6. Confidential treatment. a. Documents, materials or other information in the possession or control of the department that are obtained by or disclosed to the commissioner or any other person in the course of an examination or investigation made pursuant to section 5 of P.L.1970, c.22 (C.17:27A-5) and all information reported pursuant to paragraphs (12) and (13) of subsection b. of section 2 of P.L.1970, c.22 (C.17:27A-2), section 3 and section 4 of P.L.1970, c.22 (C.17:27A-3 and 17:27A-4) are recognized by this State as being proprietary and to contain trade secrets, and shall be confidential by law and privileged, shall not be subject to P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.), shall not be subject to subpoena, and shall not be subject to discovery or admissible in evidence in any private civil action. The commissioner is authorized to use the documents, materials or other information in the furtherance of any regulatory or legal action brought as a part of the commissioner's official duties. The commissioner shall not otherwise make the documents, materials or other information public without the prior written consent of the insurer to which it pertains unless the commissioner, after giving the insurer and its affiliates who would be affected thereby notice and opportunity to be heard, determines that the interest of policyholders, shareholders or the public will be served by the publication thereof, in which event the commissioner may publish all or any part in such manner as may be deemed appropriate. (1) For purposes of the information reported and provided to the Department of Banking and Insurance pursuant to paragraph (2) of subsection k. of section 3 of P.L.1970, c.22 (C.17:27A-3), the commissioner shall maintain the confidentiality of the group capital calculation and group capital ratio produced within the calculation and any group capital information received from an insurance holding company supervised by the Federal Reserve Board or any US group wide supervisor. (2) For purposes of the information reported and provided to the Department of Banking and Insurance pursuant to paragraph (3) of subsection k. of section 3 of P.L.1970, c.22 (C.17:27A-3), the commissioner shall maintain the confidentiality of the liquidity stress test results and supporting disclosures and any liquidity stress test information received from an insurance holding company supervised by the Federal Reserve Board and non-US group wide supervisors. b. Neither the commissioner nor any person who received documents, materials or other information while acting under the authority of the commissioner or with whom such documents, materials or other information are shared pursuant to P.L.1970, c.22 (C.17:27A-1 et seq.) shall be permitted or required to testify in any private civil action concerning any confidential documents, materials, or information subject to subsection a. of this section. c. In order to assist in the performance of the commissioner's duties, the commissioner: (1) May, upon request, be required to share documents, materials or other information, including the confidential and privileged documents, materials or information subject to subsection a. of this section, including proprietary and trade secret documents and materials with other state, federal and international regulatory agencies, with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), and with any third-party consultants designated by the commissioner, with state, federal, and international law enforcement authorities, including members of any supervisory college described in section 7 of P.L.2014, c.81 (C.17:27A-5.1), provided that the recipient agrees in writing to maintain the confidentiality and privileged status of the document, material or other information, and has verified in writing the legal authority to maintain confidentiality. (2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1) of this subsection c., the commissioner may only share confidential and privileged documents, material, or information reported pursuant to paragraph (1) of subsection k. of section 3 of P.L.1970, c.22 (C.17:27A-3) with commissioners of states having statutes or regulations substantially similar to subsection a. of this section and who have agreed in writing not to disclose that information. (3) May receive documents, materials or information, including otherwise confidential and privileged documents, materials or information, including propriety and trade-secret information from the NAIC and its affiliates and subsidiaries and from regulatory and law enforcement officials of other foreign or domestic jurisdictions, and shall maintain as confidential or privileged any document, material or information received with notice or the understanding that it is confidential or privileged under the laws of the jurisdiction that is the source of the document, material or information; and (4) Shall enter into written agreements with the NAIC and any third-party consultants designated by the commissioner governing the sharing and use of information provided pursuant to P.L.2014, c.81 (C.17:27A-5.1 et al.) consistent with this subsection that shall: (a) specify procedures and protocols regarding the confidentiality and security of information shared with the NAIC or a third-party consultant designated by the commissioner pursuant to P.L.2014, c.81 (C.17:27A-5.1 et al.), including procedures and protocols for sharing by the NAIC with other state, federal or international regulators. The agreement shall provide that the recipient agrees in writing to maintain the confidentiality and privileged status of the documents, materials or other information and has verified in writing the legal authority to maintain that confidentiality; (b) specify that ownership of information shared with the NAIC or a third-party consultant pursuant to this subsection remains with the commissioner and the use by the NAIC of the information or the use of a third-party consultant, as designated by the commissioner, is subject to the direction of the commissioner; (c) excluding documents, materials or information reported pursuant to paragraph (3) of subsection k. of section 3 of P.L.1970, c.22 (C.17:27A-3), prohibit the NAIC or third-party consultant designated by the commissioner from storing the information shared pursuant to P.L.1970, c.22 (C.17:27A-1 et seq.) in a permanent database after the underlying analysis is completed; (d) require prompt notice to be given to an insurer whose confidential information in the possession of the NAIC or a third-party consultant designated by the commissioner pursuant to P.L.2014, c.81 (C.17:27A-5.1 et al.) is subject to a request or subpoena to the NAIC or a third-party consultant designated by the commissioner for disclosure or production; (e) require the NAIC or a third-party consultant designated by the commissioner to consent to intervention by an insurer in any judicial or administrative action in which the NAIC or a third-party consultant designated by the commissioner may be required to disclose confidential information about the insurer shared with the NAIC or a third-party consultant designated by the commissioner pursuant to P.L.1970, c.22 (C.17:27A-1 et seq.), including with respect to the participation in supervisory colleges in accordance with section 7 of P.L.2014, c.81 (C.17:27A-5.1); and (f) for documents, material or information reporting pursuant to paragraph (3) of subsection k. of section 3 of P.L.1970, c.22 (C.17:27A-3), in the case of an agreement involving a third-party consultant, provide for notification of the identity of the consultant to the applicable insurer. d. The sharing of information by the commissioner pursuant to this section shall not constitute a delegation of regulatory authority or rulemaking, and the commissioner is solely responsible for the administration, execution and enforcement of the provisions of P.L.2014, c.81 (C.17:27A-5.1 et al.). e. No waiver of any applicable privilege or claim of confidentiality in the documents, materials or information shall occur as a result of disclosure to the commissioner under this section or as a result of sharing as authorized in subsection c. of this section. f. Documents, materials or other information in the possession or control of the NAIC or a third-party consultant designated by the commissioner pursuant to P.L.2014, c.81 (C.17:27A-5.1 et al.) shall be confidential by law and privileged, shall not be subject to P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.), shall not be subject to subpoena, and shall not be subject to discovery or admissible in evidence in any private civil action. g. The group capital calculation and resulting group capital ratio required pursuant to paragraph (2) of subsection k. of section 3 of P.L.1970, c.22 (C.17:27A-3), and the liquidity stress test along with its results and supporting disclosures required pursuant to paragraph (3) of subsection k. of section 3 of P.L.1970, c.22 (C.17:27A-3), are regulatory tools for assessing group risks and capital adequacy and group liquidity risks, respectively, and are not intended as a means to rank insurers or insurance holding company systems generally. Therefore, except as otherwise may be required under the provisions of P.L.1970, c.22 (C.17:27A-1 et seq.), the making, publishing, disseminating, circulating or placing before the public, or causing directly or indirectly to be made, published, disseminated, circulated or placed before the public in a newspaper, magazine or other publication, or in the form of a notice, circular, pamphlet, letter or poster, or over any radio or television station or any electronic means of communication available to the public, or in any other way as an advertisement, announcement or statement containing a representation or statement with regard to the group capital calculation, group capital ratio, the liquidity stress test results, or supporting disclosures for the liquidity stress test of any insurer or any insurer group, or of any component derived in the calculation by any insurer, broker, or other person engaged in any manner in the insurance business would be misleading and is therefore prohibited; provided, however, that if any materially false statement with respect to the group capital calculation, resulting group capital ratio, an inappropriate comparison of any amount to an insurer's or insurance group's group capital calculation or resulting group capital ratio, liquidity stress test result, supporting disclosures for the liquidity stress test, or an inappropriate comparison of any amount to an insurer's or insurance group's liquidity stress test result or supporting disclosures is published in any written publication and the insurer is able to demonstrate to the commissioner with substantial proof the falsity of the statement or the inappropriateness, as the case may be, then the insurer may publish announcements in a written publication if the sole purpose of the announcement is to rebut the materially false statement. L.2014, c.81, s.9; amended 2021, c.366, s.4.