(a) Whenever providing non-public materials to the Commission, the submitter shall concomitantly provide the following: An application for non-public treatment that clearly identifies all non-public materials and describes the circumstances causing them to be submitted to the Commission in accordance with § 3011.201, a redacted (public) version of the non-public materials in accordance with § 3011.202, and an unredacted (sealed) version of the non-public materials in accordance with § 3011.203.

(b) Before submitting non-public materials to the Commission, if the submitter has reason to believe that any person other than the submitter has a proprietary interest in the information contained within the non-public materials, the submitter shall inform each affected person of the nature and scope of the submission to the Commission, including the pertinent docket designation(s) (to the extent practicable) and that the affected person may address any confidentiality concerns directly with the Commission.

(a) Burden of persuasion. An application for non-public treatment shall fulfill the burden of persuasion that the materials designated as non-public should be withheld from the public.

(b) Contents of application. An application for non-public treatment shall include a specific and detailed statement setting forth the information specified in paragraphs (b)(1) through (8) of this section:

(1) The rationale for claiming that the materials are non-public, including the specific statutory provision(s) supporting the claim, and an explanation justifying application of the provision(s) to the materials.

(2) A statement of whether the submitter, any person other than the submitter, or both have a proprietary interest in the information contained within the non-public materials, and the identification(s) specified in paragraphs (b)(2)(i) through (iii) of this section (whichever is applicable). For purposes of this paragraph, identification means the name, phone number, and email address of an individual.

(i) If the submitter has a proprietary interest in the information contained within the materials, identification of an individual designated by the submitter to accept actual notice of a motion related to the non-public materials or notice of the pendency of a subpoena or order requiring production of the materials.

(ii) If any person other than the submitter has a proprietary interest in the information contained within the materials, identification of each person who is known to have a proprietary interest in the information. If such an identification is sensitive or impracticable, an explanation shall be provided along with the identification of an individual designated by the submitter to provide notice to each affected person.

(iii) If both the submitter and any person other than the submitter have a proprietary interest in the information contained within the non-public materials, identification in accordance with both paragraphs (b)(2)(i) and (ii) of this section shall be provided. The submitter may designate the same individual to fulfill the requirements of paragraphs (b)(2)(i) and (ii) of this section.

(3) A description of the information contained within the materials claimed to be non-public in a manner that, without revealing the information at issue, would allow the Commission to thoroughly evaluate the basis for the claim that the information contained within the materials are non-public.

(4) Particular identification of the nature and extent of the harm alleged and the likelihood of each harm alleged to result from disclosure.

(5) At least one specific hypothetical, illustrative example of each alleged harm.

(6) The extent of the protection from public disclosure alleged to be necessary.

(7) The length of time for which non-public treatment is alleged to be necessary with justification thereof.

(8) Any other relevant factors or reasons to support the application.

(c) Incorporation by reference. If the material designated as non-public has been previously claimed to be non-public material by a prior application for non-public treatment, the submitter may incorporate by reference the prior application. Any application that incorporates by reference a prior application that is accessible through the Commission's website (http://www.prc.gov) shall state the date, docket number, and the name of the filer of the prior application. In all other circumstances, the application that incorporates by reference a prior application shall attach the prior application.

(a) Except as allowed under paragraph (b) of this section, the submitter shall use the graphical redaction (blackout) method to redact non-public information from the materials. The submitter shall blackout only the information that is claimed to be non-public.

(b) The submitter shall justify using any other redaction method. The application for non-public treatment shall state with particularity the competitive harm or practical difficulty alleged to result from using the blackout method. The submitter shall specifically identify any alterations made to the unredacted version, including the location and number of lines or pages removed.

(c) If electronic, the redacted version shall be filed in a searchable format, unless the submitter certifies that doing so would be impracticable.

(a) Each page or portion of the unredacted version of the materials for which non-public treatment is sought shall be marked in a manner reasonably calculated to alert custodians to the confidential nature of the materials.

(b) The Filing Online method that results in posting a document that is available to the public, which is accessible through the Commission's website (http://www.prc.gov) described under part 3010, subpart B of this chapter may not be used to submit the unredacted version of non-public materials.

(c) The filing of the unredacted version of the non-public materials shall be made in accordance with the following requirements.

(1) Except if using an alternative system approved by the Commission under paragraph (c)(2) of this section, the unredacted version of the non-public materials shall be filed in a sealed envelope clearly marked “Confidential. Do Not Post on Web” to the Office of Secretary and Administration, Postal Regulatory Commission, 901 New York Avenue NW, Suite 200, Washington, DC 20268-0001. The unredacted version of the non-public materials may not be password protected. Two copies of the unredacted version of a non-public document shall be filed using an electronic format such as compact discs (CDs), or digital video discs or digital versatile discs (DVDs) that shall be clearly marked “Confidential. Do Not Post on Web.” If making an electronic unredacted version of a non-public document is impracticable, two hard copies (paper) versions of the non-public document may be filed.

(2) The Secretary of the Commission has authority to approve the use of a secure alternative system to file non-public materials. The Secretary may set forth any minimum requirements associated with using an alternative system. If a filer using the alternative system fails to comply with any of the Secretary's requirements, the Secretary has discretion to revoke the filer's eligibility to use the alternative system or impose requirements specific to the filer as necessary to ensure secure transmission of non-public materials.

(d) The unredacted version of a spreadsheet shall display the formulas used and their links to related spreadsheets. The unredacted version of workpapers or data shall be submitted in a form, and be accompanied by sufficient explanation and documentation, to allow them to be replicated using a publicly available PC application.

Any person other than the submitter with a proprietary interest in materials that have been or will be submitted to the Commission may address any confidentiality concerns directly with the Commission by seeking non-public treatment in accordance with the requirements of this subpart, responding to a motion for access to non-public materials in accordance with the requirements of subpart C of this part, or responding to a motion for disclosure of non-public materials in accordance with the requirements of subpart D of this part.

(a) Any filer or person with a proprietary interest that discovers the inclusion of materials that could have been subject to a claim for non-public treatment are contained within a public filing made in accordance with subpart B to part 3010 of this chapter shall telephone Dockets personnel immediately to request that the non-public materials be removed from the publicly available materials. Upon receipt of that telephone request, Dockets personnel will remove from the publicly available materials those materials for which non-public treatment are being requested until the end of the next business day in order to provide the filer or person with a proprietary interest an opportunity to file an application for non-public treatment and the non-public materials in accordance with the requirements of this subpart. If any filer makes repeated use of this rule, the Secretary has discretion to impose additional requirements on this filer as necessary to ensure secure filing of non-public materials.

(b) Any submitter or person with a proprietary interest that discovers the inclusion of materials that could have been subject to a claim for non-public treatment are contained within a publicly available submission made to the Commission in circumstances other than through a public filing made in accordance with subpart B to part 3010 of this chapter shall telephone the Commission personnel to whom the submission was directed immediately to request that the non-public materials be removed from the publicly available materials. Upon receipt of that telephone request, the Commission personnel will remove from the publicly available materials those materials for which non-public treatment are being requested until the end of the next business day in order to provide the submitter or person with a proprietary interest an opportunity to submit an application for non-public treatment and the non-public materials in accordance with the requirements of this subpart. If any submitter makes repeated use of this rule, the Secretary has discretion to impose additional requirements on this submitter as necessary to ensure secure submission of non-public materials.

(c) An application for non-public treatment made under paragraph (a) or (b) of this section shall also clearly indicate if any special relief is sought. Examples of special relief include a request that any person not granted access to the materials under § 3011.300 or § 3011.301 perform any or all of the following actions:

(1) Immediately destroy or return all versions of the materials that are claimed to have been inadvertently submitted publicly;

(2) Refrain from disclosing or using the materials, and the information contained therein, that are claimed to be non-public; and

(3) Take reasonable steps to retrieve any materials, and the information contained therein, that are claimed to be non-public and were disclosed to any person not granted access to the materials under § 3011.300 or § 3011.301 prior to the submission of application for non-public treatment.