Recently introduced legislation would restrict partisan political activity of certain federal employees who are not currently covered by the Hatch Act.
The new bill (S. 4656) would include Offices of Inspectors General (OIGs) on the list of executive agencies whose employees are “further restricted” from engaging in partisan political activity and therefore subject to the Hatch Act. It was introduced by Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) on July 10, 2024. As of the time of this writing, Senator Gary Peters (D-MI) is the sole co-sponsor.
A statement from Grassley’s office said that he relies heavily on agency Inspectors General to carry out Congress’s oversight responsibilities. He said, “OIGs are the independent watchdogs protecting Americans’ taxpayer dollars and fighting waste, fraud and abuse in the executive branch. Their efficacy depends on their objectivity. Our commonsense, bipartisan bill would seal any gaps that might allow for political influence to creep in and skew OIGs’ invaluable work.”
What is the Hatch Act?
The Hatch Act limits the political activity of federal employees and some state, District of Columbia, and local government employees who work with federally funded programs.
The law’s purpose is to ensure federal programs are not administered politically, protect federal employees from political coercion in the workplace, and ensure federal employees are promoted based on merit instead of political affiliation or allegiance to a candidate or political party.
Enthusiasm for a candidate or an issue will overcome individuals who never saw, never read about, or do not remember the periodic announcements issued regarding the Hatch Act and the impact it can have on a federal employee.
The most critical portions of the law are found in 5 U.S. Code § 7323 and § 7324. The Hatch Act means that a federal employee may not “use his official authority or influence to interfere with or affect the result of an election.”
The Hatch Act is often enforced against career federal employees but rarely against senior political appointees.
What Are Prohibited Political Activities for Federal Employees?
Further restricted federal executive branch employees are prohibited from engaging in partisan political management or partisan political campaigns. “Political activity” refers to any activity directed at the success or failure of a political party, partisan political group, or candidate in a partisan race.
According to the Office of Special Counsel (OSC), these are some examples of prohibited political activity for further restricted federal employees:
- Wearing partisan political buttons or T-shirts or displaying such items in offices while on duty, in any federal room or building, while wearing a uniform or official insignia, or using any federally owned or leased vehicle
- Making political contributions to a partisan political party, candidate for partisan political office, or partisan political group while on duty, in any federal room or building, while wearing a uniform or official insignia, or using any federally owned or leased vehicle
- Having a screen saver on a work computer or picture in offices with a political message (i.e. a campaign sign or logo)
- Being a candidate for nomination or election to public office in a partisan election
- Taking an active part in partisan political campaigns or partisan political management (i.e. holding office in political clubs or parties)
Federal employees must also be careful when using social media to ensure they do not violate the Hatch Act. Guidance from OSC offers some examples of allowed and prohibited uses of social media for federal employees:
- Federal employees may display campaign logos or candidate photographs as their cover or header photo at the top of their social media profiles on their personal Facebook or X accounts.
- Federal employees may display campaign logos or candidate photographs as their profile pictures on their personal Facebook or X accounts. However, because a profile picture accompanies most actions on social media, employees would not be permitted, while on duty or in the workplace, to post, “share,” “tweet,” or “retweet” any items on Facebook or X, since each such action would show their support for a partisan group or candidate in a partisan race, even if the content of the action is not about those entities.
- “Further restricted employees”—similar to all federal employees—may “like” a social media post from a partisan group or candidate in a partisan race and may comment on such an entity’s social media pages when not at work. Note: No federal employee may “like” a post soliciting partisan political contributions at any time. Most further restricted employees work in law enforcement and intelligence agencies.
