(a) Except in a case where the agency finds that the public interest requires otherwise, the agency may close a meeting or a portion or portions of a meeting under the procedures specified in §261b.7 or §261b.8 of this part, and withhold information under the provisions of §§261b.6, 261b.7, 261b.8, or 261b.11 of this part, where the agency properly determines that such meeting or portion or portions of its meeting or the disclosure of such information is likely to:

(1) Disclose matters that are (i) specifically authorized under criteria established by an Executive order to be kept secret in the interests of national defense or foreign policy, and (ii) in fact properly classified pursuant to such Executive order;

(2) Relate solely to internal personnel rules and practices;

(3) Disclose matters specifically exempted from disclosure by statute (other than section 552 of title 5 of the United States Code), provided that such statute (i) requires that the matters be withheld from the public in such a manner as to leave no discretion on the issue, or (ii) establishes particular criteria for withholding or refers to particular types of matters to be withheld;

(4) Disclose trade secrets and commercial or financial information obtained from a person and privileged or confidential;

(5) Involve accusing any person of a crime, or formally censuring any person;

(6) Disclose information of a personal nature where disclosure would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy;

(7) Disclose investigatory records compiled for law enforcement purposes, or information which if written would be contained in such records, but only to the extent that the production of such records or information would—

(i) Interfere with enforcement proceedings,

(ii) Deprive a person of a right to a fair trial or an impartial adjudication,

(iii) Constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy,

(iv) Disclose the identity of a confidential source and, in the case of a record compiled by a criminal law enforcement authority in the course of a criminal investigation, or by a Federal agency conducting a lawful national security intelligence investigation, confidential information furnished only by the confidential source,

(v) Disclose investigative techniques and procedures, or

(vi) Endanger the life or physical safety of law enforcement personnel;

(8) Disclose information contained in or related to examination, operating, or condition reports prepared by, on behalf of, or for the use of the Board or other Federal agency responsible for the regulation or supervision of financial institutions;

(9) Disclose information the premature disclosure of which would—

(i) Be likely to (A) lead to significant speculation in currencies, securities, or commodities, or (B) significantly endanger the stability of any financial institution; or

(ii) Be likely to significantly frustrate implementation of a proposed action, except that paragraph (a)(9)(ii) of this section shall not apply in any instance where the Board has already disclosed to the public the content or nature of its proposed action, or where the Board is required by law to make such disclosure on its own initiative prior to taking final action on such proposal; or

(10) Specifically concern the issuance of a subpoena, participation in a civil action or proceeding, an action in a foreign court or international tribunal, or an arbitration, or the initiation, conduct, or disposition of a particular case of formal agency adjudication pursuant to the procedures in section 554 of title 5 of the United States Code or otherwise involving a determination on the record after opportunity for a hearing.


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