Montana Code 50-78-205. Trade secret confidentiality
50-78-205. Trade secret confidentiality. (1) An employer who believes that the name of a hazardous chemical is a trade secret may withhold the chemical name from the material safety data sheet and workplace chemical list only if:
Terms Used In Montana Code 50-78-205
- Chemical name: means the scientific designation of a chemical in accordance with the nomenclature system developed by the international union of pure and applied chemistry or the chemical abstracts service rules of nomenclature or a name that will clearly identify the chemical for the purpose of conducting a hazard evaluation. See Montana Code 50-78-102
- Department: means the department of environmental quality provided for in Title 2, chapter 15, part 35. See Montana Code 50-78-102
- Employee: means a person who may be exposed to hazardous chemicals in the workplace under normal operating conditions or possible emergencies. See Montana Code 50-78-102
- Employer: means a person, firm, corporation, partnership, association, governmental agency, or other entity that is engaged in business or providing services and that employs workers. See Montana Code 50-78-102
- Hazardous chemical: means , except as provided in 50-78-103:
(a)any element, chemical compound, or mixture of elements or compounds that is a physical hazard or health hazard, as defined by subsection (c) of the OSHA standard, and that has been identified as such by the federal occupational safety and health administration or the manufacturer and has been filed with the federal occupational safety and health administration;
(b)any hazardous chemical, as defined by subsection (d)(3) of the OSHA standard; or
(c)any emitter of ionizing radiation. See Montana Code 50-78-102
- Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
- Material safety data sheet: means a document prepared in accordance with the requirements of the OSHA standard and containing chemical hazard and safe handling information. See Montana Code 50-78-102
- OSHA standard: means the hazard communication standard issued by the federal occupational safety and health administration, codified under 29 C. See Montana Code 50-78-102
- Person: includes a corporation or other entity as well as a natural person. See Montana Code 1-1-201
- Trade secret: means a confidential formula, pattern, process, device, or information, including chemical name or other unique chemical identifier, that is used in an employer's business and that gives the employer an opportunity to obtain an advantage over competitors. See Montana Code 50-78-102
- Work area: means a room or defined space in a workplace where hazardous chemicals are produced, used, or stored and where employees are present. See Montana Code 50-78-102
- Workplace: means an establishment at one geographical location containing one or more work areas. See Montana Code 50-78-102
(a)a material safety data sheet, coded to an identifying notation on each container of the hazardous chemical, is available in the work area where the hazardous chemical is present;
(b)the material safety data sheet discloses the properties and effects of the hazardous chemical;
(c)the specific chemical identity is provided to a treating physician or nurse in the event of a medical emergency, as provided for in subsection (i)(2) of the OSHA standard;
(d)the specific chemical identity is provided in nonemergency situations to a health professional providing medical or other occupational health services to an exposed employee, as provided for in subsections (i)(3) through (5) of the OSHA standard; and
(e)the employer claims that the information is a trade secret and that claim can be supported.
(2)If a person believes that disclosing certain trade information on a material safety data sheet will reveal a trade secret, a trade secret claim may be filed with the department, which shall use this procedure to determine the validity of the trade secret claim:
(a)The department shall give notice by certified mail to the person making the claim to submit trade secret substantiation information within 30 days after receipt of such notice. Failure to supply the substantiation information constitutes a waiver of the trade secret claim.
(b)The department has the responsibility to determine the validity of the trade secret claim and shall consider the trade secret substantiation information as confidential.
(c)If the department determines the trade secret claim is not valid, the department shall so notify by certified mail the person making the claim for trade secret protection, stating the basis for the decision. The person making the claim has 30 days after notification by the department to initiate judicial review in the district court of Lewis and Clark County and obtain a preliminary injunction or other court order to prevent disclosure of the trade secret.
(d)The unauthorized use or disclosure of trade secret information submitted under this section is a misdemeanor.