Restrictions on post-government employment Published Feb. 14, 2008 By Capt. Jason Smith SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. -- Seeking or contemplating private employment after leaving the military is known in the world of government ethics as post-government employment. Post-government employment is controlled by federal statutes, regulations and Air Force Instructions. There are rules that only apply to those who are involved in procurement, or acquiring goods and services from private companies, and rules that apply to everyone. There are many more rules for those who are personally and substantially involved in procurement, and the rules are often complex. The best test of whether someone is personally and substantially involved in procurement is whether or not they are required to file an annual financial disclosure. These individuals must be disqualified from duties relating to a company before seeking employment with that company or responding to that company's offer for employment. The disqualification continues until all potential for employment with the company ends. Personnel based in the continental U.S. are authorized up to 20 days of Permissive TDY for post-government job or house hunting. This time may not be used to work in a job. Employees may work during terminal leave, but must first have an approved off-duty employment request using AF Form 3902. If the company offers reimbursement for meals, lodging, transportation or other benefits in connection with bona-fide employment discussions, servicemembers may accept these benefits as long as there are no disqualifying military duties and the offered benefits are customarily provided to people being interviewed by the company. When interviewing with companies, Airmen are strictly prohibited from disclosing any non-public information, which companies may attempt to solicit to further their own private interests. If accepting employment with a company and they ask for representation before a federal agency, the general rule (applicable only to military officers and civilian employees) is that Airmen are not permitted to do so while still a federal employee. If military duties involve financial interests of a company and serving as procuring contracting officer, source selection authority, source selection evaluation board member, chief of a financial or technical evaluation team, program manager, deputy program manager, administrative contracting officer or if the servicemember made a significant decision on a contract over $10 million, there is an one-year ban from receiving compensation from that company. A legal opinion is available upon request from the ethics counselor of whether this ban may apply to individuals. Also, for any matter that any officer or civilian employee participated in personally and substantially while employed by the DoD, they are forever banned from making an appearance before or communicating with any federal employee with the intent to influence that employee regarding that same particular matter. The rules that govern post-government employment are vast and complex, and whether a particular rule applies to someone is usually fact specific. For this reason, it is always best to consult a local ethics counselor before embarking on any post-government employment journey. For more information, contact the Scott Legal Office ethics counselor at 256-3542.