I 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1077 

To amend the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 to require senior executive 

branch employees to sign an ethics pledge, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 15, 2021 

Mr. SCHNEIDER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Oversight and Reform 

A BILL 

To amend the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 to require 

senior executive branch employees to sign an ethics 

pledge, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Ethics in Public Serv5 ice Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. ETHICS PLEDGE REQUIREMENT FOR SENIOR EXEC7 UTIVE BRANCH EMPLOYEES. 

8 The Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. 

9 App. 101 et seq.) is amended by inserting after title I the 

10 following new title: 


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1 ‘‘TITLE II—ETHICS PLEDGE 

2 ‘‘SEC. 201. DEFINITIONS. 

3 ‘‘For the purposes of this title, the following defini4 tions apply: 

5 ‘‘(1) The term ‘executive agency’ has the mean6 ing given that term in section 105 of title 5, United 

7 States Code, and includes the Executive Office of 

8 the President, the United States Postal Service, and 

9 Postal Regulatory Commission, but does not include 

10 the Government Accountability Office. 

11 ‘‘(2) The term ‘appointee’ means any noncareer 

12 Presidential or Vice-Presidential appointee, non13 career appointee in the Senior Executive Service (or 

14 other SES-type system), or appointee to a position 

15 that has been excepted from the competitive service 

16 by reason of being of a confidential or policymaking 

17 character (Schedule C and other positions excepted 

18 under comparable criteria) in an executive agency, 

19 but does not include any individual appointed as a 

20 member of the Senior Foreign Service or solely as 

21 a uniformed service commissioned officer. 

22 ‘‘(3) The term ‘gift’— 

23 ‘‘(A) has the meaning given that term in 

24 section 2635.203(b) of title 5, Code of Federal 

25 Regulations (or any successor regulation); and 


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1 ‘‘(B) does not include those items excluded 

2 by sections 2635.204(b), (c), (e)(1), (e)(3), (j), 

3 (k), and (l) of such title 5. 

4 ‘‘(4) The terms ‘covered executive branch offi5 cial’ and ‘lobbyist’ have the meanings given those 

6 terms in section 3 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 

7 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1602). 

8 ‘‘(5) The term ‘registered lobbyist or lobbying 

9 organization’ means a lobbyist or an organization fil10 ing a registration pursuant to section 4(a) of the 

11 Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 

12 1603(a)), and in the case of an organization filing 

13 such a registration, ‘registered lobbyist’ includes 

14 each of the lobbyists identified therein. 

15 ‘‘(6) The terms ‘lobby’ and ‘lobbied’ mean to 

16 act or have acted as a registered lobbyist. 

17 ‘‘(7) The term ‘former employer’— 

18 ‘‘(A) means a person or entity for whom 

19 an appointee served as an employee, officer, di20 rector, trustee, partner, agent, attorney, con21 sultant, or contractor during the 2-year period 

22 ending on the date before the date on which the 

23 covered employee begins service in the Federal 

24 Government; and 

25 ‘‘(B) does not include— 


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1 ‘‘(i) an agency or instrumentality of 

2 the Federal Government; 

3 ‘‘(ii) a State or local government; 

4 ‘‘(iii) the District of Columbia; 

5 ‘‘(iv) an Indian tribe, as defined in 

6 section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination 

7 and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 

8 5304); or 

9 ‘‘(v) the government of a territory or 

10 possession of the United States. 

11 ‘‘(8) The term ‘former client’ means a person 

12 or entity for whom an appointee served personally as 

13 agent, attorney, or consultant during the 2-year pe14 riod ending on the date before the date on which the 

15 covered employee begins service in the Federal Gov16 ernment, but does not include an agency or instru17 mentality of the Federal Government; 

18 ‘‘(9) The term ‘directly and substantially re19 lated to my former employer or former clients’ 

20 means matters in which the appointee’s former em21 ployer or a former client is a party or represents a 

22 party. 

23 ‘‘(10) The term ‘participate’ means to partici24 pate personally and substantially. 


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1 ‘‘(11) The term ‘post-employment restrictions’ 

2 includes the provisions and exceptions in section 

3 207(c) of title 18, United States Code, and the im4 plementing regulations. 

5 ‘‘(12) The term ‘Government official’ means 

6 any employee of the executive branch. 

7 ‘‘(13) The term ‘Administration’ means all 

8 terms of office of the incumbent President serving at 

9 the time of the appointment of an appointee covered 

10 by this title. 

11 ‘‘(14) The term ‘pledge’ means the ethics 

12 pledge set forth in section 202 of this title. 

13 ‘‘(15) All references to provisions of law and 

14 regulations shall refer to such provisions as in effect 

15 on the date of enactment of this title. 

16 ‘‘SEC. 202. ETHICS PLEDGE. 

17 ‘‘Each appointee in every executive agency appointed 

18 on or after the date of enactment of this section shall be 

19 required to sign an ethics pledge upon appointment. The 

20 pledge shall be signed and dated within 30 days of taking 

21 office and shall include, at a minimum, the following ele22 ments: 

23 ‘‘ ‘As a condition, and in consideration, of my employ24 ment in the United States Government in a position in25 vested with the public trust, I commit myself to the folVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:26 Mar 19, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1077.IH H1077

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1 lowing obligations, which I understand are binding on me 

2 and are enforceable under law: 

3 ‘‘ ‘(1) Lobbyist Gift Ban.—I will not accept 

4 gifts from registered lobbyists or lobbying organiza5 tions for the duration of my service as an appointee. 

6 ‘‘ ‘(2) Revolving Door Ban; Entering Govern7 ment.— 

8 ‘‘ ‘(A) All Appointees Entering Govern9 ment.—I will not, for a period of 2 years from 

10 the date of my appointment, participate in any 

11 particular matter involving specific party or 

12 parties that is directly and substantially related 

13 to my former employer or former clients, in14 cluding regulations and contracts. 

15 ‘‘ ‘(B) Lobbyists Entering Government.—If 

16 I was a registered lobbyist within the 2 years 

17 before the date of my appointment, in addition 

18 to abiding by the limitations of subparagraph 

19 (A), I will not for a period of 2 years after the 

20 date of my appointment: 

21 ‘‘ ‘(i) participate in any particular 

22 matter on which I lobbied within the 2 

23 years before the date of my appointment; 


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1 ‘‘ ‘(ii) participate in the specific issue 

2 area in which that particular matter falls; 

3 or 

4 ‘‘ ‘(iii) seek or accept employment with 

5 any executive agency that I lobbied within 

6 the 2 years before the date of my appoint7 ment. 

8 ‘‘ ‘(3) Revolving Door Ban; Appointees Leaving 

9 Government.— 

10 ‘‘ ‘(A) All Appointees Leaving Govern11 ment.—If, upon my departure from the Govern12 ment, I am covered by the post-employment re13 strictions on communicating with employees of 

14 my former executive agency set forth in section 

15 207(c) of title 18, United States Code, I agree 

16 that I will abide by those restrictions for a pe17 riod of 2 years following the end of my appoint18 ment. 

19 ‘‘ ‘(B) Appointees Leaving Government to 

20 Lobby.—In addition to abiding by the limita21 tions of subparagraph (A), I also agree, upon 

22 leaving Government service, not to lobby any 

23 covered executive branch official or noncareer 

24 Senior Executive Service appointee for the re25 mainder of the Administration. 


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1 ‘‘ ‘(4) Employment Qualification Commit2 ment.—I agree that any hiring or other employment 

3 decisions I make will be based on the candidate’s 

4 qualifications, competence, and experience. 

5 ‘‘ ‘(5) Assent to Enforcement.—I acknowledge 

6 that title II of the Ethics in Government Act of 

7 1978, which I have read before signing this docu8 ment, defines certain of the terms applicable to the 

9 foregoing obligations and sets forth the methods for 

10 enforcing them. I expressly accept the provisions of 

11 that title as a part of this agreement and as binding 

12 on me. I understand that the terms of this pledge 

13 are in addition to any statutory or other legal re14 strictions applicable to me by virtue of Federal Gov15 ernment service.’ ’’. 

16 ‘‘SEC. 203. WAIVER. 

17 ‘‘(a) The President or the President’s designee may 

18 grant to any current or former appointee a written waiver 

19 of any restrictions contained in the pledge signed by such 

20 appointee if, and to the extent that, the President or the 

21 President’s designee certifies (in writing) that, in light of 

22 all the relevant circumstances, the interest of the Federal 

23 Government in the employee’s participation outweighs the 

24 concern that a reasonable person may question the integ25 rity of the agency’s programs or operations. 


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1 ‘‘(b) Any waiver under this section shall take effect 

2 when the certification is signed by the President or the 

3 President’s designee. 

4 ‘‘(c) For purposes of subsection (a)(2), the public in5 terest shall include exigent circumstances relating to na6 tional security or to the economy. De minimis contact with 

7 an executive agency shall be cause for a waiver of the re8 strictions contained in paragraph (2)(B) of the pledge. 

9 ‘‘(d) For any waiver granted under this section, the 

10 individual who granted the waiver shall— 

11 ‘‘(1) provide a copy of the waiver to the Direc12 tor not more than 48 hours after the waiver is 

13 granted; and 

14 ‘‘(2) publish the waiver on the website of the 

15 applicable agency not later than 30 calendar days 

16 after granting such waiver. 

17 ‘‘(e) Upon receiving a written waiver under sub18 section (d), the Director shall— 

19 ‘‘(1) review the waiver to determine whether the 

20 Director has any objection to the issuance of the 

21 waiver; and 

22 ‘‘(2) if the Director so objects— 

23 ‘‘(A) provide reasons for the objection in 

24 writing to the head of the agency who granted 


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1 the waiver not more than 15 calendar days 

2 after the waiver was granted; and 

3 ‘‘(B) publish the written objection on the 

4 website of the Office of Government Ethics not 

5 more than 30 calendar days after the waiver 

6 was granted. 

7 ‘‘SEC. 204. ADMINISTRATION. 

8 ‘‘(a) The head of each executive agency shall, in con9 sultation with the Director of the Office of Government 

10 Ethics, establish such rules or procedures (conforming as 

11 nearly as practicable to the agency’s general ethics rules 

12 and procedures, including those relating to designated 

13 agency ethics officers) as are necessary or appropriate to 

14 ensure— 

15 ‘‘(1) that every appointee in the agency signs 

16 the pledge upon assuming the appointed office or 

17 otherwise becoming an appointee; 

18 ‘‘(2) that compliance with paragraph (2)(B) of 

19 the pledge is addressed in a written ethics agree20 ment with each appointee to whom it applies; 

21 ‘‘(3) that spousal employment issues and other 

22 conflicts not expressly addressed by the pledge are 

23 addressed in ethics agreements with appointees or, 

24 where no such agreements are required, through eth25 ics counseling; and 


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1 ‘‘(4) compliance with this title within the agen2 cy. 

3 ‘‘(b) With respect to the Executive Office of the 

4 President, the duties set forth in subsection (a) shall be 

5 the responsibility of the Counsel to the President. 

6 ‘‘(c) The Director of the Office of Government Ethics 

7 shall— 

8 ‘‘(1) ensure that the pledge and a copy of this 

9 title are made available for use by agencies in ful10 filling their duties under subsection (a); 

11 ‘‘(2) in consultation with the Attorney General 

12 or the Counsel to the President, when appropriate, 

13 assist designated agency ethics officers in providing 

14 advice to current or former appointees regarding the 

15 application of the pledge; 

16 ‘‘(3) adopt such rules or procedures as are nec17 essary or appropriate— 

18 ‘‘(A) to carry out the responsibilities as19 signed by this subsection; 

20 ‘‘(B) to apply the lobbyist gift ban set 

21 forth in paragraph 1 of the pledge to all execu22 tive branch employees; 

23 ‘‘(C) to authorize limited exceptions to the 

24 lobbyist gift ban for circumstances that do not 

25 implicate the purposes of the ban; 


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1 ‘‘(D) to make clear that no person shall 

2 have violated the lobbyist gift ban if the person 

3 properly disposes of a gift; 

4 ‘‘(E) to ensure that existing rules and pro5 cedures for Government employees engaged in 

6 negotiations for future employment with private 

7 businesses that are affected by their official ac8 tions do not affect the integrity of the Govern9 ment’s programs and operations; and 

10 ‘‘(F) to ensure, in consultation with the 

11 Director of the Office of Personnel Manage12 ment, that the requirement set forth in para13 graph (4) of the pledge is honored by every em14 ployee of the executive branch; 

15 ‘‘(4) in consultation with the Director of the 

16 Office of Management and Budget, report to the 

17 President, the Committee on Oversight and Reform 

18 of the House of Representatives, and the Committee 

19 on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of 

20 the Senate on whether full compliance is being 

21 achieved with existing laws and regulations gov22 erning executive branch procurement lobbying disclo23 sure and on steps the executive branch can take to 

24 expand to the fullest extent practicable disclosure of 

25 such executive branch procurement lobbying and of 


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1 lobbying for presidential pardons, and to include in 

2 the report both immediate action the executive 

3 branch can take and, if necessary, recommendations 

4 for legislation; and 

5 ‘‘(5) provide an annual public report on the ad6 ministration of the pledge and this title. 

7 ‘‘(d) All pledges signed by appointees, and all waiver 

8 certifications with respect thereto, shall be filed with the 

9 head of the appointee’s agency for permanent retention 

10 in the appointee’s official personnel folder or equivalent 

11 folder.’’. 

Æ 


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