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Overview

Data collected under the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program must be available to the public unless the data qualify for confidential treatment under the Clean Air Act. EPA typically makes confidentiality determinations under the Clean Air Act on a case-by-case basis. Due to the large numbers of entities reporting under the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program and the large number of data reporting elements, EPA concluded that case-by-case determinations would not result in a timely release of non-confidential data. EPA is determining through a series of rulemaking actions which categories of data elements will be protected as confidential business information (CBI). Any data submitted under the Reporting Program that is classified as CBI will be protected under the provisions of 40 CFR part 2, Subpart B.

EPA has posted two tables that identify the CBI status of each data element for direct emission and supply elements.  Elements are classified as:

• "CBI" means the data element has been determined by rulemaking to be Confidential Business Information. Any data submitted under 40 CFR part 98 that is classified as CBI will be protected in accordance with the provisions of 40 CFR part 2, subpart B.
• “Emission Data” means the data element has been determined by rulemaking to meet the definition of "emission data" in 40 CFR 2.301(a)(2)(i). Under section 114(c) of the Clean Air Act, "emission data" cannot be afforded the protections of Confidential Business Information.
• "Not-CBI" means the data element has been determined through rulemaking to not qualify as Confidential Business Information. A facility cannot claim such data elements to be Confidential Business Information and the data can be made publicly available.
• "No determination" status means EPA has not made a confidentiality determination through rulemaking. EPA will evaluate the confidentiality status of data elements with no determination on a case-by-case basis, in accordance with existing CBI regulations in 40 CFR part 2, subpart B.
• "Deferred Until 2015" means EPA deferred the deadline for reporting the data element until 2015. Additional information under August 29, 2013.
• Direct Emitters CBI Table 
• Suppliers CBI Table 

All determinations in the files above are current as of April 8, 2014.

Latest Developments

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• November 25, 2014

  The Administrator signed a final rule that adds chemical-specific and default global warming potentials (GWPs) for a number of fluorinated greenhouse gases (F-GHGs) and fluorinated heat transfer fluids (F-HTFs) to the general provisions of the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule. The changes will increase the completeness and accuracy of the carbon dioxide (CO₂)-equivalent emissions calculated and reported by suppliers and emitters of fluorinated GHGs and HTFs.

  This final action also makes conforming changes to the provisions for the Electronics Manufacturing and Fluorinated Gas Production source categories. In addition, the final rule amends certain provisions of the Fluorinated Gas Production source category to reduce the level of detail in which emissions are reported, eliminate the mass-balance emission calculation method, and clarify the emission factor method.

  These amendments also include an alternative verification approach for this source category in lieu of collecting certain data elements for which the EPA has identified disclosure concerns and for which the reporting deadline was deferred until March 31, 2015. In addition, this action establishes confidentiality determinations for certain reporting requirements of the Fluorinated Gas Production source category. More information »

• November 13, 2014

  The Administrator signed a proposed rule that would amend the Petroleum and Natural Gas Systems source category (subpart W) of the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program. This proposal would add reporting of greenhouse gas emissions from gathering and boosting systems, completions and workovers of oil wells using hydraulic fracturing, and blowdowns of natural gas transmission pipelines. This action also proposes reporting of well identification numbers for onshore petroleum and natural gas production and proposes confidentiality determinations for new data elements contained in this proposal. More information »

  The Administrator signed a final rule that amends the Petroleum and Natural Gas Systems source category (subpart W) and the General Provisions (subpart A) of the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program. This rule finalizes revisions to certain calculation methods, monitoring and data reporting requirements, terms and definitions, and corrects technical and editorial errors. This action also finalizes confidentiality determinations for new or substantially revised data elements contained in these amendments, and finalizes a revised confidentiality determination for one existing data element. More information »

• September 26, 2014

  On September 26, the EPA finalized amendments to reporting and recordkeeping requirements and an alternative electronic verification approach for certain reporters subject to the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program. These changes address concerns that public disclosure of certain data elements that are inputs to the equations used to calculate emissions would reveal business sensitive information. Where disclosure concerns were identified, the EPA is requiring that in lieu of reporting these inputs, facilities will be required to use an electronic inputs verification tool, and will be subject to enhanced recordkeeping and reporting requirements. These changes will maintain the EPA’s ability to verify emissions and ensure compliance with the program.

  For additional information, please see the following:

  • Preamble and Rule (PDF) (51 pp, 633K)
  • Fact Sheet 
  • Memorandum: List of ‘Inputs to Equations’ Data Elements Proposed Not To Be Reported 
  • Inputs Verifier Tool Sandbox Testing

• September 16, 2014

  On June 4, 2014, the EPA issued a CBI data aggregation notice that described the EPA’s intent to publish aggregated forms of certain data that facilities and suppliers have reported to the GHGRP. The notice included criteria that the EPA would use to confirm that particular aggregations shield the underlying CBI from public disclosure (see the June 4 entry below for links to additional information). After considering comments received on that notice, we have strengthened the criteria for aggregation. The criteria for national or regional-level aggregations at this time are below.

  Any data aggregation that EPA undertakes will not alter any reporting requirements or reporting entities’ rights under the EPA’s CBI regulations at 40 CFR part 2 subpart B.

  GHGRP Criteria for Aggregating Data at the National or Regional Level
  1a. The data used to calculate the aggregated value must be reported by at least four separate facilities or suppliers that have no common ownership or operator;
  2a. No single owner or operator of individual or multiple facilities can contribute more than x percent to a particular aggregated value. (The EPA will not disclose the value of x);
  3a. No two owners or operators of individual or multiple facilities can contribute more than y percent to a particular aggregated value. (The EPA will not disclose the value of y); and
  4a. No underlying facility or supplier-level CBI can be back-calculated or otherwise determined using the aggregated value in combination with other publicly available data, including any facility-, supplier-, regional-, or national-level data published by the GHGRP or any other data likely to be available to owners, operators, or the public.

• July 9, 2014

  EPA has issued an extension of the public comment deadline for the CBI data aggregation notice described under the June 4, 2014, entry below. The notice changes the deadline for public comments on the aggregation notice and related docket memorandum from July 9 to July 23, 2014. Notice (PDF) (2 pp, 200K)

• June 4, 2014

  EPA has issued a CBI data aggregation notice describing EPA’s intent to publish aggregated versions of certain data collected under the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program, including totals, averages, and other aggregated versions of data submitted by individual reporters. The data that EPA intends to aggregate were determined in previous rulemakings to be confidential business information in their original, non-aggregated form. This notice describes the criteria EPA plans to use to determine whether confidential data are sufficiently aggregated such that publishing them would provide useful information while protecting the data that are entitled to confidentiality. In a memorandum to the docket for this notice, EPA also provides a list of data elements identified for possible future publication in aggregated form if they meet the final version of these criteria.
  Notice (PDF) (6 pp, 225K)
  Memo: Publication of Aggregated Greenhouse Gas Data 

CBI Rulemaking Actions