Federal employees on unpaid furlough due to the partial government shutdown remain covered by ethics policies governing outside employment, the Office of Government Ethics has said.
Laws and rules including criminal conflict of interest restrictions still apply to employees in unpaid status, as do agency-specific ethics policies, the OGE said in a reminder similar to what it has sent in prior similar situations.
“It is particularly important for employees to understand that ethics provisions regarding outside activities, including any agency-specific prohibitions or prior approval requirements, will continue to apply to them while they are in a furlough status,” the OGE said.
It added that agencies have authority to extend by up to 90 days, retroactively if necessary, the deadline for employees who must file public financial disclosures to file reports of certain transactions, if the deadline falls in a furlough period. Agencies also may waive the standard $200 fee for late filing, it said.
