ExecutiveOrdersEO
EO 13490Executive OrderObama · D

Executive Order 13490

Ethics Commitments by Executive Branch Personnel

This executive order requires all executive branch appointees hired on or after January 20, 2009, to sign a binding ethics pledge that imposes a two-year revolving door ban between lobbying and government service, prohibits gifts from registered lobbyists, bars departing appointees from lobbying the administration, and mandates merit-based hiring decisions. The order establishes enforcement mechanisms including civil penalties and debarment, with waiver authority vested in the OMB Director.

Federal Register Open PDF 74 FR 4673

Impact dates

  1. OGE annual public report on pledge administration

  2. Agency heads establish rules/procedures for pledge administration, ethics agreements, and compliance procedures

  3. OGE makes pledge and order copy available for agency use

  4. Written ethics agreement for paragraph 3 appointees approved by Counsel to President before commencing work

  5. OGE report to President on procurement lobbying disclosure compliance and expansion

  6. OGE report to President on expanding revolving door ban to procurement employees

Key directives

  • Every appointee in every executive agency appointed on or after January 20, 2009, must sign ethics pledge upon becoming an appointee
  • Two-year ban on participating in matters related to former employer or clients for all appointees entering government
  • Additional two-year restrictions for former registered lobbyists on matters lobbied, specific issue areas, and employment with lobbied agencies
  • Departing appointees subject to post-employment lobbying restrictions must abide for two years; additional ban on lobbying covered officials for remainder of Administration
  • Lobbyist gift ban for duration of service
  • Merit-based hiring commitment for all employment decisions
  • OMB Director may grant written waivers with certification of public interest or inconsistency with purposes
  • Agency heads must establish rules for pledge signing, ethics agreements, and compliance; spousal employment addressed in ethics agreements
  • OGE must adopt rules to apply lobbyist gift ban to all executive branch employees with limited exceptions
  • OGE must report to President on procurement lobbying disclosure compliance and expansion steps
  • OGE must provide annual public report on pledge administration
  • OGE must report to President on expanding paragraph 5 revolving door ban to procurement employees

Who is ordered

Timeline

Immediate

  • Binding ethics pledge requirement takes effect for all appointees hired on or after January 20, 2009
  • Lobbyist gift ban effective upon signing
  • Two-year revolving door restrictions begin at appointment date

Near term (90d)

  • Agency heads must establish rules/procedures for pledge administration
  • Office of Government Ethics must make pledge available to agencies
  • Written ethics agreements required for paragraph 3 appointees before commencing work

Long term

  • Annual public reports on pledge administration
  • Potential expansion of revolving door ban to procurement employees pending OGE report
  • Potential procurement lobbying disclosure expansion pending OGE report
  • Five-year additional debarment penalty for pledge violations applies indefinitely to former appointees

Risks & tensions

  • Waiver authority concentrated in OMB Director creates potential for political override of ethics restrictions; 'public interest' standard is vague and discretionary
  • Paragraph 5's 'remainder of the Administration' lobbying ban may face First Amendment constitutional challenges as broader than statutory restrictions
  • Enforcement relies heavily on self-reporting and agency discretion; no independent enforcement mechanism established
  • Definition of 'Administration' as 'all terms of office of the incumbent President' creates ambiguity for appointees serving across potential second term
  • Exclusion of Government Accountability Office and inclusion of Postal Service reflects selective coverage without clear rationale
  • De minimis contact waiver for paragraph 3 is vague and could swallow the rule
  • Civil enforcement by Attorney General may be politically constrained depending on administration priorities
Executive Order 13490: Ethics Commitments by Executive Branch Personnel · Executive Orders