2006 Ethics Training WR

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2006 Ethics Training - WR
Gifts and Other Real World Issues
For Employees Working with Partners
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2006 Ethics Training - WR

• Topics
• Gifts Special Privileges
• Awards Training
• Travel Assistance
• Prizes At Conferences
• Holiday Parties
• Partnership Business

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2006 Ethics Training - WR

• 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

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2006 Ethics Training - WR

• 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 employees
  duties

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2006 Ethics Training - WR

• 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

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2006 Ethics Training - WR

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

• Prohibited sources?
• Districts
• RCD Councils
• District Employees
• Universities
• Farmers
• Conservation Organizations
• Ag and Environmental Groups

Yes or No ?

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

Y Y Y Y
Y Y Y N Y Y
Y Y Y
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2006 Ethics Training - WR
Gifts Yes or No ?

• 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

Y Y Y Y Y Y Y
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2006 Ethics Training - WR

• 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

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2006 Ethics Training - WR

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

Require ethics approval
There are also specific limitations on the use of
some exceptions
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2006 Ethics Training - WR

• 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.

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2006 Ethics Training - WR

• Disposal of Prohibited Gifts
• Return or pay market value
• If perishable not practical to return to donor,
  the employees supervisor or Ethics Advisor can
  choose to
• to give it to charity
• let recipients office share it
• destroy it
• Reimburse the donor the market value for any
  entertainment, favor, benefit, service or other
  intangible

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2006 Ethics Training - WR

• WAG 2635.204(g)(3)(i)
• STC can approve
• All / most NRCS situations require specific
  ethics finding to approve (SEA)
• Required if -- employees performance or
  non-performance affect the sponsors interest or
  if an organization, the employees performance
  affects a majority of its members - -

Widely Attended Gatherings
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2006 Ethics Training - WR

• Awards Honorary Degrees
• Requires DCH MGT approval

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

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2006 Ethics Training - WR

• 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.

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2006 Ethics Training - WR

• 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
  Govt funds
• Can not even accept if personal voluntary entry
  unless open to the public

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2006 Ethics Training - WR
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
employees 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.
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2006 Ethics Training - WR

• 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.
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2006 Ethics Training - WR
Prizes at Conferences

• 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
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2006 Ethics Training - WR

• 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
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2006 Ethics Training - WR

• Ethics Appropriations Law in Program Guidance
• Examples
• RCD Manual - -

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

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

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

Dont conduct District meetings Dont set agenda
but advise what it needed Stay out of District
affairs
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2006 Ethics Training - WR
Resources

• 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)
• RCD Programs Manual
• Conservation Programs Manual

5 CFR 2635
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2006 Ethics Training - WR
Questions?