
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
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[Laws in effect as of January 23, 2000]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 23, 2000 and December 4, 2001]
[CITE: 49USC14123]

 
                        TITLE 49--TRANSPORTATION
 
                 SUBTITLE IV--INTERSTATE TRANSPORTATION
 
 PART B--MOTOR CARRIERS, WATER CARRIERS, BROKERS, AND FREIGHT FORWARDERS
 
                   CHAPTER 141--OPERATIONS OF CARRIERS
 
                   SUBCHAPTER II--REPORTS AND RECORDS
 
Sec. 14123. Financial reporting

    (a) Reports.--
        (1) Annual reports.--The Secretary shall require Class I and 
    Class II motor carriers to file with the Secretary annual financial 
    and safety reports, the form and substance of which shall be 
    prescribed by the Secretary; except that, at a minimum, such reports 
    shall include balance sheets and income statements.
        (2) Other reports.--The Secretary may require motor carriers, 
    freight forwarders, brokers, lessors, and associations, or classes 
    of them as the Secretary may prescribe, to file quarterly, periodic, 
    or special reports with the Secretary and to respond to surveys 
    concerning their operations.

    (b) Matters To Be Covered.--In determining the matters to be covered 
by any reports to be filed under subsection (a), the Secretary shall 
consider--
        (1) safety needs;
        (2) the need to preserve confidential business information and 
    trade secrets and prevent competitive harm;
        (3) private sector, academic, and public use of information in 
    the reports; and
        (4) the public interest.

    (c) Exemptions.--
        (1) From filing.--The Secretary may exempt upon good cause shown 
    any party from the financial reporting requirements of subsection 
    (a). Any request for such exemption must demonstrate, at a minimum, 
    that an exemption is required to avoid competitive harm and preserve 
    confidential business information that is not otherwise publicly 
    available.
        (2) From public release.--
            (A) In general.--The Secretary shall allow, upon request, a 
        filer of a report under subsection (a) that is not a publicly 
        held corporation or that is not subject to financial reporting 
        requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission, an 
        exemption from the public release of such report.
            (B) Procedure.--After a request under subparagraph (A) and 
        notice and opportunity for comment but in no event later than 90 
        days after the date of such request, the Secretary shall approve 
        such request if the Secretary finds that the exemption requested 
        is necessary to avoid competitive harm and to avoid the 
        disclosure of information that qualifies as a trade secret or 
        privileged or confidential information under section 552(b)(4) 
        of title 5.
            (C) Use of data for internal dot purposes.--If an exemption 
        is granted under this paragraph, nothing shall prevent the 
        Secretary from using data from reports filed under this 
        subsection for internal purposes of the Department of 
        Transportation or including such data in aggregate industry 
        statistics released for publication if such inclusion would not 
        render the filer's data readily identifiable.
            (D) Pending requests.--The Secretary shall not release 
        publicly the report of a carrier making a request under 
        subparagraph (A) while such request is pending.

        (3) Period of exemptions.--Exemptions granted under this 
    subsection shall be for 3-year periods.

    (d) Streamlining and Simplification.--The Secretary shall streamline 
and simplify, to the maximum extent practicable, any reporting 
requirements the Secretary imposes under this section.

(Added Pub. L. 104-88, title I, Sec. 103, Dec. 29, 1995, 109 Stat. 893; 
amended Pub. L. 105-102, Sec. 2(11), Nov. 20, 1997, 111 Stat. 2205.)


                      Historical and Revision Notes

                             Pub. L. 105-102

    This amends 49:14123(c)(2)(B) to correct a grammatical error.


                            Prior Provisions

    Provisions similar to those in this section were contained in 
section 11145 of this title prior to the general amendment of this 
subtitle by Pub. L. 104-88, Sec. 102(a).


                               Amendments

    1997--Subsec. (c)(2)(B). Pub. L. 105-102 inserted ``in'' before ``no 
event''.

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in section 14303 of this title.
