§ 7.3 Political activities.

(a) In this section:

(1) Contribution means any gift, subscription, loan, advance, deposit of money, allotment of money, or anything of value given or transferred by one person to another, including in cash, by check, by draft, through a payroll deduction or allotment plan, by pledge or promise, whether or not enforceable, or otherwise.

(2) Election includes a primary, special, and general election.

(3) Employee means an individual who occupies a position in the Government Accountability Office.

(4) Employer or employing authority means the Comptroller General, his principals, or an employee's supervisor.

(5) Federal workplace means any place, site, installation, building, room, or facility in which any department or agency conducts official business, including, but not limited to, office buildings, forts, arsenals, navy yards, post offices, vehicles, ships, and aircraft.

(6) Nonpartisan election means—

(i) An election at which none of the candidates is to be nominated or elected as representing a political party any of whose candidates for presidential elector received votes in the last preceding election at which presidential electors were selected; and

(ii) An election involving a question or issue which is not specifically identified with a political party, such as a constitutional amendment, referendum, approval of a municipal ordinance, or any question or issue of a similar character.

(7) Partisan when used as an adjective refers to a political party.

(8) Political fund means any fund, organization, political action committee, or other entity that, for purposes of influencing in any way the outcome of any partisan election, receives or expends money or anything of value or transfers money or anything of value to any other fund, political party, candidate, organization, political action committee, or other entity.

(9) Political party means a national political party, a state political party, and an affiliated organization.

(b) All employees are free to engage in political activity to the widest extent consistent with the restrictions imposed by law and this section. Each employee retains the right to—

(1) Register and vote in any election;

(2) Express his opinion as an individual privately and publicly on political subjects and candidates;

(3) Display a political picture, sticker, badge, or button;

(4) Participate in the nonpartisan activities of a civic, community, social, labor, or professional organization, or of a similar organization;

(5) Be a member of a political party or other political organization and participate in its activities to the extent consistent with law;

(6) Attend a political convention, rally, fund-raising function, or other political gathering;

(7) Sign a political petition as an individual;

(8) Make a financial contribution to a political fund, political party, or organization;

(9) Take an active part, as an independent candidate, or in support of an independent candidate in a partisan election covered by paragraphs (h), (i), and (j) of this section;

(10) Take an active part, as a candidate or in support of a candidate, in a nonpartisan election;

(11) Be politically active in connection with a question which is not specifically identified with a political party, such as a constitutional amendment, referendum, approval of a municipal ordinance or any other question or issue of a similar character;

(12) Serve as an election judge or clerk, or in a similar position to perform nonpartisan duties as prescribed by state or local law; and

(13) Otherwise participate fully in public affairs, except as prohibited by law, in a manner which does not materially compromise his/her efficiency or integrity as an employee or the neutrality, efficiency, or integrity of the agency.

(c) Paragraph (b) of this section does not authorize an employee to engage in political activity in violation of law, while on duty. The Comptroller General may prohibit or limit the participation of an employee or class of employees in an activity permitted by paragraph (b) of this section, if participation in the activity would interfere with the efficient performance of official duties, or create a conflict or apparent conflict of interests.

(d) An employee may not use his/her official authority or influence for the purpose of interfering with or affecting the result of an election.

(e) An employee may not take an active part in political management or in a political campaign, except as permitted by this section.

(f) Activities prohibited by paragraph (e) of this section include but are not limited to—

(1) Serving as an officer of a political party, a member of a national, state, or local committee of a political party, an officer or member of a committee of a partisan political club, or being a candidate for any of these positions;

(2) Organizing or reorganizing a political party organization or political club;

(3) Directly or indirectly soliciting, receiving, collecting, handling, disbursing, or accounting for assessments, contributions, or other funds for a partisan political purpose;

(4) Organizing, selling tickets to, promoting, or actively participating in a fund-raising activity of a candidate in a partisan election or of a political party, or political club;

(5) Taking an active part in managing the political campaign of a candidate for public office in a partisan election or a candidate for political party office;

(6) Becoming a candidate for, or campaigning for, an elective public office in a partisan election;

(7) Soliciting votes in support of or in opposition to a candidate for public office in a partisan election or a candidate for political party office;

(8) Acting as recorder, watcher, challenger, or similar officer at the polls on behalf of a political party or a candidate in a partisan election;

(9) Driving voters to the polls on behalf of a political party or a candidate in a partisan election;

(10) Endorsing or opposing a candidate for public office in a partisan election or a candidate for political party office in a political advertisement, a broadcast, campaign, literature, or similar material;

(11) Serving as a delegate, alternate, or proxy to a political party convention;

(12) Addressing a convention, caucus, rally, or similar gathering of a political party in support of or in opposition to a partisan candidate for public office or political party office;

(13) Initiating or circulating a partisan nominating petition;

(14) Soliciting, collecting, or receiving a contribution at or in the federal workplace from any employee for any political party, political fund, or other partisan recipient;

(15) Paying a contribution at or in the federal workplace to any employee who is the employer or employing authority of the person making the contribution for any political party, political fund, or other partisan recipient; and

(16) Soliciting, paying, collecting, or receiving a contribution at or in the federal workplace from any employee for any political party, political fund, or other partisan recipient.

(g) Paragraph (f) of this section does not apply to—

(1) The Comptroller General or the Deputy Comptroller General;

(2) An employee who resides in a municipality or other political subdivision designated under paragraph (i), subject to the conditions of paragraphs (i) and (j) of this section; or

(3) An employee who works on an irregular or occasional basis, on the days that he/she performs no services.

(h) Paragraph (f) of this section does not prohibit activity in political management or in a political campaign by an employee in connection with—

(1) A nonpartisan election, or

(2) Subject to the conditions and limitations established by the Comptroller General, an election held in a municipality or political subdivision designated under paragraph (i) of this section.

(i) For the purpose of paragraph (h)(2) of this section, the Comptroller General may designate a municipality or political subdivision in Maryland or Virginia in the immediate vicinity of the District of Columbia or a municipality in which the majority of voters are employed by the Government of the United States, when the Comptroller General determines that, because of special or unusual circumstances, it is in the domestic interest of employees to participate in local elections. The following municipalities and political subdivisions have been designated:

(j) An employee who resides in a municipality or political subdivision listed in paragraph (i) of this section may take an active part in political management and political campaigns in connection with partisan elections for local offices of the municipality or political subdivision, subject to the following limitations:

(1) Participation in politics shall be as an independent candidate or on behalf of, or in opposition to, an independent candidate.

(2) Candidacy for, and service in, an elective office shall not result in neglect of or interference with the performance of the duties of the employee or create a conflict, or apparent conflict, of interests.

[53 FR 26421, July 13, 1988]