HHS Employees:
As we are nearly one month away from the 2018 mid-term elections, it is important that each of you take some time to review what partisan political activities you may, and may not, engage in as a federal employee. The Hatch Act, passed in 1939, restricts the partisan political activity of federal employees at the national, state, or local levels that are directed at the success or failure of a political party, candidate, or partisan political group. The U.S. Office of the Special Counsel (OSC) recently issued new guidance materials, linked below, that help clarify how the Hatch Act applies to your use of social media and email.
In general, federal employees may never:
Engage in political activity while on duty, while in a government office, or while using a government vehicle.
- Solicit, accept or receive political contributions at any time.
- Engage in political activity in an official capacity at any time.
- Use an official HHS title in connection with any political activity.
- Solicit or discourage the political activity of anyone having business before the Department.
- Use official authority or influence to interfere with or affect the result of an election.
For more information, click on the OSC’s Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) link below:
Hatch Act Frequently Asked Questions
Social Media and the Hatch Act
In February, the OSC updated its 2015 guidance on federal employees’ use of social media and email. This updated guidance is longer than the 2015 version, and implemented an easier-to-use format that include real world examples that shows how social media and the Hatch Act intersect. In addition, OSC has a Social Media Quick Guide, which includes a helpful checklist of permitted and prohibited social media activities for all federal employees. Finally, OSC added guidance concerning the Hatch Act’s implications of federal agencies’ use of official social media accounts. For more information on the updated OSC Social Media and the Hatch Act guidance, click on any of the three links below:
- Hatch Act Guidance on Social Media revised February 2018
- Hatch Act Social Media Quick Guide revised February 2018
- The Hatch Act: Frequently Asked Questions on Federal Agencies and the Use of Official Social Media Accounts revised February 2018
Running as an Independent Candidate in Local Partisan Elections in Designated Areas
While there is a general prohibition against running as a candidate in a partisan election, there are certain areas of the country wherein “most” federal employees may run as an independent candidate in a local election for partisan political office. Effective December 9, 2013, the District of Columbia was added to the list of designated localities. The official list of all of the localities across the country is found under 5 CFR Part 733 http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/retrieveECFR?gp=&SID=492b66b9dec4527212adfc84f6563781&mc=true&n=pt5.2.733&r=PART&ty=HTML
Employees are strongly advised to seek guidance from their division’s ethics official Deputy Ethics Counselors and Ethics Coordinators or the OSC prior to initiating action as an independent candidate. While being a candidate is NOT subject to the prior approval HHS 520 process; holding an elected or appointed position may require one.
A Guide to the Hatch Act for Federal Employees,
Political Activity Restrictions for Federal Employees
Political Activity Restrictions for U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) Commissioned Corps Officers,
All the above information, as well as other detailed guidance materials, may be found at http://intranet.hhs.gov/ethics/ethics_topics/hatchact.html and https://osc.gov/pages/hatchact-affectsme.aspx . If you have questions, please contact your division’s ethics officials http://www.hhs.gov/ogc/contact/contacts.html