HHS Ethics Reform
As you may be aware, HHS has recently undergone significant Ethics Reform,
which has resulted in certain restrictions on NIH employees primarily. The
effective date for the revised HHS Standards of Supplemental Conduct was February
3, 2005. This message is to provide a brief summary of the new regulations
and to explain how the new rules impact CDC. Attached is a side-by-side comparison,
which summarizes the Ethics Reform from NIH's perspective and from CDC's perspective.
As you will note, the new regulations impose significant restrictions on NIH
employees pertaining to activities with outside organizations, prohibited financial
holdings and awards to NIH employees. At this time, HHS has decided not to
impose these additional restrictions to CDC employees.
Pursuant to the revised Supplemental Regulations, all HHS employees (including
CDC employees) for whom outside employment or activity has been approved
or who has participated in any outside activity for which prior approval
is required, must file an Annual Supplemental Report for all such activities
undertaken in the previous calendar year. The deadline for the 2005 Annual
Supplemental Report is April 29, 2005. This Annual Supplemental Report should
be documented on the HHS-521 form. HHS will make this form available in late
March 2005.
Please forward this message to members of your staff for their information.
Any questions or concerns regarding this matter should be forwarded to the
CDC Ethics Office at ethics@cdc.gov or at
the
numbers below.
Outside Activities Requests for approval must be documented on the HHS-520 form. Approval of an outside activity is effective for one year only and must be renewed annually. Annual Supplemental Report Any employee for whom outside employment or activity has been approved or who has participated in any outside activity for which prior approval is required must file an annual report for all such activities undertaken in the previous calendar year.* What Activities Are Not Allowed? The CDC Ethics Office performs a conflict of interest analysis on CDC employees’ outside activity approval requests on a case-by-case basis. CDC employees are not subject to the new NIH-specific ethics regulations that prohibit outside activities with certain entities. Outside activities which require advance approval include the following:
* Annual Reports Due April 29, 2005 on the HHS 521 (Forms will be made available in late March) |
NIH Ethics Reform Outside Activities Requests for approval must be documented on the HHS-520 form. Approval of an outside activity is effective for one year only and must be renewed annually. Annual Supplemental Report Any employee for whom outside employment or activity has been approved or who has participated in any outside activity for which prior approval is required must file an annual report for all such activities undertaken in the previous calendar year.* What Activities Are not Allowed? Compensated or uncompensated employment, including consulting and advisory or other board service, and compensated teaching, speaking, writing, or editing With or for the following entities:
Also: NIH employees are prohibited from engaging in self-employment activities involving the sale or promotion of the services or products of the above entities. * Annual Reports Due April 29, 2005 on the HHS 521 (Forms will be made available in late March) |
CDC Financial Disclosure The CDC Ethics Office performs a conflict of interest analysis on CDC employees’ financial disclosure forms on a case-by-case basis. CDC employees are not subject to the new NIH-specific ethics regulations with respect to prohibited holdings. CDC employees who file public (SF 278) or confidential (OGE 450) financial disclosure reports are required to disclose their financial interests as well as the interests of their spouse and minor children. What Must Be Reported:
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NIH Financial Disclosure Prohibited Holdings NIH employees who file public (SF 278) or confidential (OGE 450) financial disclosure reports (and their spouses and minor children) are prohibited:
Divestiture: Employees may have up to 150 days to divest of holdings to comply with the law. Employees who qualify may apply for a Certificate of Divestiture before selling in order to defer capital gains taxes. Exception: Holdings are allowed when resulting from a pension or other employee benefit, arising from employment with a substantially affected organization and widely diversified, publicly traded mutual funds. |
Awards To CDC Employees Employees may accept awards from outside organizations subject to the following guidelines:
Awards That May Not Be Accepted Awards may not be accepted from entities that have interests that may be substantially affected by the performance or nonperformance of the employee's official duties. * Employees are encouraged to contact the Ethics Office before the receipt of any type of award. |
Awards To NIH Employees Senior employees may not receive a gift that is cash or an investment interest, or that has an aggregate market value of more than $200 that:
Other employees having official responsibility for matters involving or affecting the donor may not receive gifts with an aggregate market value of more than $200, or that is cash or an investment. Non-senior employees or employees who do not have official duty matters involving the donor, may accept bona fide awards for meritorious public service if:
Exception: Prestigious awards that confer an One Year Disqualification For one year following the receipt of an award under this provision, an employee is prohibited from participating in any particular matter involving the donor unless authorized by an agency designee. |