# Presentation: 847385

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

**Gifts  and Other Real World Issues**

**For**
**Employees Working with Partners**

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

**Topics**
- 	**Gifts & Special Privileges**
**	****Awards & Training**
**	****Travel Assistance **
**     ****Prizes At Conferences**
**	****Holiday Parties**
**	****Partnership Business**

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

- Gift
**Any gratuity, favor, discount, entertainment, hospitality, loan, forbearance, or other item having monetary value.**
** ****It includes services as well as gifts of training, transportation, local travel, lodgings and meals, whether in-kind, by purchase of a ticket payment in advance or reimbursement.**

- No limits on accepting
- Modest refreshments (e.g., coffee and donuts)
- greeting cards
- Plaques
- rewards and prizes open to the general public
- pension from a former employer

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

- Employees generally may not accept a gift
**given because of their official position, or **
** ****from certain interested parties (“prohibited sources”)**

**Gift is given because of employees position if**
** **If it would not have been offered or given if the  employee held some other position, or
-  It is offered or given because of where the employee   works and/or
-  It is offered or given because of the employee’s duties

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

- Prohibited source:
-  **Persons, organizations, etc.**
**Seeking official action by the employee's agency **
**Doing or seeking to do business with the employee's agency **
**Regulated by the employee's agency, or **
**Having interests that may be substantially affected by performance or nonperformance of the employee's official duties; or**
**Is an organization a majority of whose members fit any of the above categories**

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

**Employees are generally prohibited from accepting anything of value from a prohibited source. **

** ****Prohibited sources?  **
** ****Districts**
** ****RC&D Councils**
** ****District Employees**
** ****Universities**
** ****Farmers**
** ****Conservation Organizations**
** ****Ag and Environmental Groups**

- Y
- Y
- Y
- Y

** ** **AgriBusiness**
** ****This hotel**
** ****Employee Organizations**
** ****Movie Theatres**
** ****State and Federal Agencies**
** ****Professional Societies ****    **ASA, NWTF, SWCS, etc.

- Y
- Y
- Y

- Y
- Y
- Y
- N
- Y
- Y

**Yes**** **or **No**** **?

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

** ****Ticket to the game**
** ****Weekend at my cabin**
** ****$ for airfare**
** ****Airplane ticket**
** ****Ride to the airport**
**Special privileges**
- hunting or fishing access
- discounts not available to the public, etc.
**$ 5 for holiday party**

**2006 Ethics Training - GA**

**Gifts      Yes**** **or **No**** **?

- Y
- Y
- Y
- Y
- Y
- Y
- Y

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

- Gift Exceptions
**$20 or less per occasion (max. $50 per yr. per source)**
**based a close personal relationship  **
**based on an outside business or employment relationship **
**in connection with certain political activities**
**Certain refreshments and entertainment in foreign countries**

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

- Gift Exceptions (continued)
**Attendance at widely attended gatherings**
**Awards and honorary degrees**
**Training Awards**
**Travel Payments from non-Federal sources**

**There are also specific limitations on the use of some exceptions**

- Require ethics approval:

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

- NEVER
- solicit
- coerce the offering of a gift
- use exceptions so frequently a reasonable person would believe you were using public office for private gain.

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

- Disposal of Prohibited Gifts
** ****Return or pay market value**
**If perishable & not practical to return to donor, the employee’s supervisor or Ethics Advisor can choose to **
** ****to give it to charity**
** ****let recipient’s office share it**
** ****destroy it **
** ****Reimburse the donor the market value for any entertainment, favor, benefit, service or other intangible**

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

**WAG  **** ****2635.204(g)(3)(i)**
- STC can approve
- All / most NRCS situations require specific ethics finding to approve (SEA)
_**Required if**_**  --**** **employee’s performance or non-performance affect the sponsor’s interest [or if an organization, the employee’s performance affects a majority of its members] - -_ _

- Widely Attended Gatherings

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

- Awards & Honorary Degrees
**Requires DCH MGT approval**

- Training Awards
**Requires approval by DCH MGT**
**Includes any training awards including ****Ag Leadership Training Program**

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

- Non-Federal Travel Assistance
**Requires DCH MGT approval**
**Requires advance approval if expected**
**7 day limit to request post approval**

- _SARE Policy_
**Advisory Council Meetings**
- HQ approval not required
**PDP Activities**
- HQ approval required.
- Will not be approved.

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

- Prizes at Conferences
- [drawings or contests entered while attending a conference on official duty]
**Will not be a “gift” (i.e., prohibited) **_**if**_** open to public **_**unless**_** entry is related to official duties. **
** ****Can not accept if results from expenditure of Gov’t funds**
** ****Can not even accept if personal voluntary entry unless ‘open to the public’**

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

- Prizes at Conferences

- If an employee attending on official time voluntarily enters a drawing (open to the public) in his personal capacity, (example at an individual vendor's booth), acceptance of a resulting prize would not be precluded by the employee’s official status, as entry into the contest was not required by or related to duty.
- If, however, all attendees are automatically entered in a drawing as a consequence of registration, the employee who attends officially could not accept any resulting "door" prize, because entry in the contest was related to official duties.
- Also, the employee could not accept a prize received where entry into a drawing was restricted to attendees who completed an evaluation sheet, as the act of completing that evaluation, even if optional, “must be viewed as incident to the performance of official duties.”

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

- Not “Open to the Public”
** ****registration fee is charged to attend conference, or**
** ****there are other factors that effectively limit who can attend.  Example:**
- Limit on number of attendees
- Attendance restricted to those with certain requisite skills or work assignments
_**Reason**_**:  **Effectively narrows pool of contest participants.

**Fix - - Extend opportunity to enter contest beyond the conference participants to any other interested persons, in order to be considered “open to the general public”.**** **Example:  make opportunity to enter contest available to anyone by providing entry blanks to the general public at the Mall prior to the drawing.

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

**Contest entry linked to registration **
**Raffle tickets sold only at Conference**
**Raffle tickets not connected to registration, and tickets also sold at the Mall**
**Raffle tickets not connected to registration, and tickets**** ****given away at mall**

**Accept?      Yes**** **or **No**** **?

- N
- N
- N
- Y

- Prizes at Conferences

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

- Holiday Parties
**Example:  Co-location with Non-Federals**
- District, Council, Volunteers or Contractors

**$ contribution to cost of food**
**Can of cranberry sauce**
**Prepared food**

**Accept?      Yes**** **or **No**** **?

- N
- N
- Y

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

- Ethics & Appropriations Law in Program Guidance
- Examples:**  **
_**RC&D Manual**_** - - **

**Do not supervise Council employees**
**Do not represent the Council**
**Do not handle Council funds**

** **_**Conservation Programs guidance**_

**Do not represent the District**
**Do not handle Council funds**
**Etc.**

- Tech leadership vs. administrative support
- Coordinator vs. Executive Director
- Do not prepare application on Fedbizpps.gov
- Not responsible for Council business

- Don’t conduct District meetings
- Don’t set agenda but advise what it needed
- Stay out of District affairs

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

**Gifts Between Employees at 2635.301 - 304 **
**Gifts from Outside Sources at 2635.201 - 205 **
**Vendor promotional training at 2635.203(f) **
**Discounts and similar benefits at 2635.204(c)  **
**Prizes at Conferences (do99017)**
**Gifts based on a personal relationship at 2635.204(b) **
**Free attendance at widely attended gatherings [see 2635.(g)] **
**Gifts in connection with permissible political activity (see 2635.205(f)) **
**Awards and Honorary degrees (see Part 2635.204(d)) **
**Gifts accepted under specific Statutory Authority**
**Gifts to Agency (DR 5200-3)**
**Non-Federal Travel Assistance (31 USC 1353) **
**Outside Training Awards (41 USC 4111)**
**RC&D Programs Manual**
**Conservation Programs Manual**

- 5 CFR 2635

- Resources

## 2006 Ethics Training - GA

**Questions?**