Administration Discloses Ethics Waivers Granted by Federal Agencies

In a blog post, the White House announced the administration has now consolidated and released ten ethics waivers granted by federal agencies. The waivers made the appointees exempt from conflict of interest and revolving door restrictions set forth in the President's Executive Order. You can click on the names and the waiver texts are available in pdf format. Three of the waivers were granted to individuals in the Justice Department regarding the government's case against former Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK). It is good to see the waivers available all in one place. However, this does not include White House issued waivers and for those, click here.

All of the waivers listed involve paragraph 2 of the ethics pledge, not the lobbying provision. "That is, they permit certain Executive Branch appointees to work on particular matters that may involve persons with which the appointees formerly had a professional relationship because there was a compelling public interest in allowing it." The administration has been cautious in granting lobbying waivers, especially after granting a waiver to William Lynn who is now at the Pentagon.

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