Independent Counsel Act

Ethics in Government Act

Long title	An Act to establish certain Federal agencies, effect certain reorganizations of the Federal Government, to implement certain reforms in the operation of the Federal Government and to preserve and promote the integrity of public officials and institutions, and for other purposes.
Acronyms (colloquial)	EIGA
Nicknames	Ethics in Government Act of 1978
Enacted by	the 95th United States Congress
Effective	October 26, 1978
Citations
Public law	95-521
Statutes at Large	92 Stat. 1824
Codification
Titles amended	5 U.S.C.: Government Organization and Employees
U.S.C. sections created	Title 5-Appendix - Ethics
Legislative history
Introduced in the Senate as "Public Official Integrity Act" (S. 555) by Abraham A. Ribicoff on February 1, 1977 Committee consideration by Senate Governmental Affairs, Senate Judiciary Passed the Senate on June 27, 1977 (74–5) Passed the House on September 27, 1978 (in lieu of H.R. 1, passed 365–6) Reported by the joint conference committee on October 1978; agreed to by the Senate on October 7, 1978 (cleared) and by the House on October 12, 1978 (370–23) Signed into law by President Jimmy Carter on October 26, 1978
United States Supreme Court cases
Morrison v. Olson, April 26, 1988

The Ethics in Government Act of 1978 is a United States federal law that was passed in the wake of the Nixon Watergate scandal and the Saturday Night Massacre. It created mandatory, public disclosure of financial and employment history of public officials and their immediate family. It also created restrictions on lobbying efforts by public officials for a set period after leaving public office. Last, it created the U.S. Office of Independent Counsel, tasked with investigating government officials.

Title I requires men and women in the public service sector to fill out financial disclosure forms which include the sources and amounts of income, gifts, reimbursements, the identity and approximate value of property held and liabilities owed, transactions in property, commodities, and securities, and certain financial interests of a spouse or dependent.

The report must then be filed to the appropriate state officer of his or her state, and the committee charged with issues of ethics in his or her respective house of Congress. The President, Vice President, counsel appointed to the United States Department of Justice, and nominees to positions that require United States Senate confirmation must file with the Director of the Office of Government Ethics.

People that must file reports include, but are not limited to: the President, Vice President, employees and officers of the Executive Branch, Postmaster General, the Deputy Postmaster General, each Governor of the Board of Governors of the U.S. Postal Service and each officer or employee of the United States Postal Service or Postal Regulatory Commission.

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