IEC Journal

Washington Post reports on Smithsonian Official extensive Travel

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/27/AR2007122702515.html?hpid=topnews

Ethics Reforms in China

Current news items illustrate a topic of OGE Director Ric Cusick's talk at the most recent IEC meeting: A growing international emphasis on ethics in government. Chinese news stories explain a new tightening of controls on law enforcement and the judiciary and highlight an auditor's discovery of the misuse of $937 million in public funds.

Reuters reports that a web site established this month by China's new National Bureau of Corruption Prevention received so many visitors that it crashed. It is now running again. A Washington Post story provided background information:

The party's senior leaders, including President Hu Jintao, have identified official malfeasance as one of China's most worrisome problems, warning that so many people are becoming alienated that the party's hold on power could be threatened. The problem has become particularly acute as party officials increasingly land on the rich side of the yawning gap between rich and poor.

He “sold his government office for personal gain"

Former Federal immigration employee is sentenced to his part in a green card scam.  http://www.brooklyneagle.com/categories/category.php?category_id=4&id=17418

Comments on Contractor Code of Ethics Proposal

January 14, 2008 is the deadline for commenting on the proposal to require contractors to adopt codes of ethics and report wrongdoing.  Although the proposal for a government-wide rule is basically the same as the rule already successfully adopted by the National Reconnaissance Office, some contractors are reportedly opposing the new measure. The proposal was discussed here previously.

Newsletter With A Light Touch

USDA's Ethics Newsletter illustrates how a light tone and good graphics can go a long way toward making ethics information palatable to employees. The most recent issue features a Dear Abby-style Q & A featuring "Spotless the Wonder Dog," a brief story on the execution of an unethical Chinese official, and more. It's worth checking out.

Contractors Managing Contractors

A Federal Times story on an IG report about federal contractors managing other contractors in Iraq helps illustrate why OGE Director Ric Cusick considers contractor conduct a significant issue:

The Defense and State departments doled out nearly $42 million in bonuses to five contractors managing other contractors in Iraq, but they had scant documentation to justify the bonuses, the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR) auditors found.

With little and even contradictory information on the $527.5 million worth of contract support contracts, "SIGIR was unable to conclude how well the approach of using contractors to manage other contractors worked," the Oct. 29 report said.

Independent House Ethics Watchdog?

The IEC focus is on Executive Branch ethics developments, but we note that the House of Representatives is considering establishment of an independent ethics watchdog.

Senate Passes Whistleblower Bill

The Senate has unanimously approved a bill to strengthen whistleblower protection. President Bush has objected to a potential increase in frivilous complaints, and possible adverse impact on national security, but since the House of representatives passed similar legislation in March by a 331-94 vote, a veto-proof majority looks likely. Government Executive quotes Sen. Akaka:

If federal employees fear reprisal for blowing the whistle, we not only fail to protect the whistleblower, we fail taxpayers, our national security needs and our public health. Encouraging whistleblowers by protecting their rights is a necessary step in making a better America.

A Government Accountability Project press release has more.

OGE Recruiting General Counsel & Deputy

Due to retirements, OGE is recruiting an SES-level General Counsel and an SES-level Deputy Counsel. Closing date for both positions is January 16.

Training Resources On the Internet

We hope to update our list of training resources available on the Internet annually, with the next update due in January 2008. Please contact us if you are aware of training resources not listed. We like to make this list as comprehensive as possible.

Note: Our last post re: the OGE conference on financial disclosure inadvertently had a few words garbled. A corrected version has been posted.

OGE Priority Training on Disclosure Reviews

In preparation for the upcoming change of admistrations, OGE is encouraging maximum attendance at its conference on financial disclosure by Presidential nominees requiring Senate confirmation (i.e., PAS nominees). The free conference will be held February 28, 2008in Washington, D.C. OGE is asking DAEOs to send all experienced ethics officials who will be involved in reviewing PAS nominee reports during the Presidential transition.

OGE will issue further details about the conference and the registration process next month, but needs to estimate an attendance figure to help their preparations. Therefore, DAEOS should send e-mails to nomineess@oge.gov with a tentative indication as to how many ethics officials will be sent to the conference. The deadline for this preliminary response is January 11, 2008.

Update December 20, corrected typos.

Guest Speaker Schedule for 2008

For planning purposes, here is a tentative schedule of guest speakers for IEC meetings in 2008.

January 10th Meeting

Next month's meeting will take place on January 10, 2008 from 12:15-1:30 in the OTS auditorium, 1700 G Street, N.W. -- the corner of 17th and G Streets.  Greg Weinman, of the U.S. Mint, will present a program entitled, "Personal Relationships in the Workplace."  According to recent surveys, more than 50% of employees nationwide have at one time engaged in a romantic relationship in the workplace.  With the changing dynamics of the workforce, this number is rising.  At the same time, there is emerging case law expanding the application of sexual harassment laws.  Greg will present an updated version of the presentation first created for the March 2007 OGE Ethics Conference that examines these trends, the applicability of current ethics laws and regulations and discusses options for agencies dealing with these emerging issues.

Individuals who are on the IEC roster need not pre-register for this meeting.  Ethics officials who are not on our roster but who wish to attend our January meeting can pre-register by contacting Patrick Carney not later than Monday, January 7th.  Those who are neither on the IEC roster nor pre-registered can still be admitted to our meeting site by showing a Government ID to OTS Security personnel and signing in.

The IEC is seeking a volunteer to post job opening notices on our website.  As you know the IEC exists solely because of the voluntary efforts of its members.  The posting of job notices is an excellent (and non-taxing -- historically we average fewer than a notice a month) way to contribute to the success of the IEC while assisting your colleagues in the Federal ethics community.  If you're interested in helping out with this worthwhile service, please contact John Szabo, of NRC, Jeff Green, of DOD, or Pat Carney, of FCC.

We're also soliciting ideas for future IEC meetings.  If you have a suggested topic and/or would like to help organize a future IEC presentation, please contact one of the above three individuals.

Navy Recruiting Supervisory Ethics Lawyer

The Navy General Counsel is recruiting a senior attorney (YC-3 level; GS-15 equivalent) to serve as the Assistant General Counsel (Ethics). Currently supervises 3 attorneys and 1 support staff. Recruiting closes December 21. Details are available at the Navy web site.

Reminder: Mailing List Change

As discussed at recent IEC meetings, as of January 1 the IEC will be transitioning from its present manually-maintained e-mail list to an e-mail echo of posts at this site. The mailing list has grown to about 500 members, and maintaining it is a burden on our volunteer officers. The IEC has no budget to pay for a professionally-maintained mailing list like those from companies like LSoft.com (owners of the brand name Listserv). If you want to stay on top of meeting announcements, job postings and other IEC-related information, after January 1 you will need to access the information at this site.

If you are already using an RSS reader, the best way is to add it to your RSS reader site list. If you will not be using an RSS reader, then we encourage you to subscribe to the e-mail echo as explained here previously.

GS-15 Supervisory Ethics Attorney Opening at HUD

The Department of Housing and Urban Development is seeking a supervisory ethics attorney, GS-15, to serve as Deputy Assistant General Counsel in its Ethics Law Division. The application deadline is January 14, 2008. Details at USA Jobs.

Temporary Assignments at OGE

Trish Zemple advises us that the U.S. Office of Government Ethics (OGE) has current openings under its temporary rotational assignment program.  The purpose of the program is "to strengthen the executive branch ethics program by providing professional development opportunities for executive branch employees who work in the ethics program as well as for OGE employees who have substantive ethics program duties." Part time work is a possibility.  A previous DAEOgram gives details about the program. Contact Ms. Zemple at 202-482-9286 for more information.

This seems like a solid way for someone with some ethics experience to enhance their skills (and resume).

State Employees Disciplined for E-mail Abuse

Government Computer News reports that the state of Montana disciplined 74 Department of Corrections employees for abusing e-mail. A state official explained, "Some of the e-mail messages contained inappropriate jokes, but the more prevalent problem was an overuse of the system for personal messages." The punishments were mostly verbal warnings, with some written warnings, counseling or unpaid leave, and one resignation.

Proposed 2008 Defense Authorization

Government Executive reports that the 2008 Defense authorization bill now under consideration would impose more restrictions on Pentagon officials who leave to work for defense contractors. Other aspects of the bill of interest to ethics officials include:

• Increased oversight of security contractors.
• Protections for contractor employees who claim whistleblower status.
• Creation of a Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction.

DOD SOCO Advisory: Filers Penalized & More

Having problems with employees failing to file financial disclosure reports, or filing incomplete information? The latest SOCO Advisory has a couple of examples of criminal charges against recalcitrant/incomplete filers.

The advisory also explains DOD's new conclusion on "anonymous" gift exchanges (i.e., they don't exist, as a practical matter). SOCO's conclusion on this subsequently received support from a surprising source: The "Miss Manners" column in the Washington Post recently condemned "Secret Santa" gift exchanges, mocking those who believe in their confidentiality, "regardless of their long knowledge that nothing has ever successfully remained a secret in that office."

There is also advice on complying with the White House directive on Hatch Act training, and a link to the new DOD Standards of Conduct Directive (formatting changes, but nothing new substantively).

OGE 2008 Calendar & Conference

OGE has released its 2008 Schedule of Important Ethics Dates. As a courtesy, we will try to distribute reminders of important dates through this web site, as we did last year.

Of special interest: The 2008 National Office of Government Ethics Conference will be held September 16-19, 2008 at the Rosen Centre Hotel in Orlando, Florida. The one-day new ethics official conference will be held September 16th, followed by the national conference September 17th through 19th.

Widely Attended Gatherings

New guidance on Widely Attended Gatherings is available at the OGE web site.

Air Force Uses Flash for Ethics, Hatch Act Training

The Air Force General Counsel's Ethics Office has developed an ethics training program using a sophisticated Shockwave Flash format to provide an animated look. The program includes a module on the Hatch Act, a subject of recent interest. Thanks to Danae M. Johns for the heads-up on this cutting-edge resource.

OSC's Hatch Act Training Materials

OSC has asked us to relay the following:

The U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC), the independent investigative and prosecutorial agency with exclusive jurisdiction over the Hatch Act, last week advised all agency general counsels, designated agency ethics officers, and CIOs of the availability of OSC training materials to support the training that the White House recently requested agencies conduct. Specifically, we advised that a Hatch Act training video and pamphlet are available from OSC at our Web site (http://www.osc.gov/hatraining.htm). To avoid overburdening OSC’s servers, CIOs were asked to download the video to their own agency servers for use in their training programs.

Updated Dec. 12: James Mitchell advises us that the OSC video is also available with captions.

More Controversy Over IGs

A Federal Computer Week story notes:

[Paul] Denett, administrator of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy, said he believes some IGs are overstepping the boundaries of their statutory role, adding that “they get aggravating sometimes.”

Those comments, which Denett made at a recent industry conference, highlight the growing strained relations between IGs and the agencies they oversee. Auditors and procurement experts say the relationship has become tense at some agencies.

The article contains an observation from Dr. Paul Light, author of a scholarly book on IGs, to the effect that most administrations tend to dislike IGs.

Longtime DOJ Ethics Official Mike Shaheen Passes Away

Excerpted from the Washington Post obituary:

Michael E. Shaheen Jr., 67, the Justice Department's top internal watchdog for more than 20 years, who never feared attacking abuses by top political or career officials, died of pancreatic cancer Nov. 29 at his home in Falls Church. ...

As the founding director of the Office of Professional Responsibility, Mr. Shaheen conducted investigations of high-ranking Cabinet officials, senior White House employees and more than one president. A job that he thought would run no more than a year lasted 22 years through the tenure of eight attorneys general.

"He was a straight arrow, he was a professional in every sense of the word and he took his job very seriously," former FBI and CIA director William H. Webster said Friday. "He was the go-to guy on any kind of ethical inquiry." ...

Colleagues said Mr. Shaheen's style helped explain how he managed to hold the watchdog position for so long. "He combined a Southern courtliness with an explosive sense of humor, the kind of appreciation usually associated with knee-slapper jokes," said journalist and author Ronald J. Ostrow.

OMB Sets COTR Ethics Training Standards

A new OMB memo establishes new training requirements for contracting officer technical representatives. The 40 hour of training minimum recommends a course on Ethics Training for Acquisition, as well as topics such as Market Research, Technology and Logistics. A Government Executive story has more information.

OGE Director Talk Well Received

OGE Director Ric Cusick's talk at the most recent IEC meeting attracted the largest crowd I can remember in that auditorium, and the attendees were rewarded with a thought-provoking and informative presentation.

I particularly liked Mr. Cusick's insights on how economic factors are fueling a global emphasis on ethics programs, including major pushes in China and Peru. He said interest in transparency and accountability in government "has caught fire" in many governments. I gathered that they are learning from us and believe it's just possible many of our officials could come to some useful insights by asking themselves why foreign governments are becoming so concerned about ethics in government.

Mr. Cusick also had some great ideas on how ethics officers should approach the upcoming change of administrations. I encourage anyone with better notes to submit a more detailed summary of his remarks for distribution here. In the meantime, here are a couple of the more newsworthy items he mentioned:

1. OGE is tentatively planning to hold its next conference in September 2008, again to be in Orlando.
2. OGE is encouraging maximum attendance at its upcoming program on nominee financial disclosure.

More Holiday Ethics Resources--Updated

Here are some additional resources to supplement our November 30 post on this topic:

Robert "Ric" Cusick's 2006 DAEOgram on holiday gifts is still relevant.

Thanks to the indefatigable Mark Stone for links to three other holiday party resources:

• Holiday Guidance for Federal Personnel Including Guidance on Receptions, Parties, and Gift Exchanges Involving Co-workers, Contractors, and Supervisors (Note that this 2006 version of the DOD SOCO memo provided by Mark and Walt Pupko supercedes the 2004 version we originally linked to in our Nov. 30 post).
• Revised Interim Guidelines Concerning Free Exercise of Religion in the Air Force (see para 4 in particular).
• Mark Stone notes that is addressed in GAO's “Principles of Federal Appropriations Law, Third Edition, Volume I” (2004) addresses the use of appropriated funds for holiday decorations. The relevant material is on page 4-263 of the document (page 493 of the 640-page PDF file).

Update: Corrected typos, Dec. 6 & 7. Added resources, Dec. 12.

Hatch Act Training Materials

Pam Langer was kind enough to send an MS slide show that she uses for Hatch Act training. It's about a 4 MB download.

We appreciate Pam's contribution and welcome materials others are willing to contribute. This topic is particularly timely in view of the recent White House memo requesting agencies provide such training.

CPB Recruiting GS-14

Customs and Border Protection is looking for a GS-14 lawyer with some ethics responsibility. Closing date is Dec. 10. USA Jobs has details.

New Contractor Code of Ethics Requirement

A rule creating a new Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Subpart 3.10 that requires federal contractors to establish codes of conduct has stirred some controversy. A Government Executive story explains:

"When fully implemented, these rules fundamentally change what is expected of government contractors," Denett [an OMB official] said in an e-mailed response to questions from Government Executive. "These rules move us from well-established principles of contractor self-governance and voluntary disclosure to contractual requirements [to establish ethics awareness programs and internal control systems] and mandatory disclosure [of violations of criminal law in connection with the award or performance of any government contract or subcontract]."

But some industry experts suggest the change will have little impact on the performance of federal contractors.

Larry Allen, president of the Coalition for Government Procurement, a trade group in Washington that represents contractors, said most firms already have well-established ethics programs that could be applied toward the new rule.

This new ethics rule complements another rule also enacted last month that requires contractors to report improprieties or risk suspension or debarment.

Air Force Lawyer Vacancies

The Air Force is recruiting two ethics lawyers (one part time). Pay at the YA-02 or YA-03 level depending on qualifications is up to $150,647.00 incl. locality pay). Details at the Air Force General Counsel web site.

Reminder: Monthly Meeting Thursday

Bob Cusick, the Director, Office of Government Ethics, will be the guest speaker at Thursday's meeting. Details in our Nov. 14 posting. Mr. Cusick's remarks were well received at the most recent OGE conference, and another useful and interesting talk is expected.

HHS Recruiting Ethics Lawyer (GS 11 through 14)

The HHS Office of General Counsel is recruiting a GS 11/12/13/14  ethics lawyer. Details in the attached PDF announcement.

Updated Dec. 4. Corrected typo in Subject line.

December Deadlines

December deadlines fom the 2007 OGE Calendar:

31 -- Remember, covered employees are required to receive annual ethics training before the end of the calendar year.

31 -- Reminder: Today marks the end of the Public Financial Disclosure reporting period, except for the reporting period of Part II of Schedule C and Part I of Schedule D, which continue up to the date of filing. (5 CFR § 2634.308(a))

31 -- Reminder: Today marks the end of the Confidential Financial Disclosure reporting period. (5 CFR § 2634.908(a))

ALSO, PLEASE REMEMBER TO:

• Remind filers that deadlines are dates by which the forms must arrive in the agency ethics official’s office, not dates by which forms must be postmarked.
• Forward 208 b(1) and b(3) waivers to OGE.
• Forward notice of conflict of interest referrals (OGE Form 202).
• Collect Public Financial Disclosure reports or Confidential Financial Disclosure reports from Special Government Employees (See DO-95-019).
• Forward PAS ethics agreement compliance documentation to OGE.
• Collect new entrant and termination reports within 30 days.
• Join the OGE ListServe if you are not already a member. Contact tlweakle@oge.gov for more information.