(e) If we determine that you (acting either alone or together with others) are breaking down a single request into a series of requests in order to avoid (or reduce) the fees charged, we may aggregate all these requests for purposes of calculating the fees charged.

(f) We will charge interest on unpaid bills beginning on the 31st day following the day the bill was sent. We will use the provisions of Part 30 of this

Title in assessing interest, administrative costs, and penalties and in taking actions to encourage payment.

(g) This subpart does not apply to requests for Social Security program records on Social Security number holders, wage earners, employers, and claimants, where the requests are governed by section 1106 of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. 1306(c), and by 20 CFR 442.441.

$5.43 Fee schedule.

HHS charges the following fees:

(a) Manual searching for or reviewing of records-when the search or review is performed by employees at grade GS-1 through GS-8, an hourly rate based on the salary of a GS-5, step 7, employee; when done by a GS-9 through GS-14, an hourly rate based on the salary of a GS-12, step 4, employee; and when done by a GS-15 or above, an hourly rate based on the salary of a GS-15, step 7, employee. In each case, the hourly rate will be computed by taking the current hourly rate for the specified grade and step, adding 16% of that rate to cover benefits, and rounding to the nearest whole dollar. As of November 25, 1988, these rates were $10, $20, and $37 respectively. When a search involves employees at more than one of these levels, we will charge the rate appropriate for each.

(b) Computer searching and printing the actual cost of operating the computer plus charges for the time spent by the operator, at the rates given in paragraph (a) of this section.

(c) Photocopying standard size pages-$0.10 per page. FOI Officers may charge lower fees for particular documents where

(1) The document has already been printed in large numbers,

(2) The program office determines that using existing stock to answer this request, and any other anticipated FOI requests, will not interfere with program requirements, and

(3) The FOI Officer determines that the lower fee is adequate to recover the prorated share of the original printing costs.

(d) Photocopying odd-size documents (such as punchcards or blueprints), or reproducing other records (such as tapes) the actual costs of operating

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the machine, plus the actual cost of the materials used, plus charges for the time spent by the operator, at the rates given in paragraph (a) of this section.

(e) Certifying that records are true copies. This service is not required by the FOIA. If we agree to provide it, we will charge $10 per certification.

(f) Sending records by express mail, certified mail, or other special methods. This service is not required by the FOIA. If we agree to provide it, we will charge our actual costs.

(g) Performing any other special service that you request and we agree to-actual costs of operating any machinery, plus actual cost of any materials used, plus charges for the time of our employees, at the rates given in paragraph (a) of this section.

§ 5.44 Procedures for assessing and collecting fees.

(a) Agreement to pay. We generally assume that when you request records you are willing to pay the fees we charge for services associated with your request. You may specify a limit on the amount you are willing to spend. We will notify you if it appears that the fees will exceed the limit and ask whether you nevertheless want us to proceed with the search.

(b) Advance payment. If you have failed to pay previous bills in a timely fashion, or if our initial review of your request indicates that we will charge you fees exceeding $250, we will require you to pay your past due fees and/or the estimated fees, or a deposit, before we start searching for the records you want. If so, we will let you know promptly upon receiving your request. In such cases, the administrative time limits prescribed in §5.35 of the part (i.e., ten working days from receipt of initial requests and 20 working days from receipt of appeals from initial denials, plus permissible extensions of these time limits) will begin only after we come to an agreement with you over payment of fees, or decide that fee waiver or reduction is appropriate.

(c) Billing and payment. We will normally require you to pay all fees before we furnish the records to you. We may, at our discretion, send you a bill along with or following the furnishing of the

records. For example, we may do this if you have a history of prompt payment. We may also, at our discretion, aggregate the charges for certain time periods in order to avoid sending numerous small bills to frequent requesters, or to businesses or agents representing requesters. For example, we might send a bill to such a requester once a month. Fees should be paid in accordance with the instructions furnished by the person who responds to your requests.

§ 5.45 Waiver or reduction of fees.

(a) Standard. We will waive or reduce the fees we would otherwise charge if disclosure of the information meets both of the following tests:

(1) It is in the public interest because it is likely to contribute significantly to public understanding of the operations or activities of the government, and

(2) It is not primarily in the commercial interest of the requester.

These two tests are explained in paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section.

(b) Public interest. The disclosure passes the first test only if it furthers the specific public interest of being likely to contribute significantly to public understanding of government operations or activities, regardless of any other public interest it may further. In analyzing this question, we will consider the following factors.

(1) How, if at all, do the records to be disclosed pertain to the operations or activities of the Federal Government?

(2) Would disclosure of the records reveal any meaningful information about government operations or activities? Can one learn from these records anything about such operations that is not already public knowledge?

(3) Will the disclosure advance the understanding of the general public as distinguished from a narrow segment of interested persons? Under this factor we may consider whether the requester is in a position to contribute to public understanding. For example, we may consider whether the requester has such knowledge or expertise as may be necessary to understand the information, and whether the requester's intended use of the information would be likely to disseminate the information among the public. An unsupported

claim to be doing research for a book or article does not demonstrate that likelihood, while such a claim by a representative of the news media is better evidence.

(4) Will the contribution to public understanding be a significant one? Will the public's understanding of the government's operations be substantially greater as a result of the disclosure?

(c) Not primarily in the requester's commercial interest. If the disclosure passes the test of furthering the specific public interest described in paragraph (b) of this section, we will determine whether it also furthers the requester's commercial interest and, if so, whether this effect outweighs the advancement of that public interest. In applying this second test, we will consider the following factors:

(1) Would the disclosure further a commercial interest of the requester, or of someone on whose behalf the requester is acting? "Commercial interests" include interests relating to business, trade, and profit. Not only profitmaking corporations have commercial interests-so do nonprofit corporations, individuals, unions, and other associations. The interest of a representative of the news media in using the information for news dissemination purposes will not be considered a commercial interest.

(2) If disclosure would further a commercial interest of the requester, would that effect outweigh the advancement of the public interest defined in paragraph (b) of this section? Which effect is primary?

(d) Deciding between waiver and reduction. If the disclosure passes both tests, we will normally waive fees. However, in some cases we may decide only to reduce the fees. For example, we may do this when disclosure of some but not all of the requested records passes the tests.

(e) Procedure for requesting a waiver or reduction. You must make your request for a waiver or reduction at the same time you make your request for records. You should explain why you believe a waiver or reduction is proper under the analysis in paragraphs (a) through (d) of this section. Only FOI Officers may make the decision whether to waive, or reduce, the fees. If we do

(a) Records of general interest. We will make the following records of general interest available for your inspection and copying. Before releasing them, however, we may delete the names of people, or information that would identify them, if release would invade their personal privacy to a clearly unwarranted degree. (See §5.67 of this part.)

(1) Orders and final opinions, including concurring and dissenting opinions in adjudications, such as Letters of Finding issued by the Office for Civil Rights in civil rights complaints, and Social Security Rulings. (See §5.66 of this part for availability of internal memoranda, including attorney opinions and advice.)

(2) Statements of policy and interpretations that we have adopted but have not published in the FEDERAL REGISTER.

(3) Administrative staff manuals and instructions to staff that affect the public. (We will not make available, however, manuals or instructions that reveal investigative or audit procedures as described in §§ 5.63 and 5.68 of this part.)

(b) Other records. In addition to such records as those described in paragraph (a) of this section, we will make available to any person a copy of all other agency records, unless we determine that such records should be withheld from disclosure under subsection (b) of the Act and Subpart F of this regulation.

§ 5.52 Indexes of records.

(a) Inspection and copying. We will maintain and provide for your inspection and copying current indexes of the records described in §5.51(a). We will also publish and distribute copies of

the indexes unless we announce in the FEDERAL REGISTER that it is unnecessary or impracticable to do so. For assistance in locating indexes maintained in the Department, you may contact the HHS Freedom of Information Officer at the address and telephone number in §5.31(c).

(b) Record citation as precedent. We will not use or cite any record described in §5.51(a) as a precedent for an action against a person unless we have indexed the record and published it or made it available, or unless the person has timely notice of the record.

Subpart F-Reasons for Withholding Some Records

§5.61 General.

Section 552(b) of the Freedom of Information Act contains nine exemptions to the mandatory disclosure of records. We describe these exemptions below and explain how this Department applies them to disclosure determinations. (In some cases more than one exemption may apply to the same document.) Information obtained by the Department from any individual or organization, furnished in reliance on a provision for confidentiality authorized by applicable statute or regulation, will not be disclosed, to the extent it can be withheld under one of these exemptions. This section does not itself authorize the giving of any pledge of confidentiality by any officer or employee of the Department.

$5.62 Exemption one: National defense and foreign policy.

We are not required to release records that, as provided by FOIA, are "(a) specifically authorized under criteria established by an Executive Order to be kept secret in the interest of national defense or foreign policy and (b) are in fact properly classified pursuant to such Executive Order." Executive Order No. 12356 (1982) provides for such classification. When the release of certain records may adversely affect U.S. relations with foreign countries, we usually consult with officials of those countries or officials of the Department of State. Also, we may on occasion have in our possession records classified by some other agency. We

may refer your request for such records to the agency that classified them and notify you that we have done so, as explained in §5.23.

§ 5.63 Exemption two: Internal personnel rules and practices.

We are not required to release records that are “related solely to the internal personnel rules and practices of an agency." Under this exemption, we may withhold routine internal agency practices and procedures. For example, we may withhold guard schedules and rules governing parking facilities or lunch periods. Also under this exemption, we may withhold internal records whose release would help some persons circumvent the law or agency regulations. For example, we ordinarily do not disclose manuals that instruct our investigators or auditors how to investigate possible violations of law, to the extent that this release would help some persons circumvent the law.

§ 5.64 Exemption three: Records exempted by other statutes.

We are not required to release records if another statute specifically allows us to withhold them. We may use another statute to justify withholding only if it absolutely prohibits disclosure or if it sets forth criteria to guide our decision on releasing or identifies particular types of material to be withheld.

§5.65 Exemption four: Trade secrets and confidential commercial or fi. nancial information.

We will withhold trade secrets and commercial or financial information that is obtained from a person and is privileged or confidential.

(a) Trade secrets. 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. There must be a direct relationship between the trade secret and the productive process.

(b) Commercial or financial information. We will not disclose records whose

information is "commercial or financial," is obtained from a person, and is "privileged or confidential."

(1) Information is "commercial or financial" if it relates to businesses, commerce, trade, employment, profits, or finances (including personal finances). We interpret this category broadly.

(2) Information is "obtained from a person" if HHS or another agency has obtained it from someone outside the Federal Government or from someone within the Government who has a commercial or financial interest in the information. "Person" includes an individual, partnership, corporation, association, state or foreign government, or other organization. Information is not "obtained from a person" if it is generated by HHS or another federal agency. However, information is "obtained from a person” if it is provided by someone, including but not limited to an agency employee, who retains a commercial or financial interest in the information.

(3) Information is "privileged" if it would ordinarily be protected from disclosure in civil discovery by a recognized evidentiary privilege, such as the attorney-client privilege or the work product privilege. Information may be privileged for this purpose under a privilege belonging to a person outside the government, unless the providing of the information to the government rendered the information no longer protectable in civil discovery.

(4) Information is "confidential" if it meets one of the following tests:

(i) Disclosure may impair the government's ability to obtain necessary information in the future;

(ii) Disclosure would substantially harm the competitive position of the person who submitted the information;

(iii) Disclosure would impair other government interests, such as program effectiveness and compliance; or

(iv) Disclosure would impair other private interests, such as an interest in controlling availability of intrinsically valuable records, which are sold in the market by their owner.

The following questions may be relevant in analyzing whether a record meets one or more of the above tests: Is the information of a type customar

ily held in strict confidence and not disclosed to the public by the person to whom it belongs? What is the general custom or usage with respect to such information in the relevant occupation or business? How many, and what types of, individuals have access to the information? What kind and degree of financial injury can be expected if the information is disclosed?

(c) Designation of certain confidential information. A person who submits records to the government may designate part or all of the information in such records as exempt from disclosure under Exemption 4 of the FOIA. The person may make this designation either at the time the records are submitted to the government or within a reasonable time thereafter. The designation must be in writing. Where a legend is required by a request for proposals or request for quotations, pursuant to 48 CFR 352.215-12, then that legend is necessary for this purpose. Any such designation will expire ten years after the records were submitted to the government.

(d) Predisclosure notification. The procedures in this paragraph apply to records on which the submitter has designated information as provided in paragraph (c) of this section. They also apply to records that were submitted to the government where we have substantial reason to believe that information in the records could reasonably be considered exempt under Exemption 4. Certain exceptions to these procedures are stated in paragraph (e) of this section.

(1) When we receive a request for such records, and we determine that we may be required to disclose them, we will make reasonable efforts to notify the submitter about these facts. The notice will include a copy of the request, and it will inform the submitter about the procedures and time limits for submission and consideration of objections to disclosure. If we must notify a large number of submitters, we may do this by posting or publishing a notice in a place where the submitters are reasonably likely to become aware of it.

(2) The submitter has five working days from receipt of the notice to object to disclosure of any part of the