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4. OGE Form 450

OGE Form 450 Frequently Asked Questions

The OGE Form 450 is different from other forms that you have been asked to complete as a Government employee. There are very specific requirements about how to report the requested information on the form. Your ethics official audits each form, reviewing each line of the form to ensure that the information appears in the correct format. Ethics officials often require employees to make corrections to the forms and to clarify information. Sometimes employees have to submit more than one draft of the form. Once the information is correctly reported on the form, the ethics official is then able to analyze the information to determine if the employee has any potential conflicts of interest.

The following questions and answers will cover basic information about filling out the form. If your question is not answered or if you are still unsure about what to report on the form, please contact your agency ethics official with your question. A copy of the OGE Form 450 and its complete instructions can be found on this website under the tab "Forms Library."

A little preparation will help you fill out this form correctly and quickly and may also minimize the amount of time you may have to spend responding to your ethics official's questions about your report. First, read through the entire form before you fill out any information. Having an overview of the information that is being requested will help you avoid mistakes. Failing to read the instructions may cause you to fill out the form incorrectly. Second, now that you know what information is requested, gather your financial records and have them available as you are filling out the form.

IMPORTANT! Please remember the following key points:

• Filers must print and submit paper forms with handwritten signatures to their agency ethics officials.  A filer may not submit, and an ethics official may not accept, a form with a digital signature, unless the agency has an electronic filing system that complies with the requirements of OGE DAEOgram DO-07-014 (PDF-HTML-TXT) dated May 6, 2007.  The form was designed with the capability to accept digital signatures to accommodate those agencies that have approved electronic filing systems.  Only a few agencies currently have these systems.  Check with your agency ethics official to find out whether your agency has established an electronic filing system that complies with the DAEOgram
• Annual filers must check either Yes or No to each statement on the signature page of the OGE Form 450.
• New entrants and SGEs must check either Yes or No to the first four statements. They may ignore the fifth statement.