5 C.F.R. Subpart C—Prohibited Activities
Title 5 - Administrative Personnel
This subpart does not apply to employees in the agencies and positions described in subpart D of this part. (a) An employee may not use his or her official authority or influence for the purpose of interfering with or affecting the result of an election. (b) Activities prohibited by paragraph (a) of this section include, but are not limited to: (1) Using his or her official title while participating in political activity; (2) Using his or her authority to coerce any person to participate in political activity; and (3) Soliciting, accepting, or receiving uncompensated individual volunteer services from a subordinate for any political purpose. Example 1: An employee who signs a letter seeking uncompensated volunteer services from individuals may not identify himself or herself by using his or her official title. However, the employee may use a general form of address, such as “The Honorable.” Example 2: A noncareer member of the Senior Executive Service, or another employee covered by this subpart, may not ask his or her subordinate employees to provide uncompensated individual volunteer services for a political party, partisan political group, or candidate for partisan political office. Moreover, he or she may not accept or receive such services from a subordinate employee who offers to donate them. Example 3: An employee may not require any person to contribute to a partisan political campaign in order to win a Federal contract: [61 FR 35100, July 5, 1996] An employee may not knowingly: (a) Personally solicit, accept or receive a political contribution from another person, except under the circumstances specified in §734.208(b); (b) Personally solicit political contributions in a speech or keynote address given at a fundraiser; (c) Allow his or her official title to be used in connection with fundraising activities; or (d) Solicit, accept, or receive uncompensated volunteer services from an individual who is a subordinate. Example 1: An employee may not host a fundraiser at his or her home. However, a spouse who is not covered under this part may host such a fundraiser and the employee may attend. The employee may not personally solicit contributions to the fundraiser. Moreover, the employee may not accept, or receive political contributions, except under the circumstances stated in §734.208(b). Example 2: An employee's name may not appear on an invitation to a fundraiser as a sponsor of the fundraiser, or as a point of contact for the fundraiser. Example 3: An employee may not ask a subordinate employee to volunteer on behalf of a partisan political campaign. Example 4: An employee may not call the personnel office of a business or corporation and request that the corporation or business provide volunteers or services for a campaign. However, an employee may call an individual who works for a business or corporation and request that specific individual's services for a campaign. An employee may not run for the nomination or as a candidate for election to partisan political office, except as specified in §734.207. (a) An employee may not knowingly solicit or discourage the participation in any political activity of any person who has an application for any compensation grant, contract, ruling, license, permit, or certificate pending before the employee's employing office. (b) An employee may not knowingly solicit or discourage the participation in any political activity of any person who is the subject of, or a participant in, an ongoing audit, investigation, or enforcement action being carried out by the employee's employing office. (c) Each agency or instrumentality of the United States or District of Columbia Government shall determine when a matter is pending and ongoing within employing offices of the agency or instrumentality for the purposes of this part. Example 1: An employee with agency-wide responsibility may address a large, diverse group to seek support for a partisan political candidate as long as the group has not been specifically targeted as having matters before the employing office. Example 2: An employee of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) may not solicit or discourage the participation of an insured financial institution or its employees if the institution is undergoing examination by the FDIC. Example 3: An employee of the Food and Drug Administration may address a banquet for a partisan political candidate which is sponsored by the candidate's campaign committee, even though the audience includes three individuals who are employed by or are officials of a pharmaceutical company. However, she may not deliver the address if the banquet is sponsored by a lobbying group for pharmaceutical companies, of if she knows that the audience will be composed primarily of employees or officials of such companies. (a) An employee may not participate in political activities subject to the provisions of subpart E of this part: (1) While he or she is on duty; (2) While he or she is wearing a uniform, badge, insignia, or other similar item that identifies the employing agency or instrumentality or the position of the employee; (3) While he or she is in any room or building occupied in the discharge of official duties by an individual employed or holding office in the Government of the United States or any agency or instrumentality thereof; or (4) While using a Government-owned or leased vehicle or while using a privately-owned vehicle in the discharge of official duties. (b) The prohibitions in paragraph (a) of this section do not apply to employees covered under subpart E of this part. Example 1: While on leave without pay, an employee is not subject to the prohibition in §734.306(a)(1) because he or she is not on duty. However, while on leave without pay, the employee remains subject to the other prohibitions in subpart C. Example 2: A Postal Service employee who uses her private vehicle to deliver mail may place a political bumper sticker on the vehicle, as long as she covers the bumper sticker while she is on duty. Example 3: An employee who uses his or her privately owned vehicle on a recurrent basis for official business may place a partisan political bumper sticker on the vehicle, as long as he or she covers the bumper sticker while the vehicle is being used for official duties. Example 4: An employee who uses his or her privately owned vehicle on official business, must cover any partisan political bumper sticker while the vehicle is being used for official duties, if the vehicle is clearly identified as being on official business. Example 5: A noncareer member of the Senior Executive Service, or any other employee covered by this subpart, who uses his or her privately owned vehicle only on an occasional basis to drive to another Federal agency for a meeting, or to take a training course, is not required to cover a partisan political bumper sticker on his or her vehicle. Example 6: An employee may not place a partisan political bumper sticker on any Government owned or Government leased vehicle. Example 7: An employee may place a bumper sticker on his or her privately owned vehicle and park his or her vehicle in a parking lot of an agency or instrumentality of the United States Government or in a non-Federal facility for which the employee receives a subsidy from his or her employing agency or instrumentality. Example 8: When an agency or instrumentality of the United States Government leases offices in a commercial building and that building includes the headquarters of a candidate for partisan political office, an employee of that agency or instrumentality may do volunteer work, when he or she is not on duty, at the candidate's headquarters and in other areas of the building that have not been leased by the Government. Example 9: A Government agency or instrumentality leases all of the space in a commercial building; employees may not participate in political activity in the public areas of the leased building. Example 10: An employee of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) may not engage in political activities while wearing a NASA flight patch, NASA twenty-year pin or anything with an official NASA insignia. Example 11: If a political event begins while an employee is on duty and continues into the time when he or she is not on duty, the employee must wait until he or she is not on duty to attend the event. Alternatively, an employee may request annual leave to attend the political event when it begins. Example 12: Officials of labor organizations who have been given official time to perform representational duties are on duty. Example 13: An employee may stuff envelopes for a mailing on behalf of a candidate for partisan political office while the employee is sitting in the park during his or her lunch period if he or she is not considered to be on duty during his or her lunch period. Example 14: An employee who works at home may engage in political activities at home when he or she is not in a pay status or representing the Government in an official capacity. Example 15: An employee who is appointed by the President by and with the advice and consent of the Senate (PAS) may attend a political event with any non-PAS employee whose official duties do not require accompanying the PAS as long as the non-PAS employee is not on duty. Example 16: A noncareer member of the Senior Executive Service, or any other employee covered by this subpart, may not wear partisan political buttons or display partisan political pictures, signs, stickers, or badges while he or she is on duty or at his or her place of work. Example 17: An employee may not engage in political activity in the cafeteria of a Federal building, even if the cafeteria is in space leased by a contractor. Example 18: An employee who contributes financially to a political action committee through a voluntary allotment made under §550.311(b) of this title may not complete the direct deposit forms while he or she is on duty, in a “room or building” defined in §734.101 or in a Federally owned or leased vehicle. Example 19: An employee who contributes financially to a political action committee through a voluntary allotment may not personally deliver his or her completed direct deposit form, or the completed direct deposit form of another employee, to the payroll employees who would process or administer such forms. However, the employee may mail his or her direct deposit form to his or her agency payroll office. [59 FR 48769, Sept. 23, 1994, as amended at 61 FR 35101, July 5, 1996] An employee covered under this subpart who is the spouse or family member of either a candidate for partisan political office, candidate for political party office, or candidate for public office in a nonpartisan election, is subject to the same prohibitions as other employees covered under this subpart. Example 1: An employee who is married to a candidate for partisan political office may attend a fundraiser for his or her spouse, stand in the receiving line, sit at the head table, and urge others to vote for his or her spouse. However, the employee may not personally solicit, accept, or receive contributions of money or the paid or unpaid services of a business or corporation, or sell or collect money for tickets to the fundraiser. Example 2: An employee who is the daughter of a candidate for partisan political office may appear in a family photograph which is printed in a campaign flier. She may distribute fliers at a campaign rally as long as she does not personally solicit contributions. Example 3: An employee who is married to a candidate for political partisan political office may appear with her spouse in a political advertisement or a broadcast, and urge others to vote for her spouse, as long as the employee does not personally solicit political contributions. [59 FR 48769, Sept. 23, 1994, as amended at 61 FR 35101, July 5, 1996]
Title 5: Administrative Personnel
PART 734—POLITICAL ACTIVITIES OF FEDERAL EMPLOYEES
Subpart C—Prohibited Activities
§ 734.301 Exclusion from coverage.
§ 734.302 Use of official authority; prohibition.
§ 734.303 Fundraising.
§ 734.304 Candidacy for public office.
§ 734.305 Soliciting or discouraging the political participation of certain persons.
§ 734.306 Participation in political activities while on duty, in uniform, in any room or building occupied in the discharge of official duties, or using a Federal vehicle.
§ 734.307 Campaigning for a spouse or family member.
