7 U.S.C. § 8791: Information gathering

Summary

The Secretary of Agriculture must make all Department geospatial data easy to move and use by different systems and follow common standards. The Secretary, Department employees, contractors, and partners must not share information a farmer or landowner gives the Department about how they farm, conserve land, or about the land itself, or the Department’s geospatial data about that land, except in limited cases. “Agricultural operation” means making and selling crops or livestock. The Secretary can share the information with people or government agencies who are officially working with the Department to give technical or financial help, or to respond to a disease or pest threat, but only if the Secretary decides the information will not be shared further except as allowed below. Allowed disclosures include payment information when the law already allows it (including names and addresses of payment recipients), information turned into anonymous statistics or totals that do not name owners or sites, or when the producer or landowner gives consent. A person’s access to programs or benefits cannot be made conditional on giving that consent. Sharing the information under these rules does not remove any legal protections or trade secret rights.

Title 7, §8791

Agriculture, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Geospatial systems

The Secretary shall ensure that all the geospatial data of the agencies of the Department of Agriculture are portable and standardized.

(b)Limitation on disclosures

(1)Definition of agricultural operation

In this subsection, the term “agricultural operation” includes the production and marketing of agricultural commodities and livestock.

(2)Prohibition

Except as provided in paragraphs (3) and (4), the Secretary, any officer or employee of the Department of Agriculture, or any contractor or cooperator of the Department, shall not disclose—

(A)information provided by an agricultural producer or owner of agricultural land concerning the agricultural operation, farming or conservation practices, or the land itself, in order to participate in programs of the Department; or

(B)geospatial information otherwise maintained by the Secretary about agricultural land or operations for which information described in subparagraph (A) is provided.

(3)Authorized disclosures

(A)Limited release of information

If the Secretary determines that the information described in paragraph (2) will not be subsequently disclosed except in accordance with paragraph (4), the Secretary may release or disclose the information to a person or Federal, State, local, or tribal agency working in cooperation with the Secretary in any Department program—

(i)when providing technical or financial assistance with respect to the agricultural operation, agricultural land, or farming or conservation practices; or

(ii)when responding to a disease or pest threat to agricultural operations, if the Secretary determines that a threat to agricultural operations exists and the disclosure of information to a person or cooperating government entity is necessary to assist the Secretary in responding to the disease or pest threat as authorized by law.

(4)Exceptions

Nothing in this subsection affects—

(A)the disclosure of payment information (including payment information and the names and addresses of recipients of payments) under any Department program that is otherwise authorized by law;

(B)the disclosure of information described in paragraph (2) if the information has been transformed into a statistical or aggregate form without naming any—

(i)individual owner, operator, or producer; or

(ii)specific data gathering site; or

(C)the disclosure of information described in paragraph (2) pursuant to the consent of the agricultural producer or owner of agricultural land.

(5)Condition of other programs

The participation of the agricultural producer or owner of agricultural land in, or receipt of any benefit under, any program administered by the Secretary may not be conditioned on the consent of the agricultural producer or owner of agricultural land under paragraph (4)(C).

(6)Waiver of privilege or protection

The disclosure of information under paragraph (2) shall not constitute a waiver of any applicable privilege or protection under Federal law, including trade secret protection.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Codification Pub. L. 110–234 and Pub. L. 110–246 enacted identical sections. Pub. L. 110–234 was repealed by section 4(a) of Pub. L. 110–246.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

Enactment of this section and repeal of Pub. L. 110–234 by Pub. L. 110–246 effective May 22, 2008, the date of enactment of Pub. L. 110–234, see section 4 of Pub. L. 110–246, set out as a note under section 8701 of this title.

§8791 Information Gathering