OGE Letterhead
October 23, 2001
DO-01-026
MEMORANDUM

TO:      Designated Agency Ethics Officials

FROM:    Jack Covaleski         
         Deputy Director
         Office of Agency Programs  

SUBJECT: Reporting Payments Accepted Under 31 U.S.C. § 1353

     Section 1353 of title 31, United States Code, authorizes the acceptance by executive branch agencies of payments for travel, subsistence, and related expenses from non-Federal sources in connection with the attendance of employees at certain meetings or similar functions. The statute provides that the head of each agency shall submit to the Director of the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) semiannual reports of payments of more than $250 accepted under this authority. The next semiannual report should be submitted to OGE not later than November 30, 2001, concerning payments received during the period beginning on April 1, 2001, and ending on September 30, 2001. Agencies are required to submit negative reports.

     The General Services Administration's (GSA) regulation implementing 31 U.S.C. § 1353 and its reporting requirement are codified at 41 C.F.R. part 304-1. Additionally, the standard forms for reporting this information, SF 326, "Semiannual Report of Payments Accepted from a Non-Federal Source" and SF 326A, "Continuation Sheet" can be downloaded in various formats from the GSA Web site at www.gsa.gov/forms under the standard forms. You may use these forms or continue to use other reporting formats designed in accordance with § 304-1.9(a) of that regulation. (1)

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    1 GSA published a set of proposed amendments to its regulation that, among other things, would require the use of the standard forms for reporting. See 66 Federal Register 22491-22498, at proposed §§ 304-6.4 and 304-6.5 (published May 4, 2001).