[Code of Federal Regulations]

[Title 45, Volume 1]

[Revised as of October 1, 2006]

From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access

[CITE: 45CFR73.735-202]



[Page 168-170]

 

                        TITLE 45--PUBLIC WELFARE

 

                    SUBTITLE A--DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH

                           AND HUMAN SERVICES

 

PART 73_STANDARDS OF CONDUCT--Table of Contents

 

                       Subpart B_Responsibilities

 

Sec.  73.735-202  Management officials.



    (a) The Department has an obligation to enforce the requirements of 

this part in all respects and to help employees, special Government 

employees, and supervisors carry out their responsibilities to maintain 

high standards of ethical conduct. This includes an obligation for 

managers to provide information and training concerning the HHS conduct 

regulations, to provide advice and guidance with respect to them, and to 

review for possible conflicts of interest certain outside activities and 

financial interests of employees. The officials responsible for 

discharging the Department's oligations



[[Page 169]]



in this regard are identified in paragraphs (b) through (f) of this 

section.

    (b) Department Ethics Counselor. The Assistant General Counsel, 

Business and Administrative Law Division, shall be the Department Ethics 

Counselor and shall serve as the Designated Agency Official for matters 

arising under the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, (Pub. L. 95-521). 

The responsibilities of the Department Ethics Counselor shall include:

    (1) Rendering authoritative advice and guidance on matters of 

general applicability under the standards of this part and all other 

laws and regulations governing employee conduct, with particular 

reference to conflicts of interest matters.

    (2) Coordinating the Department's counselling and training services 

regarding conflicts of interest and assuring that employees of the 

Department are kept informed of developments in conflict of interest 

laws and other related matters of ethics.

    (3) Receiving information on conflicts of interest and appearances 

of conflicts of interest involving employees of the Department and 

forwarding this information to the appropriate management official, or 

the Inspector General, as necessary, with his or her legal evaluation of 

the matters addressed.

    (4) Reviewing the financial disclosure reports, requests for 

approval of outside activities, and similar reports filed by Executive 

level officers, non-career executives, deputy ethics counselors, and 

Schedule C employees in the Office of the Secretary for the purpose of 

identifying and resolving possible and actual conflicts of interest.

    (5) Maintaining liaison with the Office of Government Ethics.

    (6) Advising management officials on the resolution of conflicts of 

interest by any of the remedies set forth in Sec.  73.735-904 of this 

part.

    (7) Maintaining accurate and complete documentation of all formal 

guidance and advice regarding conflict of interest matters subject to 

the provisions of this part, except for routine or repetitious cases 

where the guidance given is not precedential.

    (8) Maintaining and publishing from time to time a list of those 

circumstances or situations which have resulted or may result in 

noncompliance with conflict of interest laws or regulations. [Section 

206(b)(7), Pub. L. 95-521].

    (9) Designating and training an appropriate number of reviewing 

officials to assist him or her in carrying out the duties of the 

Designated Agency Offical under the Ethics in Government Act.

    (10) Maintaining effective lines of communication with deputy ethics 

counselors on all matters regarding employee conduct and ethics.

    (c) Deputy Ethics Counselors. Assistant General Counsels and 

Regional Attorneys are designated deputy ethics counselors to assist the 

Department's Counselor in carrying out his or her responsibilities, 

particularly with respect to employees in the organization in which the 

deputy counselor serves. Regional Attorneys shall provide such 

assistance for all employees of the Department in organizations for 

which the Principal Regional Official provides personnel services.

    (d) The Assistant Secretary for Personnel Administration shall be 

responsible for developing and issuing procedures and requirements for 

the implementation of these regulations and for monitoring the 

application of such procedures and requirements throughout the 

Department.

    (e) Heads of Principal Operating Components and the Assistant 

Secretary for Management and Budget for the Office of the Secretary 

shall be ultimately responsible for assuring that persons who work for 

their respective organizations comply with the standards of this part. 

Their responsibilities shall include:

    (1) Designating officials to review and approve outside activity 

requests in accordance with Sec.  73.735-708 of this part or statements 

of employment or financial interests under Sec.  73.735-902. A list of 

the officials designated for these purposes shall be provided to the 

Department Ethics Counselor and to the Assistant Secretary for Personnel 

Administration and shall be updated in January and July of each year.

    (2) Designating for the components of his or her organization, other 

than those for which a principal regional official provides personnel 

services, one



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or more individuals to oversee and coordinate the administrative aspects 

of these regulations. Responsibilities of such a person include making 

sure each employee or special government employee is provided a copy of 

these regulations, or an appropriate summary thereof; ensuring that 

training in the requirements of the regulations is provided to 

supervisors and to new employees; providing for the distribution, 

receipt, review and retention of financial interest reports and 

statements as directed by the Department Ethics Counselor and the 

Assistant Secretary for Personnel Administration; sending annual 

reminders as required; providing for a file of outside work requests; 

giving information and assistance to employees on a day-to-day basis; 

and making available to employees the names and addresses of the 

Department's Ethics Counselor and deputy ethics counselors.

    (f) Principal Regional Officials (PROs) shall designate one or more 

regional employees to perform, for components for which personnel 

services are provided by the PROs, the responsibilities in paragraph 

(e)(2) of this section.