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GAO-25-107039 1 (2024-12-10)

handle is hein.gao/gaoret0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Why This Matters Key Takeaways The federal ethics program was created by the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (EIGA) and amended by the Ethics Reform Act of 1989 and the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act of 2012 (STOCK Act). It aims to promote the integrity of governmental decision-making and support public confidence and trust in government. A key component of the federal ethics program is the financial disclosure program, which applies to the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government. As the supervising ethics office for the executive branch, the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) interprets ethics laws and issues regulations and guidance for the executive branch financial disclosure programs, among other functions. Regular disclosure of personal financial interests helps ethics officials to identify and address conflicts with the filers' government responsibilities. There are two categories of filers in the executive branch. Public filers are typically high-level officials and career senior employees. Confidential filers are typically lower-level employees whose job duties involve a heightened risk of conflicts of interest (e.g., contracting, procurement, and grants administration). More than 29,000 public reports and 420,000 confidential reports were filed in 2023. Since 1989, the EIGA has required GAO to report on the effectiveness of the financial disclosure system (5 U.S.C. § 13110(b)). This report provides information on the executive branch financial disclosure program, including how the program functions and prior efforts to update the program. Appendix I lists GAO reports on federal ethics issued over the last 20 years. * OGE has updated and modified the reporting requirements for the confidential financial disclosure program through the regulatory process. OGE does not have the authority to modify or update the public reporting requirements as they were established by the 1978 EIGA. * Evaluations of the financial disclosure program have been conducted in its 45-year history. These evaluations-spanning 25 years-included recommendations for Congress to amend the EIGA to address certain aspects of reporting requirements for public filers that are outdated, inconsistent, or unnecessary. * The recommendations generally fall into four categories: (1) raising reporting thresholds; (2) changing and reducing the number of categories for reporting value; (3) ensuring consistency across regulations and laws; and (4) eliminating the disclosure of unnecessary information. Page 1 GAO-25-107039 FEDERAL FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE PROGRAM Page 1 GAO-25-107039 FEDERAL FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE PROGRAM

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