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B-303767 1 (2004-10-18)

handle is hein.gao/gaocrptapqv0001 and id is 1 raw text is: SGAO Accountability * Integrity Reliability United States Government Accountability Office Washington, DC 20548 B-303767 October 18, 2004 The Honorable Brian Baird House of Representatives Subject: Legal Principles Applicable to Selection of FederalAdvisory Committee Members Dear Mr. Baird: This letter is in response to your September 1, 2004 request regarding a follow-up question on our report, FederalAdvisory Committees: Additional Guidance Could Help Agencies Better Ensure Independence and Balance (GAO-04-328, April 2004), issued to you and Representative Johnson. Among other things, our report made recommendations designed to better ensure that federal agencies comply with independence and balance requirements when appointing advisory committee members. We did not make any judgments about whether conflicts of interest existed on any particular committee or whether any particular committee was properly balanced. In connection with this report, you asked us whether federal agencies may inquire about and consider an individual's political affiliation in selecting members for their advisory committees. There are a number of provisions in federal personnel law that prohibit agencies from discriminating against employees or applicants for employment on the basis of political affiliation. As discussed in part I below, whether these provisions apply to a particular advisory committee candidate turns on the candidate's federal employment status (or what the candidate's status would be if selected)-specifically, whether the candidate is or would be a regular federal employee, a special government employee (SGE), or a non-employee. In addition to applicable personnel law provisions, as discussed in part II below, there are other statutory restrictions on agency use of political affiliation in the selection of members for certain specifically designated advisory committees. Determining whether a violation of either the personnel laws or the committee-specific statutory restrictions has occurred would require a thorough and nuanced examination of the particular facts and circumstances on a case-by-case basis. You did not ask us to analyze, nor did we analyze, these issues with regard to the facts surrounding selection of members for any particular advisory committee. Instead, our analysis was designed solely to identify general legal principles that may apply to the selection of advisory committee members. Accordingly, this opinion

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