Why must I file this report?
You have been designated by your agency to file the Confidential Financial Disclosure Report to avoid involvement in a real or apparent conflict of interest. Your agency made this decision based on the duties and responsibilities of your position.
How is the information that I report to be used?
The purpose of this report is to assist employees and their agencies in avoiding conflicts between official duties and private financial interests or affiliations. Your agency ethics official will use the information that you provide to determine whether any potential conflicts exist.
Who will look at my report?
The primary person who will be reviewing this form is your agency ethics official. It is possible that a paralegal or an ethics specialist assisting the ethics official in reviewing the OGE Form 450s that come to their office will look at your form. Some agencies also require the filer's supervisor to review the form and sign it. You will need to ask your ethics office whether you should send your form to your supervisor. The Privacy Act Statement lists other limited circumstances and persons who may have access to your report.
There are 2 versions of the form available on the OGE website. Which form should I fill out?
The 508 compliant version of the form is one that is coded so that a person with a disability, such as a vision impairment, is able to fill out the form with the use of additional software. Both versions of the form ask the employee for the same information. Most employees will fill out the version of the form that automatically generates continuation pages. If you need additional space to report your information, you simply click on the “Add Page” button at the bottom of certain pages. The 508 compliant version cannot automatically generate continuation pages. To add pages to this version, employees must open a new file for each additional page they add.
Even after reading the FAQ page and taking the on-line training, I still have some questions. Whom do I contact for assistance?
The best person to contact is your agency ethics official. Consult your agency directory or your agency web page to locate that individual.
May I digitally sign the form and send it electronically to my ethics office (or my supervisor, if required)?
Most filers may not submit forms with digital signatures. A filer may not submit, and an ethics official may not accept, a form with a digital signature, unless the agency has an electronic filing system that complies with the requirements of OGE DAEOgram DO-07-014 (HTML) dated May 6, 2007. The form was designed with the capability to accept digital signatures to accommodate those agencies that have approved electronic filing systems. Only a few agencies currently have these systems. Check with your agency ethics official to find out whether your agency has established an electronic filing system that complies with the DAEOgram.
Where do I send my form after I fill it out?
Contact your agency ethics official to find out where to send your form. Do not send your form to OGE. Each agency has established procedures for the submission of the form. Normally, it will go directly to your agency ethics official, or if your agency requires that your supervisor review the report, to your supervisor.