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remote or too inconsequential to affect the integrity of an employee's services to the Government.

(d) The following prohibitions apply only to a regular employee:

(1) He or she may not, except in the discharge of his or her official duties, represent anyone else before a court or Government agency in a matter in which the United States is a party or has an interest (18 U.S.C. 203 and 205); or

(2) He or she may not receive any salary or supplementation of his or her Government salary, from a private source as compensation for his or her services to the Government (18 U.S.C. 209).

(e) The following prohibitions apply only to a special Government employ

ee:

(1) He or she may not, except in the discharge of his or her official duties, represent anyone else before a court or Government agency in a matter in which the United States is a party or has an interest and in which he or she has at any time participated personally and substantially for the Government (18 U.S.C. 203 and 205); or

(2) He or she may not, except in the discharge of his or her official duties represent anyone else in a matter pending before the Government agency he or she serves unless he or she has served there no more than 60 days during the past 365 days (18 U.S.C. 203 and 205).

(f) This section does not preclude an employee from:

(1) Acting without compensation, and if not inconsistent with the faithful performance of his or her duties, as agent or attorney for any person who is the subject of disciplinary, loyalty, or other personnel administration proceedings in connection with those proceedings;

(2) Giving testimony under oath or making statements required to be made under penalty for perjury or contempt; or

(3) Having a financial interest or engaging in financial transactions to the same extent as a private citizen not employed by the Government, provided it is not prohibited by law, Executive Order 11222, 5 CFR Part 735,

this part, or Agency regulations supplementing this part.

(g) This section does not purport to paraphrase the restrictions contained in 18 U.S.C., Chapter 11. The omission of a restriction in no way relieves an employee of the legal effect of such restriction.

[43 FR 43431, Sept. 26, 1978, as amended at 46 FR 47209, Sept. 25, 1981]

§ 0.735-15 Attendance and leave.

(a) Employees must observe designated duty hours and be punctual in reporting for work and returning from lunch periods. Tardiness can result in employees being placed in a nonpay status or in a charge against annual or compensatory leave in multiples of 15 minutes or 1 hour as appropriate, and/ or subject to disciplinary action.

(b) Employees normally must obtain advance authorization for absence from duty. Approval of leave is a discretionary matter reserved to the supervisor. The taking of leave is not an absolute right afforded the employee but is conditioned on the needs of the Service. Where absence from duty results from illness or an emergency, employees are required to notify their supervisor or other appropriate person as soon as possible. When an employee fails to properly notify his or her supervisor, absence may be charged as an unauthorized absence. It also may result in appropriate disciplinary

action.

(c) Sick leave is to be used by employees only when they are incapacitated from duty because of sickness or injury, when they need to obtain medical, dental, or optical examination or treatment, when they are subject to quarantine imposed by local health authorities, or when they are required to give care to a member of their immediate family who has a contagious disease.

§ 0.735-16 Use of Government property, facilities, and services.

(a) Employees are prohibited from directly or indirectly using, or allowing the use of, Government property, facilities, or services of any kind, including those leased to or otherwise paid for by the Government, for other

than officially approved activities. Employees have a positive duty to conserve and protect Government property.

(b) Personal property offered for sale by the Department may be purchased by employees only when the sale of such property is based upon competitive bids: Provided, That no purchase may be made, either directly or indirectly, by the employee who was formerly accountable for the property, who formerly used the property, or who was in any way connected with its condemnation, declaration as excess, or sale, except:

(1) Surplus perishable products may be sold to employees at the best price obtainable in quantities not exceeding the needs of their immediate household;

(2) Special clothing and other articles or personal equipment purchased for the exclusive use of and fitted to an individual employee may, when not otherwise usable by the Department and in all respects surplus to the needs of the Government, be sold to such employees at the best price obtainable in the event of his or her separation from the Service or permanent assignment to duties not requiring such clothing or equipment.

§ 0.735-17 Use of vehicles.

(a) An employee who willfully uses or authorizes the use of a Government-owned or leased passenger motor vehicle or aircraft for other than official purposes shall be suspended for 1 month or removed from office in accordance with 31 U.S.C. 638a(c)(2).

(b) An employee who willfully uses or authorizes the use of any Government-owned or leased conveyance whether passenger carrying or not, for other than official purposes, is subject to disciplinary action up to and including removal.

(c) An employee shall not store Government-owned or leased motor vehicles in or near his or her private residence or use such vehicles for transportation between his or her residence and place of employment unless such storage or use shall have been specifically authorized by the Secretary or another official to whom such authority has been delegated.

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(a) Employees who fail to pay their just financial obligations in a timely and proper manner will be subject to such disciplinary action as the agency head or his or her designee considers appropriate. For the purpose of this section, "just financial obligations" are those acknowledged by the employee, reduced to judgment by a court, or confirmed by a final administrative determination of a unit of the Federal, State, or local government. A "proper and timely manner" means in a manner which the agency head or his or her designee determines does not, under the circumstances, reflect adversely on the Department as his or her employer.

(b) In cases where a legal judgment exists against the employee, the employee concerned will be required to satisfy the judgment within a reasonable period of time unless he or she can arrange to have it modified or set aside.

(c) When an employee is the subject of a complaint for failure to pay taxes or other debts that are the subject of a final administrative determination by a unit of the Federal, State, or local government, he or she shall be advised of the complaint and told to make payment arrangements satisfactory with that unit of government.

(d) When an employee is the subject of a letter of complaint from a creditor who does not hold a legal judgment, the agency head or his or her designee shall determine whether the employee acknowledges the debt and call the provisions of this section to the employee's attention. Subsequent action, if any, will be taken in accord with the facts of the case and the provisions of this section.

§ 0.735.19 Political activity.

A Federal employee other than an officer exempted by 5 U.S.C. 7324(d) may not take an active part in political management or in a political campaign or run for elective political office except when authorized by Department or Civil Service Commission regulations. He or she may not solicit or receive any assessment, subscription, or contribution for any political pur

pose from an officer or employee of the Government. Whatever the employee may not do directly, he or she may not do indirectly or through an agent, officer, or employee chosen by him or her or subject to his or her control.

§ 0.735-20 Use, protection, and release of information.

(a) An employee is prohibited from using or giving information acquired through his or her official position, prior to its release to the general public, to advance the interests of himself or herself, his or her family, associates, or friends, or any other person or enterprise.

(b) Classified defense information and restricted information shall be safeguarded and released in accordance with the provisions of applicable directives, statutes, or regulations. For further information consult the USDA Regulations for Classification, Declassification, and Safeguarding Classified Information.

(c) "For Official Use Only" material shall not be examined by, released to, nor discussed with any person except in the performance of official duties or as required by the Freedom of Information Act.

(d) Unauthorized, premature disclosure of information which might influence or affect the market value of any product of the soil grown within the United States, or of information which by law or rule of the Department is required to be withheld from publication until a fixed time is punishable by fine and imprisonment unless such release is determined to be required by the Freedom of Information Act.

(e) The subject matter of public hearings with respect to the proposed issuance of an order, regulation, or other administrative determination, after the close of the hearing and prior to issuance by the Secretary of the order, regulation, or other administrative determination shall not be discussed with any interested person or with any representative of an interested person without written permission of the Secretary. However, this shall not preclude an employee who has been assigned to or has supervision over a proceeding from discussing

with interested persons or their representatives matters of procedure in connection with such proceeding.

(f) Official mail shall be safeguarded from indiscriminate publication. It is prohibited to use or to quote in whole or in part any letters from the White House to this Department.

(g) Information concerning inventions and patent applications may be revealed only for official purposes. Employee inventors and employees who handle or obtain information concerning inventions of employee inventors or concerning any other inventions in which the Department may have an interest shall not reveal such information prior to the issuance of the patent, except for official purposes, unless such release is determined to be required by the Freedom of Information Act.

(h) Lists of names of farmers, business people, or employees that may be available in the Department shall not be released to anyone unless it is determined that such release is required by the Freedom of Information Act. Lists of manufacturers, dealers, breeders, etc., should not be furnished so as to imply that the Department endorses certain firms to the possible detriment of others, or that the lists necessarily include all dealers of a certain line.

§ 0.735-21 Activities with regard to farm

organizations.

(a) Department employees shall refrain from participating actively in meetings and in other activities concerned with the establishment of general or specialized farm organizations, or with recruiting members for existing organizations such as the National Grange, the American Farm Bureau Federation, the National Farmers Organization, the Farmers' Union, the National Association of Soil Conservation Districts, the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives and Breed and Commodity Organizations. This is a necessary corollary of the equally long-established policy of the Department that it shall deal fairly with all organizations and deal with each upon the same basis. As a

continuation of this policy, it should be understood by employees of the Department that it is not permissible for any of them to:

(1) Participate in establishing any general or specialized farm organization;

(2) Act as organizer for any such organization, or hold any other functional office therein;

(3) Act as financial or business agent for any such organization;

(4) Participate in any way in any membership campaign or other activity designed to recruit members for any such organization;

(5) Accept the use of free office space or contributions for salary or traveling expense from any such organization;

(6) Advocate that any particular general or specialized organization of farmers is better adapted for carrying out the work of this Department than any individual citizen, group of citizens, or organizations;

(7) Advocate that the responsibilities of any Agency of this Department or any other Federal agency should be carried out through any particular general or specialized organization of farmers;

(8) Advocate or recommend that any State or local agency should carry out its responsibilities through any particular general or specialized organization of farmers; or

(9) Approve contracts for the Department with any cooperative or other commercial organization whenever such cooperative or other commercial organization deducts or checks off from payments due farmers, membership dues of such farmers to any general or specialized organization of farmers, except as it is determined that current authorization for such deduction has been knowingly filed by such individual farmers with the cooperative or other commercial organization.

(b) The restrictions set forth in paragraph (a) of this section do not:

(1) Apply to members of an FmHA County Committee;

(2) Apply to specialized organizations of farmers such as cow testing associations and similar groups; or

(3) Prohibit employees from participating in the organization of groups that are needed in carrying out federally authorized programs, for example, an REA cooperative and similar groups determined by the appropriate Agency Head to be essential in effectuating federally authorized programs.

(c) If any violations of any of the provisions of this section should occur, full information with reference thereto should at once be submitted to the Office of the Inspector General by the Head of the Agency in which the person violating any of these provisions is employed.

[43 FR 43431, Sept. 26, 1978, as amended at 46 FR 22559, Apr. 20, 1981]

§ 0.735-22 Prohibitions upon employees serving abroad.

An employee on foreign assignment may not:

(a) Violate Department of State regulations governing the post to which he or she is assigned;

(b) Receive a "profit" from the sale of his or her personal car or other property when such "profit" accrues from import privileges granted him or her by reason of his or her official status. "Profit" for the purposes of this paragraph is as defined in the Department of State regulations or directives governing the post of assignment; (c) Engage in political activities in the country of assignment;

(d) Violate the laws of the country in which he or she is assigned;

(e) Have an interest in any business enterprise or engage in any profession in any country to which assigned; or

(f) Speculate in any foreign real estate, bonds, shares, stocks, and currencies.

§ 0.735-23 Miscellaneous provisions.

(a) Any money, property, or other thing of value received by or coming into custody of an employee in connection with the discharge of his or her duties must be accounted for, deposited or otherwise disposed of in accordance with established procedures.

(b) Employees are required under § 5.3 of Civil Service Rule V (5 CFR 5.3) to give the Civil Service Commission and its authorized representatives

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(a) “Agency" means an independent subagency or departmental staff office of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

(b) "Agency Head" means the Administrator or Chief Executive Officer of an independent subagency or departmental staff office.

(c) "Conflict-of-interest" means a situation in which a Federal employee's private interest, usually of an economic nature, conflicts with his or her Government duties and responsibilities.

(d) "Appearance of conflict-of-interest" means a situation where it could reasonably be concluded that an employee's private interest is in conflict with his or her Government duties and responsibilities, even though there may not actually be such a conflict.

(e) "Employee" means a regular officer or employee of the Department of Agriculture including excepted and WOC employees and includes a special Government employee unless otherwise provided.

(f) "Special Government employee" means an officer or employee of the Department of Agriculture who is retained, designated, appointed, or employed to perform temporary duties either on a full-time or intermittent basis, with or without compensation, for not to exceed 130 days during any period of 365 consecutive days.

(g) "Supervisor" means an employee having authority, in the interest of an Agency, to hire, transfer, suspend, lay off, recall, promote, discharge, assign, reward, or discipline other employees or responsibility to direct them, or to adjust their grievance, or effectively recommend such action, if in connection with the foregoing the exercise of authority is not of a merely routine or clerical nature, but requires the use of independent judgment.

(h) "Outside employment or activity" means any outside work, service, or activity performed by an employee other than in the performance of official duties. It includes but is not limited to such activities as writing, editing, publishing, teaching, lecturing, consulting services, self-employment, working for another employer, management or operation of a private busi

ness, personally owned business, partnership, corporation, or any work perfomed with or without compensation.

(i) "Members of family" means those blood and in-law relations who are residents of the employee's household. (j) "The Executive Order" means Executive Order 11222 of May 8, 1965.

$ 0.735-3 Counseling and advisory service.

(a) The General Counsel shall designate an employee of the Office of the General Counsel to serve as the Department Counselor and designee to the Civil Service Commission on matters covered by the regulations in this part. Employees shall be notified semiannually of the name and title of the Department Counselor and also upon the designation of a new employee to that position. The Department Counselor shall have overall responsibility for coordination of the Department's counseling and advisory service, and for assuring advice and interpretations on questions of conflict or apparent conflicts-of-interest and other matters covered by the regulations in this part are available to Deputy Counselors and Assistant Deputy Counselors hereinafter designated.

(b) The Director of Personnel and the Chief, Security and Employee Relations Division, Office of Personnel, shall be Department Deputy Counsel

ors.

(c) Agency Heads will be Agency Deputy Counselors. If necessary, in order to assure that counseling and advisory service is available to all Washington and field employees, the Agency Head may designate as Agency Assistant Deputy Counselors such employees as are qualified and in a position to give authoritative advice and guidance on most matters covered by this part.

(d) All employees are to be notified of the availability of counseling and by whom this service is provided. Initial notification must be made within 90 days after issuance of this part, and perodically thereafter. A new employee or new special Government employee must be notified at or before the time of his or her entrance on duty.

(e) Each new employee shall be furnished at the time of hiring a copy of

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