Post-Employment Restrictions for Former Federal Officials and Disclosure Laws Related to Foreign Representation and Lobbying

Post-employment restrictions in the Revolving Door law prohibit federal  employees from engaging in certain conduct with the intent to influence  government officials for a specified period of time after leaving federal  employment. In contrast to post-employment restrictions for former  government officials, the disclosure laws in FARA and LDA are not  specific to former government employees. FARA and LDA do not prohibit  any activities; rather, they require individuals engaging in certain foreign  representation and lobbying activities to make these activities public. These former senior and very  senior employees are also banned for 1 year from representing, aiding, or  advising foreign entities with the intent to influence a decision of a  government official, and former U.S. Trade Representatives and Deputy  Trade Representatives are banned for life from such activity. Level of pay and certain designated positions are used to categorize  employees as “senior” or “very senior.” Senior employees include  employees whose rate of pay is specified in or fixed according to the  Executive Schedule, as well as certain other employees who hold specific  appointed positions or who meet a specific financial threshold—86.5  percent of Executive Schedule Level II. USTR, ITA, and USITC Ethics Officials Train Current Employees and Advise Former Employees on Revolving Door Restrictions

Ethics officials at USTR, ITA, and USITC described a variety of activities  they use to inform senior employees of the post-employment restrictions,  such as conducting training programs and providing counseling to former  employees. Justice officials said they viewed the Revolving Door  law as being more useful as a preventative measure rather than a tool for  prosecution; they believed that guidance from agency ethics officials  deterred most violations. Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA)

FARA is a disclosure law that requires all individuals acting as agents of  foreign principals to register their activities with Justice, unless exempt by  law. Lobbyist registration requirements apply to all individuals conducting  lobbying activities, not only to former federal officials. We also provided a draft to  staff at the Clerk of the House of Representatives and the Secretary of the  Senate. This information includes data on the number of senior officials  who separated from the Office of the United States Trade Representative  (USTR), the Department of Commerce’s International Trade  Administration (ITA), and the United States International Trade  Commission (USITC) from 2004 through 2009, as well as information on  the number of these officials who registered under FARA or LDA. § 207, referred to as the “Revolving Door” law in this report,  the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), and the Lobbying Disclosure  Act (LDA), as amended. All former federal employees who  participated personally and substantially in an ongoing treaty negotiation  are prohibited for 1 year from aiding or advising any other person in that  treaty negotiation, if the employee had access to certain covered  information.
Why GAO Did This Study

Congress has enacted laws to safeguard against former federal employees, including former trade officials, from using their access to influence government officials. These former officials' post-employment activities are restricted by a federal conflict of interest law, known as the "Revolving Door" law. Two other laws--the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) and the Lobbying Disclosure Act (LDA)--are disclosure statutes that do not prohibit any activities per se, but require individuals conducting certain representation activities to publicly disclose them. FARA and LDA are not specific to former federal officials; they apply to all individuals. GAO was asked to provide a summary of the Revolving Door law, FARA, and LDA. GAO reviewed these laws, as well as guidance from the Office of Government Ethics (OGE). GAO interviewed ethics officials at three agencies whose missions focus on trade--the United States Trade Representative (USTR), the International Trade Administration (ITA), and the International Trade Commission (USITC)--and collected data on the number of senior officials who separated from these agencies from 2004 through 2009. In addition, GAO interviewed Department of Justice (Justice) officials concerning enforcement of these laws. GAO makes no recommendations in this report.

What GAO Found

Post-employment restrictions in the Revolving Door law, codified at 18 U.S.C. 207, prohibit some federal employees from engaging in certain activities, such as communicating with their former agency with the intent to influence government action, for a specified period of time after leaving federal service. The restrictions include a ban, for 1 year, on all former senior and very senior employees of federal agencies from representing, aiding, or advising a foreign government or political party with the intent to influence a government official, including the President, Vice President, and members of Congress. Level of pay and certain designated positions are used to categorize employees as "senior" or "very senior." A life-time ban on representing or advising foreign entities in this capacity applies to former U.S. Trade Representatives and Deputy Trade Representatives. In addition, all former federal employees who participated personally and substantially in an ongoing treaty negotiation are prohibited for 1 year from aiding any other person in that negotiation, if the employee had access to certain nonpublic information. Ethics officials at USTR, ITA, and USITC reported that they counsel current, as well as former, employees on post-employment restrictions. Justice officials said they viewed the Revolving Door law as being more useful as a preventative measure rather than a tool for prosecution; they believed that guidance from agency ethics officials deterred most violations. In contrast to post-employment restrictions specific to former government officials, FARA and LDA are disclosure laws that require all individuals, unless exempt, to publicly disclose certain foreign representation or lobbying activity. Individuals who act as agents of foreign governments or foreign political parties must register with Justice's Registration Unit. Individuals who conduct a certain amount of lobbying must register with the Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House of Representatives. Both FARA and LDA disclosure information is publicly available.