Ethics in Government

PURPOSE

To assess how well professional employees of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) understand the ethical standards of conduct.

BACKGROUND

The Inspector General conducted this inspection while the Department is implementing President Bush's Executive Order 12674, "Principles of Ethical Conduct for Government Officers and Employees," which mandates annual training to Presidential appointees, employees who must file financial disclosure reports and procurement officials. Other departmental ethics training consists of the Assistant Secretary for Management and Budget's implementation of the procurement integrity act, the Office of General Counsel's (OGC) orientation for all political appointees and Assistant Secretary for Personnel Administration's (ASPER) issuance of the "Standards of Conduct" to new employees. Despite the Department's efforts, the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) found some weaknesses in ethics programs and in employees' understanding of the standards of ethical conduct. Also, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) continues to see cases of employee misconduct.