A request for records may be denied if the requested record contains information which falls into one or more of the nine categories listed below. If the requested record contains both exempt and nonexempt information, the nonexempt portions, which may reasonably be separated from the exempt portions, will be released to the requester.
Categories of Exempt Information
Exemption 1: Records which are specifically authorized under criteria established by an Executive Order to be kept secret in the interest of national defense or foreign policy and are properly classified according to that Executive Order.
Exemption 2: Records related solely to the internal personnel rules and practices of the FNS.
Exemption 3: Records specifically exempted from disclosure by other statute.
Exemption 4: Trade secrets and commercial or financial information obtained from individuals and businesses.
Exemption 5: Interagency or intra-agency memoranda or letters which would not be available by law to a private party in litigation with FNS.
Exemption 6: Personnel, medical, and similar files (including financial files) which, if released, would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.
Exemption 7: Records compiled for law enforcement purposes, but only to the extent that the release of such law enforcement records:
- Could reasonably be expected to interfere with enforcement proceedings;
- Would deprive a person of a right to a fair trial or an impartial judgment;
- Could reasonably be expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy;
- Could reasonably be expected to disclose the identity of a confidential source, including a state, local, or foreign agency or authority or any private institution which furnished records on a confidential basis;
- Would disclose techniques and procedures for law enforcement investigations or prosecutions, or would disclose guidelines for law enforcement investigations or prosecutions if that disclosure could be expected to risk circumvention of the law; or
- Could reasonably be expected to endanger the life or physical safety of any individual.
Exemption 8: Records related to agencies responsible for the regulation or supervision of financial institutions.
Exemption 9: Geological and geophysical information and data, including maps, concerning wells.