An employee of the U.S. Department of Energy in Washington state is giving up her federal job after admitting to conducting an unauthorized tour for a political candidate.
The U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC) said in a Thursday press release the DOE staffer admitted violating the Hatch Act and relinquished her post Jan. 4 as part of a settlement agreement. The employee, not identified in the document, will be debarred from federal employment for three years.
According to OSC, the employee provided a guided tour of a “radioactive waste treatment plant in Washington State” to a candidate for U.S. Congress. This apparently refers to the Waste Treatment Plant being built by Bechtel National at the Hanford Site.
The congressional candidate, also not identified in the release, evidently sought the tour to show her familiarity with the project, according to the press release. The tour was not open to the general public. The candidate “repeatedly” sought such a tour, but DOE denied the requests over concerns about violating the Hatch Act.
The Hatch Act, passed in 1939 and updated over the years, is intended to limit partisan political activities – such as campaigning, distributing petitions, and publishing advocacy posts on social media – by federal employees and others working on government projects.
The tour prompted an OSC complaint on Nov. 8 to the Merit Systems Protection Board, calling the action a flagrant violation of the Hatch Act given that the DOE employee knew the agency had previously denied the candidate’s requests. In addition, the employee was warned about potential Hatch Act ramifications days before the tour took place.
Information and photographs from the tour were subsequently used in the candidate’s campaign, according to OSC.
An Energy Department spokesman declined comment and directed press inquiries to the Office of Special Counsel. A spokesman for that office declined to identify the DOE employee or the congressional candidate who received the tour.
Once an employee has already resigned, by statute, the only other penalties OSC can pursue are a debarment of up to 5 years and/or a civil penalty of up to $1,000, said OSC spokesman Zachary Kurz.
