December 2009 

SUMMARY OF STANDARDS OF EMPLOYEE CONDUCT REGULATIONS 

 5 CFR 2635 

INDEX 

 

SUBPART A -- GENERAL PROVISIONS -- general principles; major definitions; detailed 

employees; supplemental regulations; disciplinary actions; ethics advice. (Page 2) 

SUBPART B -- GIFTS FROM OUTSIDE SOURCES -- prohibitions; definition of gift; prohibited 

source; indirect gifts; major exceptions; gift disposition. (Page 4) 

SUBPART C -- GIFTS BETWEEN EMPLOYEES -- prohibition on gifts to superiors; exceptions. 

 (Page 8) 

SUBPART D -- CONFLICTING FINANCIAL INTERESTS -- disqualifying interests; definitions; 

disqualification; divestiture; prohibited financial interests. (Page 9) 

SUBPART E -- IMPARTIALITY IN PERFORMING OFFICIAL DUTIES -- personal/business 

relationships; covered relationships; agency designee authorization; extraordinary payments from 

former employer. (Page 11) 

SUBPART F -- SEEKING OTHER EMPLOYMENT -- basic obligation; definitions; disqualification; 

waiver. (Page 13) 

SUBPART G--MISUSE OF POSITION -- public office for private gain; use of title, nonpublic 

information, government property, official time. (Page 14) 

SUBPART H—OUTSIDE ACTIVITIES -- conflicting activities; prior approval; noncareer employees; 

expert witness; professional associations; teaching, speaking, and writing; fundraising; financial 

obligations. (Page 16) 

SUBPART I -- RELATED STATUTORY AUTHORITIES -- listing of laws that establish standards to 

which employee conduct must conform. (Page 19) 
December 2009 

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SUBPART A -- GENERAL PROVISIONS 

Basic obligation. Public service is a public trust. Each employee has a responsibility to the United 

States Government and its citizens to place loyalty to the Constitution, laws, and ethical principles 

above private gain. Each employee shall respect and adhere to the principles of ethical conduct, as 

well as the standards in these and supplementary conduct regulations, to ensure that every citizen 

can have complete confidence in the integrity of the Federal Government. 5 CFR 2635.101(a) 

General principles. The regulations prescribe the 14 general principles of ethical conduct applicable 

to all employees that form the basis for the standards of conduct. These principles are set forth in 

President George H.W. Bush’s 1989 Executive Order on ethics (E.O. 12674). If a situation is not 

covered by the standards of conduct, employees shall apply these principles in determining whether 

their conduct is proper. These principles prohibit employees from using public office for private gain. 

They prohibit employees from holding financial interests that conflict with the conscientious 

performance of duty, engaging in financial transactions using nonpublic Government information, or 

allowing the improper use of such information to further any private interest. Employees are required 

to act impartially and not give preferential treatment to any private organization or individual. 

Employees shall not engage in outside employment or activities, including seeking other 

employment, that conflict with official duties. Employees are also required to disclose waste, fraud, 

abuse, and corruption, satisfy their just financial obligations, and endeavor to avoid actions creating 

the appearance of violating the law or the standards of conduct regulations. 5 CFR 2635.101(b). 

Definitions. Many important definitions used throughout the regulations are contained in this subpart: 

“Agency” means any executive agency, including the NRC. 

“Agency designee” is an employee delegated authority to make determinations, give approvals, grant 

waivers, or take actions permitted by the conduct regulations. (Management Directive 7.9 specifies 

the appropriate NRC designees.) 

“Agency ethics official” refers to the designated agency ethical official who has responsibility for the 

agency ethics program. (The NRC General Counsel has been designated by the Commission to 

fulfill this function.) 

“Employee” means any agency officer or employee, including a special Government employee (i.e., 

those appointed to serve not more than 130 days during a 365-day period). Employee also includes 

employees of a State or local government or other organization who are serving on detail to an 

agency. Status as an employee is not affected by pay or leave status, or in the case of a special 

Government employee, by the fact that the individual does not perform official duties on a given day. 

 “Person” is an all-inclusive term. It includes individuals, corporations and their subsidiaries, 

companies, associations, partnerships, and their officers, employees, or agents. It also includes 

nonprofit or other organizations and foreign, State, or local governments. A corporation is deemed to 

control a subsidiary if it owns 50% or more of its voting securities. The definition specifically excludes 

a Federal agency or entity or its employees when acting on behalf of their agency. 5 CFR 2635.102. 

 
December 2009 

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Employees on Detail. Employees on detail to another agency for more than 30 days are subject to 

the supplemental conduct regulations of the agency to which the employees are detailed rather than 

to those of their own agency. (This means that the NRC supplemental conduct regulations on 

securities restrictions and outside employment apply to Federal employees detailed to the NRC.) 

Employees detailed to the legislative or judicial branches for more than 30 days are subject to the 

ethical standards of that branch. Employees detailed to a non-Federal entity remain subject to these 

regulations and the supplemental regulations of their agency. The agency ethics official can exempt 

from the gift acceptance standards an employee detailed for more than six months to an international 

organization or a State or local government if certain specified findings are made. 5 CFR 2635.104. 

Supplemental regulations. Agencies are authorized to issue agency-specific regulations 

supplementing the uniform regulations with the concurrence and joint issuance with the Office of 

Government Ethics (OGE). (With OGE approval, the NRC issued regulations imposing security 

ownership restrictions and prior approval for certain outside employment at 5 CFR 5801). 5 CFR 

2635.105. 

Disciplinary actions. Violations of the standards of conduct or supplemental conduct regulations may 

be cause for corrective or disciplinary action. Agencies have responsibility to initiate appropriate 

disciplinary or corrective action, but OGE may order or recommend corrective disciplinary action if 

dissatisfied with the agency’s response. Violations of these standards or supplementary regulations 

do not create any right or benefit by any person against the United States, its agencies, employees, 

or any other person. 5 CFR 2635.106. 

Ethics Advice. The agency designated ethics official is responsible for coordinating and managing its 

ethics program, including delegating responsibilities, such as ethics counseling, to deputy ethics 

officials. (At the NRC, the Commission has designated the General Counsel as the Designated 

Agency Ethics Official. The General Counsel has designated the Assistant General Counsel for the 

Division of Legal Counsel, Legislation, and Special Projects as the Alternate Designated Agency 

Ethics Official, and has designated certain attorneys in that Division as Deputy Counselors. Regional 

Counsels also provide ethics advice.) 

 • Employees with questions about the application of these regulations or supplemental 

conduct regulations should seek advice from an OGC Deputy Counselor or Regional Counsel. They 

will not be subject to agency disciplinary action if they follow advice from a Deputy Counselor or 

Regional Counsel, provided that they made a full disclosure of all the relevant facts. If the employee’s 

conduct violates a criminal statute, good faith reliance on advice from an ethics counselor is a factor 

that may be taken into account by the Department of Justice in selecting cases for prosecutions. 

Disclosures to an ethics official are not protected by attorney-client privilege. Ethics officials are 

required to report any information received relating to a violation of the criminal code. 5 CFR 

2635.107. 
December 2009 

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SUBPART B -- GIFTS FROM OUTSIDE SOURCES 

General Prohibition: Employees are prohibited from directly or indirectly soliciting or accepting a gift 

from a prohibited source or if given because of the employee’s official position, unless the gift is 

excluded from the definition of a gift or it falls under one of the exceptions in this subpart. 

Regardless of any of the exceptions, employees cannot: 

• accept a gift in return for being influenced in the performance of an official act; 

• solicit or coerce the offering of a gift; 

• accept a gift from the same or different sources so frequently that a reasonable 

 person would conclude the individual is using public office for private gain; 

• accept a gift in violation of any statute (such as the laws barring bribery or 

 supplementation of salary from any source other than the United States); or 

• accept vendor promotional training that is contrary to procurement rules. 

 5 CFR 2635.202. 

Definitions:

“Gift” includes 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, and lodging and meals, whether provided in-kind, by purchase of a ticket, payment in 

advance, or reimbursement later. 

 Excluded from this definition are: (1) modest items of food or refreshments, such as soft 

drinks, coffee and donuts that are not offered as part of a meal; (2) greeting cards and other items 

with little intrinsic value, such as plaques, certificates, and trophies; (3) loans from banks and other 

financial institutions on terms generally available to the public; (4) opportunities and benefits 

available to the public or a class consisting of all Government employees; (5) rewards and prizes 

given to competitors in contests or events that are open to the public, including random drawings; (6) 

pension and other benefits under a former employer’s plan; (7) anything which is paid for by the 

Government or secured by the Government under a contract; (8) any gift accepted by the 

Government under statutory authority; and (9) anything for which the employee pays market value. 

“Market value” means the retail cost the employee would incur to purchase the gift. If unable to 

ascertain a gift’s market value, the employee may estimate its market value by reference to retail 

cost of similar items of like quality. The market value of a ticket is its face value. 

“Prohibited source” means any person who seeks official action by the employee’s agency, does or 

seeks business with the agency, conducts activities regulated by the agency, has interests that may 

be substantially affected by the performance or nonperformance of the employee’s official duties, or 

is an organization a majority of whose members meets the above description. 

 
December 2009 

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“Solicited or accepted because of official position” means that the gift is from a person, other than an 

employee, and would have not been solicited, offered, or given had the employee not held the status, 

authority, or duties associated with his or her Federal position. 

“Indirect gift” is a gift given with the employee’s knowledge and acquiescence to the employee’s 

parent, sibling, spouse, child or dependent relative because of the relationship to the employee or is 

given to another person, including a charity, on the employee’s designation, recommendation, or 

other specification. 5 CFR 2635.203. 

Exceptions: The following are the exceptions to the gift prohibition. (Note that the regulations 

prohibit employees from accepting gifts from the same source so frequently that a reasonable person 

would be led to believe the employee is using public office for private gain. Even though a gift may be 

accepted legally, “it is never inappropriate and frequently prudent for an employee to decline a gift 

offered from a prohibited source or because of his official position.”) 

1. Gifts of $20 or less. Employees may accept unsolicited gifts having a market value of $20 or less 

per occasion, but may not accept gifts with a value of more than $50 from a single source in a 

calendar year. This exception does not authorize the acceptance of cash or investment interests, 

such as stocks, bonds, or certificates of deposit. (Note that an individual NRC licensee or contractor 

and all of its employees would be considered the same single source.) If a gift exceeds $20 in value, 

the employee cannot pay the excess value over $20 in order to accept the gift. If more than one gift 

offered on a single occasion exceeds $20 in aggregate value, the employee may decline any distinct 

item in order to accept those items aggregating $20 or less. 

2. Personal gifts. Employees may accept gifts that are clearly motivated by a family relationship or 

personal friendship rather than the employee’s position. (Meals or gifts funded from corporate 

expense accounts are not personal gifts.) 

3. Discounts. Employees may accept reduced membership or other fees from professional 

organizations for participation in their activities, if the offer is available to all government employees 

and the only restrictions on membership relate to professional qualifications. Employees may also 

accept opportunities and benefits, including favorable rates and commercial discounts, that are: 

 • Offered to members of a group or class in which membership is unrelated to Government 

employment; 

 • Offered to members of an organization, such as an employees’ association or credit union, 

in which membership is related to Government employment if the same offer is available to large 

segments of the public through similar organizations; 

 • Offered by a non-prohibited source to any group or class not defined in a manner that 

specifically discriminates among Government employees on the basis of official responsibility or 

favors those of higher rank or pay. However, employees cannot personally accept any benefit to 

which the Government would be entitled because of the use of Government funds, such as a free gift 

resulting from the agency’s purchases from a vendor. 
December 2009 

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4. Awards and honorary degrees. Employees can accept gifts, other than cash or an investment 

interest, of $200 or less in value if such gifts are a bona fide award or incident to a bona fide award 

for meritorious public service or achievement if the donor does not have interests that may be 

substantially affected by the performance or nonperformance of the employee’s duties or is an 

organization whose members do not have such interests. Gifts with an aggregate market value in 

excess of $200 and awards of cash or investment interests may be accepted if an agency ethics 

official determines in writing that the award is part of an established program of recognition made on 

a regular basis according to written standards. 

 • Employees can accept honorary degrees from institutions of higher education based on a 

written determination by an agency ethics official that the timing of the degree would not cause a 

reasonable person to question the employee’s impartiality in a matter affecting the institution. Meals 

and entertainment for the employee and family at a presentation event of the award or degree may 

be accepted regardless of value. 

5. Outside Business or Employment Gifts. Employees may accept meals, lodging, transportation, 

and other benefits resulting from the outside employment or business relationship of the employee or 

the employee’s spouse if it is clear that the gift is not offered or enhanced because of the employee’s 

official position. 

 • Employees may accept expenses customarily provided by a prospective employer in 

connection with bona fide employment discussions; if the prospective employer has interests that 

could be affected by the employee’s performance or nonperformance of official duties, the employee 

must disqualify himself or herself in advance from participating in any Government particular matters 

affecting the prospective employer. (NRC employees required to file financial disclosure reports 

must report gifts exceeding $335 in value, except those from relatives, the Government, personal 

hospitality, or received by their spouse or dependent child.) 

6. Gifts from political organizations. Officials exempt from the Hatch Act may accept meals, lodging, 

transportation, free attendance, and other benefits from political organizations for participating at 

political events. (The only NRC officials exempt from the Hatch Act are the Commissioners.) Other 

employees whose official duties require them to accompany such official to a political event may also 

accept meals, free attendance, and entertainment provided at the event. 

7. Speaking engagements. Employees who are speakers, panelists, or otherwise presenting 

information on behalf of the agency at a conference or other event may accept free attendance from 

the sponsor of the event only on the day of their presentation. (“Free attendance” includes waiver of 

conference or other fees and food, refreshments, entertainment, instruction and materials furnished 

to all attendees. It does not include travel expenses, lodging, or entertainment collateral to the 

event.) On the days they are not speaking or otherwise presenting information at the conference, 

employees may receive prior approval to accept free attendance if the event is a “widely-attended 

gathering” or the sponsoring organization is a tax exempt organization under 26 U.S.C. 501(c) (3), 

which are generally nonprofit charitable, religious, or educational institutions and some professional 

organizations. 
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8. Widely attended gatherings. Employees can accept free attendance at a “widely attended 

gathering” from the sponsor of the event if an agency designee has determined that their attendance 

is in the interest of the agency because it will further agency programs and operations. They can 

accept free attendance from a non-sponsor if more than 100 persons are expected to attend and the 

gift of free attendance has a market value of $335 or less. 

 • A gathering is “widely attended” if, for example, it is open to members from throughout 

given industry or profession or if those in attendance represent a range of persons interested in a 

given matter. For employees subject to the Federal leave system, attendance at the event shall be 

on the employee’s own time, unless administrative leave has been authorized. 

 • The agency designee’s determination that attendance is in the agency’s interest may be 

given orally. If the person inviting the employee has interests that would be substantially affected by 

the performance or nonperformance of the employee’s duties or is an organization the majority of 

whose members have such interests, the agency designee must determine in writing that the agency 

interest in the employee’s participation in the event outweighs the concern that acceptance of the gift 

or free attendance may improperly influence the employee in the performance of official duties. 

 • The agency designee may authorize the employee’s spouse or other guest to attend this 

event if other attendees will generally be accompanied by their spouse or other guest. (Management 

Directive 7.9 specifies the agency designees. For most employees, they are office directors or 

regional administrators.) 

9. Social invitations for non-prohibited sources. Employees may accept food, refreshments, and 

entertainment, not including travel or lodging, at a social event where the invitation is from a nonprohibited source and no fee is charged to anyone in attendance. 

10. Meals, refreshments and entertainment in foreign areas. Employees assigned to duty in, or on 

official travel to, a foreign area may accept food, refreshments, or entertainment at a meal or other 

event if (1) the market value of the gift does not exceed the applicable per diem rate for the foreign 

area, (2) there is participation in the meeting or event by non-U.S. citizens or representatives of 

foreign governments or other foreign entities, (3) attendance at the meeting is part of the employee’s 

official duties, and (4) the gift of meals, refreshments or entertainment is not from a foreign 

government. (Employees can accept from a foreign government a gift of no more than $335 in value, 

under the Foreign Gifts and Decorations Act.) 

11. Gifts authorized by supplemental regulation or statute. The NRC has no specific gift acceptance 

statutory authority. Employees can receive approval to accept travel expenses from nonprofit 

organizations with a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status (such as most educational or religious institutions) 

for training or attendance at meetings under 5 U.S.C. 4111 or gifts from foreign governments under 

the Foreign Gifts and Decorations Act. 5 CFR 2635.204. 

Disposition of gifts. Employees must return gifts they cannot accept or pay the donor the fair market 

value of the gift. Employees who cannot ascertain the actual market value of an item may estimate 

its market value by reference to the retail cost of similar items of like quality. Perishable gifts, such as 

food or flowers, may, at the discretion of the supervisor, be given to a charity, shared with others in 

the office, or destroyed. Agencies may authorize disposition or return of gifts at Government 

expense. Employees who promptly satisfy the disposition requirements on their own initiative or after 

prompt consultation with an agency ethics official will be considered to have complied with these 

requirements. 5 CFR 2635.205. 
December 2009 

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SUBPART C -- GIFTS BETWEEN EMPLOYEES 

Gifts to superiors. With limited exceptions, employees cannot directly or indirectly: (1) give a gift to, 

or make a donation for a gift to, an official superior; or (2) solicit contributions from other employees 

for a gift to either their own or the other employees’ official superior. 5 CFR 2635.301. 

Gifts from employees receiving less pay. Employees cannot directly or indirectly accept gifts from an 

employee receiving less pay, unless they are not in a subordinate-superior relationship and there is a 

personal relationship that justifies the gift. An official superior may never coerce the offering of a gift 

from a subordinate, regardless of any exceptions in this subpart. 5 CFR 2635.302. 

Official superior means any other employee including, but not limited to, an immediate supervisor, 

whose official responsibilities include directing or evaluating the performance of the employee’s 

official duties or those of any other official superior of the employee. Employees are considered to be 

the subordinate of any of their official superiors. 5 CFR 2635.303(d). 

Exceptions to the prohibition: 

• Items (other than cash) valued at $10 or less may be given occasionally to a superior on a 

gift-exchanging event (such as birthdays or holidays); 

• Food and refreshments to be shared in the office; 

• Personal hospitality at a residence customarily provided to friends and customary items, such 

as “hostess gifts,” given in connection with hospitality at a residence; 

• Contributions of annual leave under the Government’s leave transfer program (except to 

immediate supervisor);

• Gifts appropriate for special, infrequent occasions such as marriage, illness, birth of a child, or 

the termination of a subordinate-superior relationship, such as retirement. For these special 

occasions, employees may solicit voluntary contributions of a nominal amount from other 

employees for the gift or for items, such as food or refreshments, to be shared in the office 

among employees. Voluntary contributions must be freely given, without pressure or 

coercion. The amount is to be left to the employee’s discretion although the employee 

soliciting contributions may suggest an amount or respond to an inquiry on an appropriate 

amount. The solicitor must make clear that employees can contribute less than the suggested 

amount or nothing. Employees who pay a proportionate share of the total cost of an 

organized lunch or similar event will be deemed to have made a voluntary contribution. 5 CFR 

2635.304. 
December 2009 

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SUBPART D -- CONFLICTING FINANCIAL INTERESTS 

Basic prohibition: Employees are prohibited by 18 USC 208(a) from participating personally and 

substantially in their official capacity in a particular matter in which, to their knowledge, they or any 

person whose interests are “imputed” to them have a financial interest, if the particular matter will 

have a “direct and predictable” effect on that interest. 5 CFR 2635.402(a). 

Definitions.

“Direct and predictable effect.” A particular matter will have a “direct” effect on a financial interest if 

there is a close causal link between any decision or action to be taken in the matter and any 

expected effect of the matter on the financial interest. There is no such effect if the chain of 

causation is attenuated or contingent on the occurrence of events that are speculative, independent, 

or unrelated to the matter. There will be a “predictable” effect if there is a real, as opposed to a 

speculative, possibility that the matter will affect a financial interest. 

“Imputed interests” are the financial interests of the employee’s spouse, minor child, general partner, 

any organization the employee serves as officer, director, trustee, general partner, or employee, and 

anyone with whom the employee is negotiating, or has an arrangement for, prospective employment. 

“Particular matter” encompasses only matters involving deliberation, decision, or action focused on 

the interests of specific persons or a discrete and identifiable class of persons (even though it does 

not involve formal parties). It may include governmental action, such as legislation or policy-making 

narrowly focused on the interests of a discrete and identifiable class. It does not extend to broad 

policy options directed to the interests of a large and diverse group. Some generic rulemakings 

could be considered particular matters. 

“Personal and substantial.” “Personal” participation means to directly participate in the matter, 

including direct and active supervision. “Substantial” participation means involvement that is of 

significance to the matter, even though it is not determinative of the outcome. Substantiality is based 

not only on the effort devoted to the matter, but also on its importance. While a series of peripheral 

involvements may be insubstantial, the single act of approving or participating in a critical step may 

be substantial, such as participation through decision, approval, disapproval, recommendation, 

investigation, or rendering advice. 5 CFR 2635.402(b). 

“Financial interest” is limited to interests owned by the employee or by the employee’s spouse or 

minor children. The term includes any current or contingent ownership, equity, or security interest 

(e.g. stocks and bonds) and may include indebtedness or compensated employment relationship. It 

also includes service, with or without compensation, as an officer, director, trustee, general partner, 

or employee of any person, including a nonprofit entity. It does not include a future interest created 

by someone other than the employee, spouse, or dependent child or any right as a beneficiary in an 

estate that is not settled. 5 CFR 2635.403(c). 
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Disqualification. Employees are required to disqualify themselves from participating in particular 

matters which affect their financial interests or those imputed to them. Employees who become 

aware of the need to disqualify themselves from a particular matter to which they have been 

assigned should notify their supervisor so that they can be immediately relieved of responsibility for 

the matter. There is no specific requirement to file a written statement of disqualification unless 

asked by an agency ethics official or the person responsible for their assignment. However, NRC 

recommends that employees at a minimum retain a written documentation of their disqualification in 

their own files and consider providing the written disqualification to their supervisor and/or key coworkers. 5 CFR 2635.402(c). 

Waivers or exemptions. Employees with a disqualifying financial interest may participate in a 

particular matter if they receive a waiver from their appointing official based on a determination that 

the interest is not so substantial as to affect the integrity of their services to the government. 

(Management Directive 7.9 authorizes office directors and regional administrators to grant such 

waivers after consultation with OGC, which is also required to consult with OGE.). However, 

employees may also participate in particular matters if their financial interest is considered too 

remote or inconsequential under regulations in 5 CFR 2640, such as stocks which are below a 

certain value. Special Government employees who serve on advisory committees are eligible for 

waivers if the need for their services outweighs the potential for a conflict of interest. 5 CFR 

2635.402(d). 

Divestiture. Sale or other divestiture of the disqualifying interest will result in permitting the employee 

to participate in the particular matter. Employees may be required to sell the interest if the continued 

holding is prohibited by statute or supplemental regulation or if the agency determines that a 

substantial conflict exists between the financial interest and the employee’s duties or the 

accomplishment of the agency’s mission. 5 CFR 2635.402(e). 

Prohibited financial interests. Employees cannot acquire or hold interests prohibited by statute, 

agency regulation, or agency determination of substantial conflict. 

 • Agencies may issue supplemental regulations prohibiting the holding of a financial interest 

or a class of financial interests by employees or a class of employees, based on a determination that 

holding the interest would cause a reasonable person to question the impartiality and objectivity with 

which agency programs are administered. Supplemental regulations may also restrict the holdings of 

the employee’s spouse or minor children if the agency determines that there is a direct and 

appropriate nexus between the prohibition or restriction and the efficiency of the service. An agency 

could also prohibit the holding of a financial interest if the employee would be required to disqualify 

himself or herself from matters critical to the performance of official duties or would adversely affect 

the efficient accomplishment of the agency’s mission because another employee could not be readily 

assigned to the matter. 5 CFR 2635.403(a), (b). 

 • NRC supplemental conduct regulation, 5 CFR 5801.102, prohibits senior employees and 

certain employees who have licensee responsibilities, as well as their spouse or minor children, from 

holding securities issued by the nuclear entities on a list published annually by OGC. The list of 

employees subject to this restriction is published in Management Handbook 7.7. 
December 2009 

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Period for divestiture. Employees directed by their agency to divest themselves of a financial interest 

have a reasonable time to sell or transfer the security to someone not covered by the restriction. 

Except in cases of unusual hardship, a reasonable period should not exceed 90 days. (NRC’s 

security ownership regulation requires divestiture within 90 days of acquisition or when the entity is 

placed on the prohibited securities list.) All employees, except special Government employees, are 

eligible to defer the tax consequences of a required sale (see 5 CFR 2634 Subpart J). 5 CFR 

2635.403(d), (e). 

SUBPART E -- IMPARTIALITY IN PERFORMING OFFICIAL DUTIES

Basic restriction. Employees should not participate in a “particular matter involving specific parties” 

they know is likely to have a direct and predictable effect on the financial interest of a member of their 

household or know that a person with whom they have a “covered relationship” is or represents a 

party to such matter if they determine that a reasonable person with knowledge of the relevant facts 

would question their impartiality in the matter. 

 Employees concerned that other circumstances would raise a question about their impartiality 

should use the process in this subpart to determine whether they should or should not participate in 

the particular matter. They may seek the assistance of their supervisor, an agency ethics official, or 

the agency designee. (Office directors and regional administrators are agency designees under 

Management Directive 7.9.) 5 CFR 2635.501. 

“Covered relationships.” There are five categories of covered relationships: 

• Persons, other than prospective employers, with whom the employee has or seeks a financial 

relationship (except a routine consumer transaction); 

• Members of the employee’s household or relatives with whom the employee has a close 

• Personal relationship; 

• Persons for whom the employee’s spouse., parents or dependent child serves or seeks to 

serve as an officer, director, trustee, general partner, agent, attorney, consultant, contractor, 

or employee; 

• Persons for whom the employee served in the last year as an officer. director, trustee, 

general partner, agent, attorney, consultant, contractor, or employee; and 

• Nonpolitical organizations in which the employee is an active participant. (Payment of dues 

or the donation or solicitation of financial support does not, in itself, constitute active 

participation.) 

 “Particular matters involving parties” are only particular matters that involve a special party or 

parties. This typically involves a specific proceeding affecting the legal rights of the parties or an 

isolatable transaction or related set of transactions between identified parties. This would include a 

specific contract, grant, license, enforcement action, adjudication, or court case. It does not include 

matters of general applicability, such as rulemaking, policies, or standards. 5 CFR 2635.502(b). 
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Agency designee determination. Where an agency designee has information concerning a potential 

appearance problem arising from the financial interest of anyone with whom the employee has a 

covered relationship, the designee may make an independent determination as to whether a 

reasonable person with knowledge of the relevant facts would be likely to question the employee’s 

impartiality in the matter. At any time, the designee may make this determination on his or her own 

initiative or when requested by the employee’s supervisor or any other person responsible for the 

employee’s assignment. If the designee determines that the employee’s participation should not be 

authorized, the employee will be disqualified from participation. 

Authorization by agency designee. The agency designee may authorize the employee’s 

participation, based on a determination that the interest of the Government in the employee’s 

participation outweighs circumstances that a reasonable person may question the integrity of the 

agency’s programs and operations. Factors which may be taken into consideration include: the 

nature of the relationship, the difficulty of reassignment, the effect of the matter on the financial 

interest of the person involved, the sensitivity of the matter, the nature and importance of the 

employee’s role, and the difficulty of reassigning the matter. The authorization shall be documented 

in writing at the designee’s discretion or when requested by the employee. 5 CFR 2635.502(d). 

Disqualification. Employees shall not participate in a particular matter involving parties when the 

agency designee has concluded that the financial interest of the person with whom they have a 

covered relationship is likely to raise a question in the mind of a reasonable person about their 

impartiality. Such employees should notify the person responsible for their assignment of their 

disqualification. Appropriate oral or written notification of the disqualification may be made to 

coworkers or a supervisor to ensure that employees are not involved in particular matters involving 

parties from which they are disqualified. Employees need not file a written disqualification unless 

asked by an ethics official or the person responsible for their assignment. However, employees may 

elect to create a record of their actions by providing a written notice to their supervisor or other 

appropriate official. 5 CFR 2635.502(e). 

Extraordinary payments from former employers. Employees who receive a severance payment 

exceeding $10,000 prior to entering Federal service are prohibited for two years from the date of 

receipt of payment from participating in any particular matter in which the former employer is a party 

or represents a party. This does not apply to payments made pursuant to an established 

compensation or benefit plan. A waiver can be granted only by the head of the agency (or person 

delegated authority to issue individual 18 USC 208(b) waivers) if there is a finding that the amount 

was not so substantial as to cause a reasonable person to question the employee’s ability to act 

impartially. 5 CFR 2635.503. 

 
December 2009 

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 SUBPART F -- SEEKING OTHER EMPLOYMENT 

Basic Restriction. Employees are required to disqualify themselves from participation in any 

particular matter directly and predictably affecting the financial interests of a person with whom they 

are seeking employment (a prospective employer) or have any arrangement concerning prospective 

employment. There are no disqualification obligations on employees who seek employment with 

someone whose financial interests are not affected by their official duties. (This means, for example, 

that an employee in one regional office may negotiate with a utility for which the employee has no 

responsibility without informing management.) 5 CFR 2635.601, .602. 

Definitions: 

“Prospective employer” is any person with whom the employee is seeking employment. It includes a 

person who uses an agent or other intermediary or is contacted by an employee’s agent to seek to 

establish an employment relationship if the agent identifies the prospective employer to the 

employee. 5 CFR 2635.603(c). 

“Seeking employment” is very broadly defined as beginning when the employee directly or indirectly: 

• Engaged in “negotiations,” which involve discussion or communication with another person or 

the person’s agent or intermediary, mutually conducted with a view toward reaching an 

agreement on possible employment. It is not limited to discussions of specific terms and 

conditions in a specific position; 

• Made an unsolicited communication (e.g., sent out a resume or job application) to a person or 

such person’s agent on possible employment. It does not include communications for the 

sole purpose of requesting a job application. (Employees are not required to disqualify 

themselves from participating in a generic rulemaking affecting an entity to whom they have 

submitted a resume until the recipient responds by indicating an interest in employment 

discussions); or 

• Made a response, other than a rejection, to an unsolicited communication from a person or 

agent on possible employment. 

An employee is no longer seeking employment when: 

• Either party rejects the possibility of employment and all employment discussions have 

terminated, or 

• Two months have transpired after the employee sent an unsolicited resume or proposal 

and the employee received no indication of interest in employment discussions from the 

prospective employer. 

• A response deferring discussions for the foreseeable future does not constitute a rejection. 

 5 CFR 2635.603(b). 

Disqualification Obligation. Employees who wish to initiate employment contacts with a person 

whose financial interests they know will be directly and predictably affected by a particular matter to 

which they will be assigned shall take steps necessary to disqualify themselves before beginning to 

seek employment with that person. 
December 2009 

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 • Notification. Employees who become aware of the need to disqualify themselves from 

participation in a particular matter to which they have been assigned should notify the person 

responsible for their assignment. Employees who are responsible for their own assignments should 

take whatever steps are necessary to ensure that they do not participate in the matter from which 

they are disqualified. Appropriate oral or written notification of the employee’s disqualification may 

be made by the employee to coworkers or a supervisor to ensure that the employee does not 

participate in matters affecting the prospective employer. 

 • Documentation. Written disqualification statements are not necessary unless requested by 

the agency ethics official or the employee’s supervisor. However, the NRC recommends that 

employees, at a minimum, retain a written document of their disqualification, including a record of 

when employment negotiations began and ended, and consider providing the disqualification to their 

supervisor and/or key co-workers 

Agency determination of substantial conflict. Where the agency determines that the disqualification 

will preclude the employee from participating in matters so central or critical to the performance of 

official duties (such as a resident inspector seeking employment with the utility that operates the 

facility he or she is responsible for), the agency may allow the employee to take annual leave or 

leave without pay while seeking employment, or may take other appropriate administrative action. 

5 CFR 2635.604. 

Waiver. Employees may only participate in matters affecting a prospective employer if they receive a 

waiver from the agency designee, after consultation with OGC. The designee must determine that 

the Government’s need for the employee’s participation outweighs the concerns that a reasonable 

person may question the integrity of the agency’s programs or operations. The agency designee may 

determine that an employee no longer seeking employment shall remain disqualified for a specified 

period of time from matters affecting a prospective employer if the designee determines that the 

concern that a reasonable person may question the integrity of the agency’s decision making 

process outweighs the Government’s interest in the employee’s participation in the particular matter. 

(Agency designees are office directors or regional administrators under Management Directive 7.9.) 

5 CFR 2635.604 - .606. 

Interview expenses. Employees may accept travel expenses and other reasonable amenities 

incident to employment discussions, even from a prospective employer who is a prohibited source. 

(However, the Foreign Gifts Act generally prohibits employees from accepting travel expenses from a 

foreign government that exceeds $335.) 5 CFR 2635.602(b). 

SUBPART G -- MISUSE OF POSITION 

Public office for private gain. Employees shall not use their public office for their own private gain. 

Employees also cannot use their public office for the endorsement of any product, service, or 

enterprise, or for the private gain of friends, relatives, or persons with whom they are affiliated in a 

nongovernmental capacity, including nonprofit organizations in which they are officers or members, 

or persons with whom they have or seek employment or business relations. Employees shall not use 

their office in a manner to induce or coerce another person, including a subordinate, to provide any 

benefit to themselves or their friends, relatives, or persons with whom they are affiliated in a 

nongovernmental capacity. 5 CFR 2635.702. 
December 2009 

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Appearance of Government sanction. Employees shall not use their Government position or title in a 

manner that could reasonably be construed to imply Government endorsement of their personal 

activities or those of another. Employees may sign a letter of recommendation using their official title 

or Government letterhead paper only in response to a request for an employment recommendation 

or character reference based on their personal knowledge of an individual they dealt with in the 

course of Federal employment or whom they are recommending for Federal employment. For other 

letters of recommendation, employees can mention their official title in the body of the letter but 

cannot sign the letter with their title or use agency letterhead. 

 • Employees are not prohibited, in connection with a personal activity, from using a term of 

address or rank that they normally employ, such as “The Honorable.” When teaching, speaking, or 

writing in a personal capacity, employees may include their title or position as one of several 

biographical details, but with no more prominence than other significant biographical details. In 

writing for scientific or professional journals, the title may be used as long as there is a prominent 

disclaimer. 5 CFR 2635.702(b). 

Endorsements. Employees shall not use or permit use of their Government position or title or any 

authority associated with their public office to endorse any product, service, or enterprise, except 

under statutory authority or agency recognition programs. 5 CFR 2635.702(c). 

Nonpublic information. Employees shall not engage in a financial transaction using nonpublic 

information, nor allow the use of nonpublic information to further their own private interest or that of 

another through advice, recommendation, or by an unauthorized disclosure. Nonpublic information is 

information employees gain from Federal employment that they know or reasonably should know has 

not been made available to the general public. It includes information (1) exempt from disclosure 

under the Freedom of Information Act, (2) designated confidential by an agency, or (3) that has not 

actually been disseminated to the general public and is not authorized to be made available to the 

public on request. 5 CFR 2635.703. 

Government property. Employees have a duty to protect and conserve Government property and 

may not use it or allow its use for other than authorized purposes. (Management Directive 2.7 

permits employees to use information technology, such as computers, e-mail, the Internet, phones, 

and faxes, for personal purposes on a limited basis and on non-duty time. There are specific 

prohibitions for using such property, such as commercial or political purposes.) 5 CFR 2635.704. 

Official time. Unless authorized, employees shall use official time to perform official duties. 

Employees shall also not encourage, direct, coerce, or request a subordinate to use official time for 

nonofficial activities unless legally authorized. 5 CFR 2635.705. 
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SUBPART H -- OUTSIDE ACTIVITIES

Basic requirement. Employees who wish to engage in outside employment or other activities are 

subject to applicable requirements in the conduct regulations and their agency’s supplemental 

conduct regulations. Their outside activities are also subject to the conflict of interest laws (18 U.S.C. 

201- 209), the Hatch Act (prohibiting certain political activities), and the Emoluments clause of the 

Constitution (which bars acceptance of compensation for services from foreign governments). They 

should avoid actions creating an appearance of violating any of the ethical standards and the 

prohibition on using official position for any private gain. 5 CFR 2635.801. 

Conflicting activities. Employees shall not engage in outside activities that conflict with official duties, 

those prohibited by statute or agency supplemental regulation, or those which would require 

disqualification by reason of the conflicting financial interest or the impartiality standards (see 

subparts D and E). 5 CFR 2635.802. 

Prior approval for outside employment. Employees shall obtain prior approval for outside 

employment or activities if required by agency supplemental regulations. Agencies may require prior 

approval of outside employment by employees or any category of employees by supplemental 

regulation. (NRC supplemental conduct regulation, 5 CFR 5801.103, requires prior written approval 

before engaging in employment with NRC licensees, contractors, applicants, or other nuclear 

entities.) 5 CFR 2635.803. 

Noncareer employees. Full-time noncareer Presidential appointees shall not receive any outside 

earned income during their appointment. Noncareer employees covered under title VI of the Ethics 

Reform Act may not receive outside earned income that exceeds 15 percent of annual income. 5 

CFR 2635.804. 

Expert witness. Employees shall not serve, other than on behalf of the United States, as expert 

witnesses, with or without compensation, in a U.S. court or agency proceeding in which the U.S. is a 

party or has a direct and substantial interest. However, the designated agency ethics official may 

authorize service as an expert witness (1) as being in the Government’s interest, after consulting with 

the Federal agency representing the Government or the agency with the most direct and substantial 

interest, or (2) because the subject matter of the testimony does not relate to the employee’s official 

duties. Employees are not prohibited from serving as fact witnesses under subpoena. 

 • Special Government employees who are appointed by the President, who serve on a 

statutorily-established commission, or who serve more than 60 days in a 365-day period shall not 

serve as expert witnesses in Federal proceedings in which their employing agency is a party or has a 

direct and substantial interest unless authorized by the designated agency ethics official. 5 CFR 

2635. 805. 

 
December 2009 

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Teaching, speaking, and writing. Employees, including special Government employees, shall not 

receive compensation from a nongovernment source for teaching, speaking, or writing that relates to 

their official duties. Official duties are those: 

1. Undertaken as part of official duties’ 

2. Where the invitation to engage in the activity was primarily extended because of the 

employee’s official position rather than the employee’s expertise; 

3. Where the invitation was extended, directly or indirectly, by a person with interests that 

may be substantially affected by the performance or nonperformance of the employee’s 

duties; 

4. Where the information conveyed through the activity draws substantially on ideas or 

official data that are nonpublic information; or 

5. Where the subject matter focuses specifically on (a) any matter to which the employee is 

presently assigned to or which the employee had been assigned to during the previous year, (b) any 

ongoing or announced policy, program, or operation of the agency, or (c) in the case of a noncareer 

employee, the general subject matter area, industry, or economic sector primarily affected by the 

programs and operations of the agency. 

 • This provision prohibits career employees from accepting compensation when teaching, 

speaking, or writing about agency policies, programs, and operations or on specific matters to which 

they are assigned or were assigned during the previous year. The prohibition applies only where the 

activity deals in significant part with the agency’s policies, programs or operations. It would not 

prohibit, for example, compensation for a speech on a general subject matter, such as nuclear 

power, as long as the speech only incidentally touches on agency responsibilities, programs, or 

operations. 

 • Employees (other than covered noncareer employees) are not prohibited from receiving 

compensation for teaching, speaking or writing on a subject within their discipline or inherent area of 

expertise based on their educational background or experience even though the activity generally 

deals with a subject within the agency’s mission. 

 • Special Government employees are not barred from speaking, teaching, writing, on any 

ongoing agency policy, program or operation. Special Government employees who have not served 

the Government more than 60 days in the preceding 365 days are not barred from receiving 

compensation for activities pertaining to particular matters involving specific parties in which they 

participated personally and substantially. 

 • Teaching courses: Employees are not prohibited from receiving compensation for teaching 

a course requiring multiple presentations that is part of the regularly established curriculum of an 

institution of higher learning or an elementary or secondary school or part of an education or training 

program sponsored and funded by a Federal, state, or local government even if the subject matter of 

the course focuses on the agency’s responsibilities, programs, or operations. (NRC’s supplemental 

conduct regulation on outside employment would require prior written approval for employment for 

teaching at an educational institution which has an NRC or agreement State license.) 

 • “Compensation” for teaching, writing, and speaking includes any form of consideration, 

remuneration, or income, including royalties. It does not include meals, free attendance, 

publications, or travel expenses. 
December 2009 

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 • Use of title or position. Employees engaged in nongovernmental teaching, speaking, or 

writing shall not use their official title or position to identify themselves in connection with that activity 

or to promote a book or course. However, employees may include their title as part of biographical 

information (provided that it is not given greater prominence than other biographical information) or 

when coupled with an appropriate disclaimer in a scholarly article in professional journals that the 

views expressed do not necessarily represent the views of the agency. 5 CFR 2635.807. 

Fundraising activities. Fundraising means raising of funds for a nonprofit organization (other than a 

political organization) through the solicitation of funds or sale of items or participation in the conduct 

of an event where any portion of the cost of attendance or participation may be taken as a charitable 

tax deduction. 

 • Employees shall not use their official title or position to raise funds for any organization 

unless specifically authorized by statute, executive order, or regulation (such as the Combined 

Federal Campaign). Employees can be authorized to speak in an official capacity at an event that 

may also serve a fundraising purpose, if the speech relates to official duties and the employee does 

not request donations or other support for the group. They can attend a fundraising event as long as, 

to their knowledge; their attendance is not used to promote the event. 

 • Employees may raise funds in their personal capacities, but shall not solicit funds or other 

support from subordinates or anyone they know is a prohibited source. They also cannot use their 

official title, position, official time, Government resources, or authority in connection 

with private fundraising, although an employee who is ordinarily addressed by a general term, such 

as, “The Honorable,” or a rank, such as military or ambassadorial rank, may use or permit the use of 

that term of address or rank. 5 CFR 2635.808. 

Just financial obligations. Employees shall satisfy in good faith their obligations as citizens, including 

all just financial obligations, especially those imposed by law, such as Federal, state and local taxes. 

5 CFR 2635.809. 

Gambling. The Office of Personnel Management regulations prohibit employees from conducting or 

participating in any gambling activity on Government property or while on official duty. This 

prohibition includes operating a gambling device, conducting a lottery or pool, a game for money or 

property, or selling or purchasing a numbers slip or ticket. There is an exception for such activities if 

sponsored by an employee recreation association under policies and procedures approved by the 

head of the relevant agency. 5 CFR 735.201. 
December 2009 

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 SUBPART I -- RELATED STATUTORY AUTHORITIES 

This Subpart lists 38 significant statutes that establish standards to which employee conduct must 

conform. These include the following: 

• Criminal conflict of interest statutes (18 U.S.C. 201-209), which prohibit bribery, 

supplementation of salary, representing other to the Government, and post-employment 

restrictions; 

• Procurement Integrity Act (41 U.S.C. 423), which prohibits certain actions by procurement 

officials; 

• The Foreign Gifts and Decorations Act (5 U.S.C. 7342), and the Foreign Agents Registration 

Act (22 U.S.C. 611-621); 

• prohibition on misuse of a Government vehicle (31 U.S.C. 1344); 

• prohibition on misuse of the franking privilege (18 U.S.C. 1719); 

• the criminal statute prohibiting fraud or false statements in a Government matter (18 U.S.C. 

1101); and 

• prohibitions on disclosure of classified, proprietary, certain procurement, or confidential 

information (18 U.S.C. 798 and 1905, 41 U.S.C. 423).