0.735-38

Availability for counseling.
Authorizations.

0.735-39
0:735-40 Disciplinary and other remedial
action.

0.735-41 Inquiries and exceptions. Appendix A-Statutes Governing Conduct of Federal Employees.

Appendix B-Position Categories, Grade GS

13 and Above, Requiring Statements of Employment and Financial Interests By Incumbents.

Appendix C-Position Categories Below GS

13 Requiring Statements of Employment and Financial Interests By Incumbents. AUTHORITY: The provisions of this Part 0 Issued under E.O. 11222 of May 8, 1965, 30 FR. 6469, 3 CFR, 1965 Supp.; 5 CFR 735.104.

SOURCE: The provisions of this Part 0 appear at 32 F.R. 15222, Nov. 2, 1967, unless otherwise noted.

Subpart A-General Provisions

(1) Every officer and employee of the Department of Commerce (regardless of location), including commissioned officers of the Environmental Science Services Administration; and

(ii) Every other person who is retained, designated, appointed, or employed by a Federal officer or employee, who is engaged in the performance of a function of the Department under authority of law or an Executive act, and who is subject to the supervision of a Federal officer or employee while engaged in the performance of the duties of his position not only as to what he does but also as to how he performs his duties, regardless of whether the relationship to the Department is created by assignment, detail, contract, agreement, or otherwise.

(2) Shall not include:

(1) Members of the Executive Reserve except when they are serving as employees of the Department under the circumstances described in subparagraph (1) of this paragraph;

(ii) Members of crews of vessels owned or chartered to the Government and operated by or for the Maritime Administration under a General Agency Agreement; or

(iii) Any other person who is determined legally not to be an officer or employee of the United States.

(b) "Special Government employee" shall mean an employee as defined in paragraph (a) of this section who is retained, designated, appointed, or employed to perform with or without compensation, for not to exceed 130 days during any period of 365 consecutive days, temporary duties on either a full=time or intermittent basis.

(c) "Personnel officer" means a perEsonnel official to whom the power of appointment is redelegated under Administrative Order 202–250.

(d) "Operating unit" means, for purposes of this part, primary and constituent operating units designated as such in the Department Order Series of the Department of Commerce and, in addition, the Office of the Secretary.

(e) "Head of an operating unit," for the purposes of this part, includes the = Assistant Secretary for Administration

with respect to the performance of functions under this part for the Office of the Secretary.

Subpart B-General Policy 0.735-5 General principles.

Apart from statute, there are certain principles of fair dealing which have the force of law and which are applicable to all officers of the Government. A public office is a public trust. No public officer can lawfully engage in business activities which are incompatible with the duties of his office. He cannot, in his private or official character, enter into engagements in which he has, or can have, a conflicting personal interest. He cannot allow his public duties to be neglected by reason of attention to his private affairs. Such conflicts of interest are not tolerated in the case of any private fiduciary, and they are doubly proscribed for a public trustee. (40 Ops. Atty. Gen. 187, 190.)

= $0.735-6 Standards required in the Federal service.

5 CFR 735.101 states: "The maintenance of unusually high standards of honesty, integrity, impartiality, and conduct by Government employees and special Government employees is essential to assure the proper performance of the Government business and the maintenance of confidence by citizens in their Government."

§ 0.735-7 Special requirements of the Department.

The close and sensitive relationship between the Department of Commerce and the Nation's business community calls for special vigilance on the part of all officers and employees to avoid even any appearance of impropriety. The regulations set forth in this part have been adopted in order to promote the efficiency of the service in the light of the particular ethical and administrative problems arising out of the work of the Department.

§ 0.735-8

Limitations on private activities and interests.

It is the policy of the Department to place as few limitations as possible on private activities or interests consistent with the public trust and the effective performance of the official business of the Department. There is no general statutory or regulatory limitation on the conduct of private activities for compensation by officers or employees of the Department, when the private activity is not connected with any interest of the Government. When the private activity does not touch upon some interest, it may be conducted if it falls outside applicable statutory limitations and regulatory lim‹ itations.

Subpart C-Statutory Limitations
Upon Employee Conduct

§ 0.735-9 Employee responsibilities.

Each employee and special Government employee has a positive duty to acquaint himself with the numerous statutes relating to the ethical and other conduct of employees and special employees of the Department and of the Government. Appendix A of this part contains a listing of the more important statutory provisions of general applicability. In case of doubt on any question of statutory application to fact situations that may arise, the employee should consult the text of the statutes, which will be made available to him by his organization unit, and he should also avail himself of the legal counseling provided by this part.

Subpart D-Regulatory Limitations
Upon Employee Conduct

§ 0.735-10 Administrative extension of statutory limitations.

The provisions of the statutes identified in this part which relate to the ethi