January 18, 1994
                                             DT-94-004

MEMORANDUM

TO:       Designated Agency Ethics Officials

FROM:     Stephen D. Potts
          Director

SUBJECT:  Displaying Ethics Posters


     The General Services Administration (GSA) has requested the
Office of Government Ethics (OGE) to provide clarifying guidance on
the acquisition and display of ethics posters in Federal buildings. 
There is apparently some confusion over which of the currently
available ethics posters should be displayed in Federal buildings
and Government-leased space.

     Public Law 96-303, 94 Stat. 855 (July 3, 1980) requires each
agency (as defined by section 105 of title 5, United States Code),
the Postal Service and the Postal Rate Commission to display the
"Code of Ethics for Government Service," in each Federal building
in which at least 20 individuals are regularly employed by an
agency as civilian employees.  The provisions of P.L. 96-303 took
effect on October 1, 1980, and are still in effect.  P.L. 96-303
also required the Administrator, GSA, to prescribe regulations to
implement this law and to distribute the "Code of Ethics for
Government Service" to agencies.  GSA published its final rule
implementing the law on November 30, 1982, at 41 Code of Federal
Regulations (C.F.R.) §101-20.402.  The regulation was inadvertently
omitted from the C.F.R.; however, GSA is in the process of
reinstating the provisions.

     In September 1992, OGE made available two new ethics posters
for office display.  Neither of these two posters is mandated by
law or regulation to be displayed in Federal buildings nor do these
posters supersede the "Code of Ethics for Government Service"
required to be displayed by P.L. 96-303.  One of these posters,
"Ethics is the Cornerstone of Government Service," allows an agency
to display the name and phone number of the Designated Agency
Ethics Official.  The other poster, "Code of Ethics, Principles of
Ethical Conduct for Government Officials and Employees," displays
the 14 principles of ethical conduct prescribed by Executive Order
12674, as modified.  These two ethics posters were designed to be
used, at the discretion of each agency, as optional ethics training
materials.