7 U.S.C. § 1636: General provisions

the identity of persons, including parties to a contract; and proprietary business information. Subject to paragraph (2), no officer, employee, or agent of the United States shall, without the consent of the packer or other person concerned, divulge or make known in any manner, any facts or information regarding the business of the packer or other person that was acquired through reporting required under this subchapter. to agents or employees of the Department of Agriculture in the course of their official duties under this subchapter; as directed by the Secretary or the Attorney General, for enforcement purposes; or by a court of competent jurisdiction. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no facts or information obtained under this subchapter shall be disclosed in accordance with section 552 of title 5 . A packer shall report all information required under this subchapter on an individual lot basis. ensures that the information is published on a national and a regional or statewide basis as the Secretary determines to be appropriate; ensures that the identity of a reporting person is not disclosed; and conforms to aggregation guidelines established by the Secretary. Prior to the publication of any information required under this subchapter, the Secretary may make reasonable adjustments in information reported by packers to reflect price aberrations or other unusual or unique occurrences that the Secretary determines would distort the published information to the detriment of producers, packers, or other market participants. The Secretary shall take such actions as the Secretary considers necessary to verify the accuracy of the information submitted or reported under part B, C, or D of this subchapter. The Secretary shall, to the maximum extent practicable, provide for the reporting and publishing of the information required under this subchapter by electronic means. present information in a format that can be readily understood by producers, packers, and other market participants; adhere to the publication deadlines in this subchapter; present information in charts and graphs, as appropriate; present comparative information for prior reporting periods, as the Secretary considers appropriate; and be updated as soon as practicable after information is reported to the Secretary. usage of the system developed under subparagraph (A); and interpreting and understanding information collected and disseminated through such system. Livestock committed to a packer, or purchased, sold, or slaughtered by a packer, on a weekend day or holiday shall be reported by the packer to the Secretary (to the extent required under this subchapter), and reported by the Secretary, on the immediately following reporting day. A packer shall not be required to report actions under paragraph (1) more than once on the immediately following reporting day. administer or enforce the Packers and Stockyards Act, 1921 ( 7 U.S.C. 181 et seq.); administer, enforce, or collect voluntary reports under this chapter or any other law; or access documentary evidence as provided under sections 49 and 50 of title 15. The Secretary of Agriculture shall develop and implement the system required under paragraph (2)(A) of section 251(g) of the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 ( 7 U.S.C. 1636(g) ), as amended by paragraph (1), not later than one year after the date on which the Secretary determines sufficient funds have been appropriated pursuant to subsection (c) [ 122 Stat. 2113 ]. Notwithstanding the amendment made by paragraph (1), the Secretary shall continue to use the information format for disseminating information under subtitle B [ 7 U.S.C. 1635 et seq.] of the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 ( 7 U.S.C. 1621 et seq.) in effect on the date of the enactment of this Act [ June 18, 2008 ] at least until the date that is two years after the date on which the Secretary makes the determination referred to in subparagraph (A).”