July 19, 1999
                                            DO-99-031



MEMORANDUM

TO:       Designated Agency Ethics Officials

FROM:     Stephen D. Potts
          Director

SUBJECT:  A Reminder on Use of OGE Optional Form 450-A


     In connection with several recent program reviews conducted by
the Office of Government Ethics (OGE), it has come to our attention
that some agencies are uncertain about the proper implementation of
OGE Optional Form 450-A, the standardized certificate of no new
interests that OGE approved and issued in June 1997, for optional
use in lieu of OGE Form 450.  This is a reminder that OGE Optional
Form 450-A cannot be used in 2000 by filers at agencies that have
adopted the maximum three-year use cycle.

     The OGE Optional Form 450-A was promulgated following two
years of study, testing, survey, focus group discussion, and a
comment period.  Agencies may permit its use by certain
confidential financial disclosure filers who meet specified
conditions, in lieu of an annual OGE Form 450.  It was approved for
use only in accordance with the requirements of the governing rule
at 5 C.F.R. § 2634.905(d), as further explained in the proposed and
final regulatory preambles.  See 62 Fed. Reg. 2048-2052
(January 15, 1997), 62 Fed. Reg. 33972-33977 (June 24, 1997), and
OGE DAEOgram DO-97-028 (June 25, 1997).

     In order to ensure that disclosed information is current and
to maintain the focus on conflict prevention, the rule permits
filers to use OGE Optional Form 450-A only for a maximum of three
consecutive years before they must file an OGE Form 450 every
fourth year (though agencies are permitted to further limit the
optional form's use to one or two years before an OGE Form 450 must
be filed).  For uniformity and ease of administration, all users of
the OGE Optional Form 450-A must file an OGE Form 450 in 2000 and
in each year thereafter that is divisible by four (or in 1998 and
each year thereafter that is divisible by two or three, if an
agency chooses to limit the OGE Optional Form 450-A's use to one or
two years).  This is required, regardless of how recently a filer
may have submitted an OGE Form 450, either as a new entrant or an
annual filer who was not eligible to use, or chose not to use, the
optional certificate.   

     Even though this requirement that all users of the OGE
Optional Form 450-A must instead file an OGE Form 450 in 2000 (or
in 2001 for those agencies that choose to require it every third
year) was clearly enunciated in the regulation and preamble, as
well as in the DAEOgram guidance, we are discovering that some
agencies have attempted to establish their own cycles by using base
years other than those prescribed for collecting an OGE Form 450 or
permitting different cycles for each individual filer.  Such
deviations, however, are not permissible.  The requirement that all
users of the OGE Optional Form 450-A must instead file an OGE
Form 450 in 2000 (or in 2001 for those agencies that choose to
require it every third year) was established to ease the
administrative burden on agencies and on OGE in exercising its
monitoring role.  After consideration of agency input and careful
examination of various options, this method was selected as the
only feasible means of avoiding the tracking morass and confusion
which might have resulted if individual filers or agencies were
permitted to establish different cycles. 

     This reminder of the rule's requirement is being provided, so
that any agencies who may have deviated therefrom can take steps
now to get back on track with their upcoming annual collection of
reports from confidential filers in October.  If questions remain
or individual circumstances warrant further discussion to achieve
compliance, please contact your OGE desk officer or, in the case of
an ongoing OGE program review, the assigned OGE team.