Applicants are encouraged to identify and label any confidential and proprietary information contained in their applications. The Agency will protect confidential and proprietary information from public disclosure to the fullest extent authorized by applicable law, including the Freedom of Information Act, as amended (5 U.S.C. 552), the Trade Secrets Act, as amended (18 U.S.C. 1905), the Economic Espionage Act of 1996 (18 U.S.C. 1831 et seq.), and CALEA (47 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.). Applicants should be aware, however, that this program requires substantial transparency. For example, RUS is required to make publicly available on the internet a list of each entity that has applied for a loan or grant, a description of each application, the status of each application, the name of each entity receiving funds, and the purpose for which the entity is receiving the funds.

Any recipient of funds under this regulation shall be required to comply with all applicable federal, tribal and state laws, including but not limited to:

(a) The Architectural Barriers Act of 1968, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4151 et seq.);

(b) The Uniform Federal Accessibility Standards (UFAS) (Appendix A to 41 CFR subpart 101-19.6); and

(c) All applicable federal, tribal and state communications laws and regulations, including, for example, the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, (47 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) the Telecommunications Act of 1996, as amended (Pub. L. 104-104, 110 Stat. 56 (1996), and CALEA. For further information, see http://www.fcc.gov.

The information collection requirements in this part are approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and assigned OMB control number 0572-0152.