IEC Journal

New DOJ Policies on Criminal Discovery

As reported on the main DOJ blog, Attorney General Holder recently issued new guidelines concerning criminal discovery.

NOTE: DOJ provides both an RSS feed and e-mail updates to make it easier to keep up with new developments.

HHS Annual Training 2006-9

A generous reader provided us with links to archived Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Annual Ethics Training (AET):

• 2009 (Disability Accessible Version)
• 2008
• 2007
• 2006

The 2009 version requires registration and appears to be limited to HHS employees. Requiring registration is understandable as a method of keeping track of which employees have completed the training, but there is something to be said for allowing even non-government employees to access the training. This is the approach taken by the acclaimed Department of Agriculture training program. Openness is particularly appropriate since, so far as I can see, all parts of the training would be releasable to any FOIA requester.

As we begin the new year, please remember: The IEC Journal lives or dies by reader contributions. Please continue to be generous in providing us leads on topics useful to IEC members.

POGO On Organizational Conflicts of Interest

POGO has a discussion of organizational conflicts of interest. It's supplemented by a subsequent audio recording of two POGO staffers, distributed as a "podcast."

Given the popularity of portable music players, especially iPods and cell phones that can play audio recordings, as well as the fact that most office PCs can probably replay voice recordings, podcasts have a lot of potential as a tool for ethics education. The Federal Law Enforcement Training Center's Legal Division uses them extensively. Let us know of your results in this area.

Supreme Court Hears "Honest Services" Cases

The Christian Science Monitor analyzes three "honest services" cases being heard by the Supreme Court.

Note that it is easy to set up Google Alerts so that it will automatically send you e-mail updates on any topic you choose. This feature works best when you have a search term that filters well, such as "honest services."

The White House Blog: Ethics

The White House Blog: Ethics facilitates keeping up with new White House ethics policy announcements. It is a subsection of the overall White House blog. The site has an RSS feed, another reason to pick up an RSS reader, if you don't have one already.

Seasonal Greeting Cards

Mark Stone's Nov. 30 e-mail newsletter included a discussion of fiscal prohibitions against paying for seasonal greeting cards with appropriated funds. We have uploaded a copy of the key opinion cited by Mr. Stone, B-157883.4. Here is a link to the opinion at the GAO website. Here is the key language:

Christmas greetings

During the period covered by the IG's review, the Medical Center used its appropriation to purchase Christmas cards and stamps. According to the Medical Center Director, VA sent Christmas cards to service organizations, other VA medical centers, state medical facilities, and others for the purpose of enhancing the relationship between the Medical Center and these organizations. We have long held that the cost of holiday greeting cards is a personal expense of the officer who authorizes their use, even where the agency's name rather than the officer's name appears on the card. See, e.g., 64 Comp. Gen. 382 (1985); 37 Comp. Gen. 360 (1957). Both cases specifically rejected the argument that objectives such as engendering goodwill or ensuring the recipients' cooperation justified using appropriated funds for this purpose. Therefore, the cost of Christmas cards and stamps was not properly charged to VA's medical care appropriation.

Mr. Stone's invaluable e-mail newsletter is archived at the Air Force Materiel Command website. Authentication is required. Fill out the form that appears after the log-in page to obtain a password.

FMS Training Video Available

To see an example of an ethics training video that was produced in-house without any special equipment (aside from a digital video camera) and without any special funding, watch the Financial Management Service's premiere episode of its ethics web series. The Financial Management Service (FMS) is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury. The FMS Ethics Attorney recruited employees to write, film, and act in a web series and an ethics orientation video. Employee response to these training products has been overwhelmingly positive.  

The premiere episode of the web series is available for IEC members to view at the following page:
http://fms.treas.gov/occ_ethics/ethics_tngTEST.html

For more information about these training videos, please contact Jen Dickey, the FMS Ethics Attorney, at 202) 874-6680

Revolving Door Cartoon

Pulitzer Prize winning-cartoonist Tom Toles has a great take on revolving door issues. Consider Fair Use issues before reproducing it in instructional materials.

Reminder of Holiday Ethics Issues

Want to publish a warning of holiday ethics issues? Before drafting your own, check out the USDA holiday ethics reminder memo.

Tool for Researching Federal Officials Moves to Wiki Format

The Washington Post's Who Runs Government project is moving to a "moderated wiki" format. From the September 9 press release:

The Washington Post Company (NYSE: WPO) announced today the launch of WhoRunsGov.com as a “moderated wiki,” opening the site for readers to contribute to the 700-plus in-depth profiles of the most influential people in Washington. The site, which was launched in beta form in January, currently includes profiles of Obama administration officials, members of Congress, Capitol Hill staffers, Pentagon officials and heads of think tanks and interest groups that play a critical role in shaping public policy. 

The “moderated wiki” platform created by MindTouch Inc. allows users to both write new profiles and edit existing content. Before any user-generated content is published, it will be reviewed and may be revised by an in-house editorial team for factors including accuracy, relevancy to the profile subject, and appropriateness.  WhoRunsGov.com’s profiles are meticulously sourced through footnotes and the site’s reporting is thoroughly transparent.

Through the public’s contributions and partnerships, WhoRunsGov.com seeks to offer a uniquely valuable resource on the people who run the government. Each profile provides biographical details on  information, its subject, resume information,an At-a-Glance box of key facts and contact examinations of the official’s stances on the key issues relevant to his or her job, and who is in their professional networks.

Federal Eye

The Washington Post's Federal Eye blog reports on the Federal Government, including this post on the latest developments concerning Inspectors General.

Upgrade of Customized OGE Search Engine

Paul Bergstrand has refined the customized Google search engine he created to facilitate searches of the OGE web site. The revised version allows users to restrict searches to the Advisory Opinion and DAEOgram directories. Paul deserves a lot of credit for his initiative in creating and upgrading this very useful resource.

The link in the right margin entitled "Custom Search OGE Web Site" goes directly to Paul's creation.

National Procurement Fraud Task Force (NPFTF)

The National Procurement Fraud Task Force (NPFTF) has information of interest to ethics lawyers, including press releases. It's hosted by the Department of Justice.

More OLC Opinions Available

Over the past few months, the Department of Justice's Office of Legal Counsel has publicly released a number of previously-issued opinions.  Here are just a few that appear to have implications for ethics officials:

ETHICS ISSUES RAISED BY THE RETENTION AND USE OF FLIGHT PRIVILEGES BY EMPLOYEES OF THE FAA (August 30, 2004) (added 12/19/08)

APPLICATION OF 18 U.S.C. § 207 TO FORMER CIA OFFICIALS’ COMMUNICATIONS WITH CIA EMPLOYEES ON DETAIL TO OTHER AGENCIES (October 23, 2007) (added 09/23/08)

OFFICE OF GOVERNMENT ETHICS JURISDICTION OVER THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION (February 28, 2009) 

OGE Building Photo Available

In response to our request for new artwork, a generous IEC member provided a copyright-free photo he had taken of the Office of Government Ethics building. It's a great shot of 1201 New York Ave. NW from atop the IBEW building in Chinatown. Unfortunately, we are not able to use this excellent photo as the logo for this site, due to the possibility of confusion between OGE and the Interagency Ethics Council. However, we are pleased to be able to make this professional-quality photo available for downloading by IEC members who would like to use it in training materials. 

We have an idea for alternate new artwork, but in the meantime solicit other ideas or contributions. Preferably, the new artwork would fit in the existing space (150 x 219 pixels), or could be compressed or cropped to fit into the existing layout without too much image degredation.

US OGE Mailing List Archives

Do you ever wish you could locate old e-mails from OGE's mailing list? There is an easily searchable online archive, including the September 16, 2002 welcome message from then-Director Amy Comstock up to the latest OGE missive.

It's available at:

http://listserv.access.gpo.gov/archives/oge-ethicsinfo-l.html

 

There's an easy procedure to get a password.

Search Techniques Reminder

Recent correspondence from IEC members experiencing difficulties with web site searches convinces us a reminder of some powerful specialized search techniques is in order. All rely on customized Google searches:

1. If you are searching the OGE web site for information on travel payments, you might enter a search request like this into Google:

1353 site:usoge.gov

The site:usoge.gov part tells it to search only that web site. Incidentally, this trick works on any web site. You can search IEC Journal by using this language: site:iecjournal.org.

2. Alternatively, you can enter your OGE search request at the following specialized web site set up by a helpful IEC member:

http://www.google.com/coop/cse?cx=015302775765566133892%3Ajbqmf7oexls

To make it easier to find this customized search site, we have included a link on the right side of this site, under the name

_Custom Search OGE web site

OGE Quick Reference Chart

Thanks to Wayne Johnson for alterting us to the new U.S. Office of Government Ethics Ethics Official Quick Reference Chart. It's available in PDF and MS Word formats. The chart lists the primary source ethics materials and provides active web links that take you to the source documents.  The chart can also be used as an index or table of contents to what the OGE web site has to offer.

Army Ethics Officer Deskbook

The Army Ethics Officer Deskbook is often a good source of information for agencies outside DOD. This discussion of ethics waivers was helpful:

9. Waivers

a. Individual Waiver (18 U.S.C. 208(b)(1) and 5 C.F.R. 2640.301). An agency may determine in an individual case that a disqualifying financial interest in a particular matter or matters is not so substantial as to be deemed likely to affect the integrity of the employee's services to the Government.

(1) Requirements for issuing 18 U.S.C. 208(b)(1) waivers:

(a) The disqualifying financial interest, and the nature and circumstances of the particular matter or matters, must be fully disclosed to the appointing official.

(b) The waiver must be issued in writing by the Government official responsible for appointing the employee to his position.

(c) The waiver should describe the disqualifying financial interest, the particular matter or matters to which it applies, the employee's role in the matter or matters, and any limitations on the employee's ability to act in such matters.

(d) The waiver shall be based on a determination that the disqualifying financial interest is not so substantial as to be deemed likely to affect the integrity of the employee's services to the Government. (Evidence of good character is NOT relevant).

(e) The waiver must be issued prior to the employee taking any action in the matter or matters.

(f) The waiver may apply to both present and future financial interests.

(2) Factors to Consider:

(a) The type of interest that is creating the disqualification (stock, bonds, real estate, other securities, cash payment, job offer, or enhancement of spouse's employment).

(b) The identity of the person whose financial interest is involved and if that interest is not the employee's, the relationship of that person to the employee.

(c) The dollar value of the disqualifying financial interest, if it is known or can be estimated (e.g. the amount of cash payment which may be gained or lost, the salary of the job which will be gained or lost, the predictable change in either the market value of the stock or the actual or potential profit or loss or cost of the matter to the company issuing the stock, the change in the value of real estate or other securities).

(d) The value of the financial instrument or holding from which the disqualifying financial interest arises (e.g. face value of the stock, bond, other security, or real estate) and its value in relationship to the individual's investments.

(e) The nature and importance of the employee's role in the matter, including the extent to which the employee is called upon to exercise discretion in the matter.

(f) Other factors: The sensitivity of the matter; the need for the employee's services in the particular matter; and adjustments that may be made in the employee's duties that would reduce or eliminate the likelihood that the integrity of the employee's services would be questioned by a reasonable person.

(3) When practicable, a Government official is required to consult formally or informally with OGE prior to granting a waiver. A copy of each such waiver is to be forwarded to OGE. A copy of the waiver is publicly available. Note: DoD recommends that you use two memoranda. One is the actual waiver signed by the cognizant official containing the statutory determination language and sufficient supporting facts, which is releasable, and the other is a legal memorandum discussing the facts in more detail for the official, which is not releasable.

(4) In a program review, OGE will review all waivers, so be careful.

Washington Post's New High-Tech Who's Who In Government

Does your job ever require you to find out information about government officials? Help may be on the way.

WhoRunsGov.com is a new Washington Post foray into Internet publishing that could help ethics officers perform factual research. The site intends to provide in-depth biographical information about key government officials. It includes a blog, and in the future will operate as a moderated Wiki:

This initial beta version of the site allows users to discuss officials’ policy profiles. A range of additional interactive and collaborative capabilities will be added when the site expands to become a moderated wiki later this year. 

At this later date, users will be invited to submit suggested additions and revisions to the text of specific profiles based on reputable published sources or authoritative information. To ensure accuracy and reliability of the site’s information, the editorial team will review each submission before it is published.

If they are successful in attracting the right kind of public contributor, the moderated Wiki feature could give this web site a level of detail and accuracy no paper publication can match.

DOJ Ethics Site

There are lots of good federal agency web sites out there, but the Department of Justice site has always struck us as one of the very best. It has many worthy features, including the well-organized way it lays out the key ethics rules so as to serve as a genuinely useful reference for agency employees. Keep up the good work.

We try to link to all federal agency web sites in the column at right. Please let us know any that we have missed.

Mark Stone Paper on Conference Issues

Mark Stone, the Chief of Government Ethics at the HQ Air Force Materiel Command Legal Office, regularly distributes useful ethics material, most recently a 10-page "Information Paper on Conferences." Though originally drafted with Air Force audiences in mind, much of it applies just as well to other agencies:

1. To get on Mark's e-mail mailing list, contact him at mark --- DOT --- stone --- AT --- WPAFB --- dot --- AF --- dot --- MIL.
2. Visit http://afmcethics.wpafb.af.mil to request access to the secured web site where these materials are archived.

DoD SOCO Advisory: 2008 Training Available

http://www.dod.mil/dodgc/defense_ethics/2008_Advisories/ADV_0807.htm

Still More Great Search Tips

Thanks to IEC member Ethan A. Carrier for passing along the following excellent tips for searching the OGE web site:

You can also search DAEOgrams like so:

site:usoge.gov/ethics_guidance/daeograms

or Advisory Opinions like so:

site:usoge.gov/ethics_guidance/opinons

You may have noticed that you get three copies of each DAEOgram or AO because they exist as three types of files (txt, html, and pdf). If you want to avoid getting your results in triplicate, then you can limit what type of files are returned as results by adding:

filetype:txt or filetype:html or filetype:pdf

So, putting it all together, if I wanted to search the OGE Advisory Opinions for information on widely attended gatherings, I might do it like this:

"widely attended gatherings" site:usoge.gov/advisory_opinions filetype:pdf

You'll see that the results include only OGE Advisory Opinions, and only in the PDF filetype. This really is just scratching the surface of Google's search features, but I hope it is helpful!

More OGE Web Site Search Tips

Via an e-mail, OGE endorsed the search tip offered here last week, with OGE Program Analyst Paul Bergstrand going one step better. Paul noted the possibilty of saving even more time by creating a custom Google search engine for searching the OGE site. This eliminates the need to type in the "site:" prefix, and also allows the option of having government sites (like OGE) and non-profit sites to have search results appear without ads.

We have implemented Paul's suggestion by adding a link in the right margin entitled "Custom Search OGE Web Site." This is a Google Beta service (meaning they are still testing it). Let us know what kind of results you have, so we can decide whether to implement similar searching for IEC Journal.

Web Site Searching Alternatives

While welcome and very effective overall, the recent upgrade of the OGE web site has a few downsides, including changing the links to many pages. Many older links no longer work. A workaround I sometimes use when searching the archives here at IEC Journal may also save time when searching the OGE site:

For example, for our September 1 post I needed to obtain the new address for the USOGE 2008 Schedule of Important Ethics Dates. When I entered the search term "Calendar" into the OGE web site's search engine, after some delay I eventually received the response "Your Search returned 367 Records." Making matters worse, the search engine displays only five "hits" at a time.

Scrolling through 73 screens of search results in search of the one page I needed was not an appealing prospect, so I went to Google and entered the following search request:

site:www.usoge.gov calendar

Bingo! The calendar I was looking for was at the top of the list of search results.

Adding "site:" to the front of the OGE web site address tells Google to restrict its search to only that site. You can test it yourself. The secret? Unlike old-style search engines, Google and its closest competitors use sophisticated techniques to rank search results by relevance. The page you are looking for is more likely to be closer to the top of the results list. 

This using-an-alternate-search-engine trick won't always work, but it's a big time saver when it does. I used to use it frequently at the Department of Justice web site before they upgraded their dedicated search engine. I use it at IEC Journal on the frequent occasions when this site's dedicated search engine isn't giving me the results I want.

I use Google only because I'm more familiar with it. However, you would probably get comparable results using the top Google competitors that also use sophisticated relevancy rankings. Check their documentation to see how they restrict searches to a particular site.

Fixing Broken OGE Web Site Links

At the request of Wayne Johnson, we have posted his revisions to the materials he provided for our Nov. 9. 2007 post on initial ethics training and our Jan. 22, 2008 post on SGE training.

While clearly a large improvement, the recent upgrade to the OGE web site had the unfortunate side effect of changing the URLs, or web page addresses, to many pages on the OGE site. This breaks the existing links that other web sites, including this one, have built to OGE. Due to resource constraints, we don't plan on correcting all the broken archived links to OGE pages. We will try to correct the most important ones that come to our attention (including the ones to OGE pages in the column at right, in the hopefully-not-too-distant future). If you are aware of a key link that should be changed, let us know.

We'll be publishing some advice on finding items on the revised OGE web page soon.

DOD OIG FOIA Reading Room

"It can't happen to me." Sound familiar?

Real life examples of high ranking officials whose disregard for ethics rules led to problems are one of the best ways to undercut this overconfident view.

The Department of Defense Office of Inspector General's Freedom of Information Act "Electronic Reading Room" is a good place to look for cautionary tales to use in training. It archives files expected to be the frequent subject of FOIA requests, thus saving the agency processing time and reducing access time for the public. The reports available there include the following:

"Alleged Improprieties Related To Public Speaking: Lieutenant General William G. Boykin, U.S. Army Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence", August 5, 2004

Alleged Misconduct: General Kevin P. Byrnes, U.S. Army Commanding General U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, July 29, 2005

Alleged Misconduct: Vice Admiral John D. Stufflebeem, U.S. Navy Director, Navy Staff, March 19, 2008

"Plain Language" Resources

Ethics policies and advice must be understandable if they are to fulfill their intended functions. Here are a few "plain language" resources, courtesy of the Interagency Suspension & Debarment Committee:

• SEC Plain Language Handbook
• OFR's main plain language page
• Plain Language site and its guidelines

Accessing OGE Mailing List Archives

The size of OGE's OGE-ETHICSINFO-L mailing list (2700+ subscribers) demonstrates that there is widespread understanding of the value of this key resource. For those not already enrolled, the OGE web site has directions for subscribing.

Many subscribers may not know of a subsidiary benefit: Access to the mailing list's archives, via a search engine or selecting dates.

DOJ Site Ethics Summaries

Even experienced ethics lawyers might find the brief, well-organized summaries of ethics rules at the Department of Justice web site valuable as an occasional good quick research tool.

Cityethics.org

CityEthics.org is an interesting effort to promote better ethics programs for city and county governments. Their web site has a wealth of material. While it's far from the most useful thing at their web site, I liked the Top Ten Ethics Films list.

Navy Ethics Compass

We have added the Navy Ethics Compass to our list of federal agency ethics web sites in the right column of this page. We welcome suggestions of other resources.

Practical Tips on Metadata Cleaning

As Joe Edgell explained in his excellent presentation on metadata at the last OGE conference, it's easy to inadvertently disclose privileged information in the form of not-readily-visible "metadata" when you release electronic documents. Two facts make removing metadata more difficult than frequently assumed:

1. Converting a file to PDF does not always clean all metadata, and
2. The free metadata cleaner available from Microsoft is not considered completely effective.

Some state bar associations have opined it is unethical for lawyers to use metadata against their opponents, but these opinions have limited practical significance for those trying to avoid problems, because none of them is binding on nonlawyers.

An updated version of Mr. Edgell's materials is available at his web site. (Use the down arrow icon at the far right of Joe's file list to download a file; clicking on the file name won't work). He anticipates releasing another update in April.

Here's an IEC member's short summary of practical advice about avoiding metadata problems:

A low-tech way of cleaning metadata is to print out a paper copy, scan it and convert to PDF format. This is guaranteed to avoid releasing metadata, but has the major drawback that your file sizes may become unreasonably large.

Using OCR on the scanned file will also avoid metadata release, but cleaning up OCR errors can be labor intensive.

Here are some alternate ways of cleaning metadata:

A. Follow the National Security Agency metadata guidance for federal agencies.

B. Buy a commercial product intended to take less time than NSA's manual cleaning methods. The September 27, 2007 version of Joe Edgell's outline lists multiple alternatives on p. 27. I have the impression that lawyers who know more about this than I do frequently recommend Metadata Assistant.

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.

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.

Ethics Resources from the Air Force Materiel Command

Mark Stone and Walter Pupko of the Air Force Materiel Command continue to share useful information with the broader ethics community. In just the last few weeks, Mark's "AFMC Ethics Update" e-mails have included the following topics:

• Serving on the Board of a Non-Federal Organization
• Sources of Guidance on the OGE Optional Form 450-A
• Format for Opinion on DOD Personnel Publicly Supporting Changes to State Law
• Working as an Expert Witness in Private Litigation

To be added to Mark's mailing list, send an e-mail to:

mark DOT stone AT wpafb DOT af DOT mil (address disguised to throw off automated spammer software; reformat to use).

The Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC) ethics website, designed and maintained by Walter, has additional useful information. Users get access only after being validated, a relatively easy procedure.

Help on CFC Issues

Having trouble with Combined Federal Campaign issues? Check out the special issue of the DoD SOCO newsletter devoted solely to that topic.

OnlineTraining: Working with Contractors: What You Need to Know

OGE's new online course called Working with Contractors: What You Need to Know is available. OGE's introduction describes the course as:

[A]n interactive web-based training module that is designed as an introduction to some of the most common ethics questions that Government employees might encounter when working with contractor employees. It particularly may be useful for Government employees who work closely with employees of Government contractors who are situated in a Government Facility.

Ethics Articles from USA Bulletin

The May issue of the Department of Justice United States Attorneys' Bulletin contained several articles on ethics-related topics:

• Primer on Public and Confidential Financial Disclosures--Jay Macklin
• Issues Concerning Financial Conflicts of Interest Under Criminal Statutes and Federal Regulations--Elaine Knowles
• Seeking Employment and Post-Employment Restrictions for Federal Employees--Tim Persons
• The Use and Misuse of Your Government Computer: Rules and Penalties--Jamila Frone

A couple of articles dealt with professional responsibility topics that might occasionally implicate standards of conduct issues:

• Attorney-Client Privilege--Susan B. Gerson
• Potential Ethical Issues in Parallel Proceedings--Jefferson M. Gray

DOD SOCO Advisory 07-06

DOD SOCO Advisory 07-06 is available. The topics include:

1. 2007 DoD Ethics Counselor Deskbook Now Available On-line.
2. Post-Employment Advice for DoD Personnel Leaving Federal Service.
3. DoD Updates DoDD 1000.26E, "Support to Non-Federal Entities Authorized to Operate on DoD Installations."
4. OGE Issues Guidance on Applicability of 18 USC 205 to Immigration Support Letters.

Ethics Handbook for Army Leaders

The Army Office of the General Counsel's Ethics Handbook for Army Leaders is a convenient entry point to a variety of useful references. It was recognized at the most recent ethics conference.

Additions to Web Resources

Help us achieve our goal of insuring that the IEC Journal's lists of links to agency ethics web sites and other web resources in the right column remains the most complete and accurate available anywhere. If you are aware of a useful resource we don't presently list, please provide use your suggestions through the Contact Us link at the left.

Navy Resource: The Ethics Compass

The Navy's Ethics Compass Site has many worthwhile features. I liked the "Help for DON Personnel" links, which lead directly to relevant useful information.

AFMC Law Office Ethics Resources

Mark Stone's AFMC Law Office Ethics e-mail newsletter, in operation for over 10 years, continues to be a source of useful information and insights. For example, in the most recent issue I have on hand, Mark reviewed the OGE Ethics Conference program "Compliance +  -  Adding Value Through the OGE Program Review Process" and observed:

In OGE's reviews of our ethics programs, they will look not only at whether we are in compliance with required actions (e.g., ethics training, ethics advice, financial disclosure forms, 31 USC 1353 reports, annual agency ethics reports, etc), but also at whether we are doing more than the minimum (for example, things such as involvement of the agency leadership in the ethics program, self-assessments, planning for succession of ethics duties to new personnel, and responsive and effective ethics training).

Send e-mail to this address to request to be added: mark DOT stone AT wpafb DOT af DOT mil
(I have formatted the address to try and throw off automated spammer software; reassemble before using).

The Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC) ethics website, designed and maintained by Walter Pupko, has more useful information. Users get access only after being validated, a relatively easy procedure.

Grabbing Attention With Examples

Good ethics trainers always try to help their audiences understand that the standards of conduct are relevant to real-world concerns. Examples are one time-honored way of accomplishing this.

Reading the newspapers is one way to get examples. Teaching about abuse of position? You could do worse than cite examples from the Washington Post and USA Today about an official who had subordinates help his nephew with a high school project. The IEC Team tries to keep up with the more interesting and useful such stories by posting links to them at this site.

The Standards of Conduct Office of the Department of Defense General Counsel’s Office has taken a more systematic approach with its Encyclopedia of Ethical Failure, an MS Word document available from the DOD web site. The latest iteration is dated June 2006. The Introduction explains:

[We have] has assembled the following selection of cases of ethical failure for use as a training tool. Our goal is to provide DoD personnel with real examples of Federal employees who have intentionally or unwittingly violated the standards of conduct. Some cases are humorous, some sad, and all are real. Some will anger you as a Federal employee and some will anger you as an American taxpayer.

The cases have been arranged according to offense for ease of access. Feel free to reproduce and use them as you like in your ethics training program. For example - you may be conducting a training session regarding political activities. Feel free to copy and paste a case or two into your slideshow or handout. Or use them as examples or discussion problems.

DOD SOCO Newsletter

The most recent edition of the Department of Defense Standards of Conduct Office newsletter is available. Thanks to DoD and Eric Ruschel for providing this service.

The "push" feature of e-mail newsletters (i.e., information is sent to subscribers without their having to remember to visit a web site) is valuable, and we hope to provide this service to IEC Journal users in the future. In the meantime, we are collecting names of people who would like to receive this service when it is available in the box in the "Monitor IEC Journal" area in the left column.

Good Websites for Government Lawyers

"Bookmark-worthy Web Sites for Government and Public Sector Lawyers," written by Laura Beliveau, in the American Bar Association's publication, Pass It On, Vol. 14, No. 3, Spring 2005, (c) 2005, American Bar Association, mentions the IEC Journal.  Reproduced with permission.  All rights reserved.  This information or any portion thereof may not be copied or disseminated in any form or by any means or stored in an electronic database or retrieval system without the express written consent of the American Bar Association. Download bookmark_Spr05links.pdf

New Version of GAO's Red Book Volume 1 Available On-Line

GAO announced today that it posted a new electronic version of the third edition of Volume I, Principles of Federal Appropriations Law (GAO's "Red Book").

Comstock Article On EIGA

The most recent issue of The Journal of Public Inquiry, the professional journal for Inspectors General, has an overview of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, by former Office of Government Ethics head Amy Comstock.