Executive Order 12731: Principles of ethical conduct for Government officers and employees
Summary
EO 12731 is the 1990 revision of the government-wide ethics framework established in EO 12674. George H. W. Bush used it to supply the modified text, including principles of conduct and directions for implementing standards. The two instruments should be read as an amendment relationship, not as two competing sets of ethics rules from which an employee may choose.
Status: In effect. Yes. It modifies EO 12674 in its entirety, and current ethics regulations expressly cite the combined authority.
Key facts at a glance
| Signed | October 17, 1990 |
|---|---|
| President | George H. W. Bush |
| Federal Register | 55 FR 42547; published October 19, 1990 |
| Current label | In effect |
| Amended by | No amendment listed in the reviewed disposition; see later-law qualifications below |
| Related orders | EO 12674, EO 11222, EO 12565 |
| Checked | October 25, 2026 |
What it requires today
The modified principles address public trust, conflicting financial interests, nonpublic information, prohibited gifts, honest performance, unauthorized commitments, impartiality, misuse of office and federal property. Their application depends on implementing definitions and exceptions. A short principle is a starting point for analysis, not an exhaustive answer to a difficult gift or outside-employment question.
OGE is responsible for issuing government-wide conduct regulations after the specified consultation. Agencies can develop supplements through the prescribed process. A supplement must be identified and validly adopted; the mere existence of stricter rules at a different agency does not establish that the same restriction applies everywhere.
The modified framework also works alongside statutory disclosure and criminal conflict rules. A financial-disclosure filing does not automatically eliminate a conflict, and a general ethics principle does not alter the elements of a criminal offense. Employees should identify the precise applicable restriction and any authorized waiver or exception.
Who it affects
Executive-branch employees, agency ethics officials and OGE are the main subjects. Categories such as special government employees can have particular statutory treatment. Private contractors and the general public do not automatically become covered employees because they have dealings with a federal agency.
How it came about
EO 12674 supplied the original 1989 framework; EO 12731 modified it in October 1990. The official disposition describes modification in its entirety. This is why the 1990 instrument deserves a distinct guide while the 1989 guide remains the natural introduction to the combined framework.
What agencies did under it
OGE’s May 2024 modernization rule expressly cites EO 12674 as modified by EO 12731. Current 5 CFR part 2635 provides the detailed standards. This is positive regulatory evidence of continuing effect rather than a presumption based on the age of the order.
The modern regulations organize separate topics and contain definitions, exclusions and exceptions. For example, a gift analysis needs the source, occasion and relevant exception, while an impartiality question can involve different concepts from a criminal financial-conflict rule. The amendment’s principles do not collapse these analyses into one discretionary test.
The modified text’s emphasis on impartiality has practical consequences beyond an employee’s direct financial ownership. A matter involving a covered relationship can raise a question under the regulatory impartiality standards even when a criminal financial-conflict statute is not triggered. Conversely, the fact that an employee acted without an appearance problem does not excuse a separate statutory prohibition. Keeping those sources distinct helps readers identify the right advice and the right decision-maker.
For outside activities, employees need to consider government-wide restrictions and any applicable agency approval rule. An activity may raise issues of compensation, use of title, nonpublic information or conflicting duties. A blanket statement that all outside work is either permitted or forbidden cannot be derived from the principles. The current regulations and agency supplement identify which restrictions apply to the proposed conduct.
Advice from an agency ethics official is important because the operative facts can include an employee’s duties, relationships, financial interests and the particular matter involved. This guide explains the architecture rather than deciding an individual employee’s case. A training handout or an informal description of the principles should not be substituted for the applicable regulation where an exception or authorization is at issue.
The order’s direction concerning appearance is framed by applicable law and ethical standards. It is not a free-floating power to label any unpopular action an ethics violation. Current regulatory definitions and the reasonable-person perspective give content to that inquiry. That distinction protects both the public interest in impartial government and the need for a rule that employees can actually understand.
The 1990 modification should be cited accurately in institutional policies. A training page may shorten the reference to the 1989 order, but the underlying legal citation identifies it as modified. When comparing an old handbook with current regulations, identify whether the difference comes from the presidential amendment, later OGE rulemaking or an agency supplement. Those are three different sources of change. A claimed exception also needs a source: the broad principle of honest performance is not a substitute for a regulation expressly allowing a gift or authorizing participation in a matter. The practical value of the framework lies in directing employees to consistent standards and accountable advice, rather than leaving every office to invent a separate unwritten ethics code.
Implementation records: OGE modernization rule expressly citing both orders; Current conduct standards.
Amendments and family tree
EO 12731 modifies EO 12674; the earlier order’s revocation of EOs 11222 and 12565 is part of that combined history. A later administration’s separate ethics pledge has its own scope and status. Withdrawal of such a pledge should not be described as repeal of the government-wide conduct regulations without an actual source directed to those authorities.
Related guides: EO 12674.
Court cases
No court ruling specifically on EO 12731 was found in the official presidential, disposition and agency sources examined as of October 25, 2026. The status assessment for this instrument is: Yes. It modifies EO 12674 in its entirety, and current ethics regulations expressly cite the combined authority.
Common questions
Do the two ethics orders conflict?
The 1990 order supplies a modification of the 1989 instrument. The current citation is to EO 12674 as modified by EO 12731, not an employee’s choice between two separate rulebooks.
Are agency supplements allowed?
Yes, through the prescribed process. Check the actual supplement and its applicability rather than assuming that one agency’s restriction applies to every employee.
Does ethics disclosure resolve every conflict?
No. Disclosure, recusal, authorization and statutory prohibitions are distinct concepts. Filing a form does not automatically permit an otherwise prohibited participation.
Did a change to an ethics pledge repeal these standards?
A separate pledge must be examined separately. Current OGE regulations expressly retain the combined framework, so a pledge’s revocation is not sufficient evidence of its repeal.
Legal basis
The framework operates alongside OGE’s statutory responsibilities and federal conduct laws, including 5 U.S.C. 7301 and related ethics provisions. Current regulations and agency supplements supply operative detail. This guide does not replace agency ethics advice about an employee’s particular facts.
Further reading
Sources
Cite this page
EO Explained, “Executive Order 12731: Principles of ethical conduct for Government officers and employees”, checked October 25, 2026. https://eoexplained.com/historic-orders/historic-12731-principles-of-ethical-conduct-for-government-officers-and-employees. Include an access date when citing this dated account. For the presidential instrument itself, cite 55 FR 42547 and the official text.
Last checked
. EO 12731 was checked against its signed record, current disposition and cited implementation sources for the status and scope described above. Report an error or a later official source.