La. Admin. Code tit. 76 § I-321

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 11, November 20, 2024

Section I-321 - Records; Confidentiality

A. All fishery dependent data (that is, only data collected from individuals or firms) collected or otherwise obtained by personnel or instrumentalities of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries or members of the Wildlife and Fisheries Commission in the course of their duties are confidential and are not to be divulged, except in aggregate form, to any person except employees or instrumentalities of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries or members of the Wildlife and Fisheries Commission or the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA/NMFS), or Legislative Committees and their staffs, whose duties require this information, except as authorized by law or court order. For the purposes of this rule fishery dependent data shall be data collected under authority of Part VI of Title 56 of the Revised Statutes except the names, addresses, and license numbers of licensed fishermen. Aggregate form, with respect to data, shall mean data or information submitted by three or more persons that have been summed or assembled in such a manner so as not to reveal, directly or indirectly, the identity or business of any such person. Neither employees nor instrumentalities of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries nor members of the Wildlife and Fisheries Commission shall release confidential information to another person, firm, or state or federal agencies, except NOAA/NMFS as stated above or state agencies authorized through written agreements with the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries that have comparable confidentiality provisions, and to the extent possible, will oppose other agency and congressional subpoenas to obtain confidential information. Neither the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries nor its instrumentalities nor members of the Wildlife and Fisheries Commission, nor Legislative Committees and their staffs, will disclose confidential statistics under court order without specific approval by the State Attorney General's Office. These rules and regulations provide for compliance with all procedures set forth by the United States Department of Commerce, or its agencies or instrumentalities, for the confidentiality of fishing statistics collected from individuals or firms by that department, its agencies or instrumentalities. Employees or instrumentalities of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries or members of the Wildlife and Fisheries Commission who have access to confidential statistics shall be subject to the provisions and penalties for unauthorized disclosure.

La. Admin. Code tit. 76, § I-321

Promulgated by the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, Wildlife and Fisheries Commission, LR 18:82 (January 1992), amended LR 35:702 (April 2009).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 56:301.4.