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U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Logo
United States Department of the Interior

FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE 
Washington, D.C. 20240

 
From: Director                                                                         January 8, 2004
   
Title: Standards of Ethical Conduct 
It is the policy and expectation of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) that all employees maintain especially high standards of honesty, impartiality, character, and conduct to ensure the performance of Government business and the continual trust and confidence of the citizens of the United States.  The conduct of employees must reflect the qualities of courtesy, integrity, and loyalty to the United States; a deep sense of responsibility for the public trust; promptness in dealing with and serving the public; and a standard of personal behavior that reflects positively upon and will be a credit to both employees and the Service.  These principles apply to official conduct as well as private conduct that affects in any way the ability of employees or the Service to effectively accomplish the work of the Department.

To ensure that every citizen of the United States can have complete confidence in the integrity of the Federal Government, each employee must be familiar and comply with the Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch contained in Title 5, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Part 2635 and generally outlined below. 
 

A. Employees are required to place loyalty to the Constitution, the laws, and ethical principles above private gain as public service is a public trust.

B. Employees will not hold financial interests that conflict with the conscientious performance of duty.

C. Employees must not engage in financial transactions using nonpublic Government information or allow the improper use of such information to further any private interests.

D. Employees must not, except pursuant to such reasonable exceptions as are provided by regulation, solicit or accept any gift or other item of monetary value from any person or entity seeking official action from, doing business with, or conducting activities regulated by the Department, or whose interests may be substantially affected by the performance or nonperformance of the employees' duties.

E. Employees are required to put forth an honest effort in the performance of their duties.

F. Employees will not knowingly make unauthorized commitments or promises of any kind purporting to bind the Government.

G. Employees must not use public office for private gain.

H. Employees must act impartially and not give preferential treatment to any private organization or individual.

I. Employees must protect and conserve Federal property and not use it for other than authorized activities.

J. Employees must not engage in outside employment or activities, including seeking or negotiating for employment, that conflict with official Government duties and responsibilities.
K. Employees are expected to disclose waste, fraud, abuse, and corruption to appropriate authorities.

L. Employees are expected to satisfy in good faith their obligations as citizens, including all just financial obligations, especially those such as Federal, state, or local taxes that are imposed by law.

M. Employees must adhere to all laws and regulations that provide equal opportunity for all Americans regardless of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, or handicap.

N. Employees must endeavor to avoid any actions creating the appearance that they are violating the law or the ethical standards set forth in 5 CFR Part 2635.  Whether particular circumstances create an appearance that the law or these standards have been violated will be determined from the perspective of a reasonable person with knowledge of the relevant facts.

It is imperative that employees are familiar with the entire content of 5 CFR 2635. Supervisors  are responsible for permitting new employees a minimum of one hour of official duty time for the purpose of reviewing 5 CFR 2635.  For general questions regarding the applicability of the standards of conduct regulations, for a complete copy of the standards of ethical conduct, or for guidance on specific matters of conflict of interest, employees should contact their servicing ethics counselor.