Ethics: Plain Talk About IRS Ethics and Conduct

Overview

The course provides a concise overview of the most common conduct and ethical issues faced by IRS employees. This is based on an internal IRS directive entitled “Plain Talk About Ethics and Conduct”. The document provides guidance to IRS staff at all levels on the agency’s ethical standards. All IRS employees are subject to the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) Standards of Ethical Conduct. The OGE Standards, which are applicable to all executive branch employees, are uniform ethics regulations covering such topics as gifts between employees, conflicts of interest, appearances of a lack of impartiality, and outside employment. Participants will walk away with an increased situational awareness of the ethical requirements of IRS employees, and how practitioners can avert or prevent any potential ethical problems before they occur when communicating or interacting with IRS officials at any level. This event may be a rebroadcast of a live event and the instructor will be available to answer your questions during the event.

Highlights

The major topics that will be covered in this class include:

Introduction: What is the IRS "Plain Talk" Document?
Office of Government Ethics (OGE) Standards
Key Principles of Ethical Conduct
Gifts from Outside Sources
Gifts from Within the Agency
When Gifts Cannot be Accepted from Outside Sources
Conflicts of Interest
Outside Activities and Employment
Misuse Of Position
Using and Accounting for Office Time
Using Government Property
Matters Concerning Personal Activities
Rules Concerning Employee Conduct and Official Activities
Who Can Help Within IRS

Prerequisites

None

Designed For

Practitioners who want a basic, non-technical understanding of IRS principles of ethical conduct, and general guidance on how to prevent any potential ethical problems before they occur when communicating or interacting with IRS officials at any level.

Objectives

After attending this presentation you will be able to...

Recognize at least 12 key principles of IRS Ethical Conduct
Recall at least 10 types of gifts that are okay to accept
Identify at at least six outside activities that are NOT permitted
Point out 12 categories of government property that may only be used for authorized purposes
Summarize at least two rules that relate to gambling and the use of controlled substances