Page Reader AI | Sen. Warren Introduces Bill to Tighten Ethics Standards for Musk and Other Special Government Employees

Sen. Warren Introduces Bill to Tighten Ethics Standards for Musk and Other Special Government Employees | The Epoch Times

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Proposed Legislation

Senator Elizabeth Warren introduced a bill to tighten ethics standards for special government employees (SGEs), including Elon Musk. The bill mandates stricter conflict-of-interest and disclosure rules for SGEs, applying standard ethics rules starting from the 61st day of their government service. It requires the Office of Government Ethics to approve any conflict-of-interest waivers and makes these waivers public. The bill also allows public access to certain SGE financial disclosures and mandates the Office of Personnel Management to maintain a list of designated SGEs.

Musk's Role and Criticism

The legislation is prompted by Musk's advisory role to President Trump and the receipt of billions in government contracts and subsidies by his companies. While Musk claims that the scrutiny surrounding his role prevents him from influencing the government, Democratic officials have criticized his actions, including his involvement in dismantling the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Political Landscape

The bill has several co-sponsors and a similar bill was introduced in the House. However, its passage through a Republican-controlled Congress and potential presidential veto remain significant challenges. The White House has yet to respond publicly to earlier concerns regarding Musk's continued government service beyond the 130-day limit for SGEs.

Key Points

Stricter ethics rules for SGEs
Focus on transparency and conflict-of-interest prevention
Criticism of Musk's role and potential conflicts of interest
Political hurdles to the bill's passage

The bill would make these employees subject to stricter conflict-of-interest and disclosure rules.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) has announced new legislation that will subject Elon Musk and other “special government employees” (SGEs) to the same ethics rules as other federal employees.

Warren said the legislation was prompted by Musk’s close advisory access to President Donald Trump, coupled with the fact that Musk’s companies have been the recipients of billions in government contracts and subsidies for over a decade.

Her proposed legislation aims to prevent conflicts of interest by preventing SGEs from communicating with government agencies whose work overlaps with their business interests.

The bill “would apply standard ethics rules to SGEs starting on the SGE’s 61st day in government,” would require the Office of Government Ethics to sign off on any conflict-of-interest waivers issued to SGEs, and make such waivers public.

A fact sheet on the bill states that “While most ethics laws for regular federal employees apply to SGEs, some apply more loosely and others do not apply at all.”

It would also allow public access to some SGE financial disclosures and require the Office of Personnel Management to keep a list of which federal workers are designated as SGEs.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), and Sens. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), and Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) are co-sponsors.

Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.) has introduced a similar bill in the House.

The legislation would need to pass both chambers of a Republican-controlled Congress, and survive an inevitable veto when it reached the desk of President Donald Trump.

Musk, a tech mogul and owner of Tesla, X, and SpaceX, was designated an SGE by Trump at the start of his second term. He spearheaded the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which has been tasked by the president with reducing the size of the federal bureaucracy, and eliminating “waste, fraud, and abuse” in government spending.

Musk has said he is being watched too closely to attempt to influence the government to advance his corporate interests.

“Everything I do is under extreme scrutiny ... so even if I wanted to I couldn’t get away with it,” he said during an interview on FOX News last month.

He also said that his government work has hurt his businesses.

“My companies are suffering because I’m in the government,” he said.

While supporters of the Trump administration’s effort to cut costs and tackle the national debt applaud DOGE’s work, the agency and Musk have faced criticisms from Democratic officials, a wave of protests, and dozens of lawsuits.

His frequent posts on X, highlighting DOGE’s findings of government waste and hinting that agencies like the U.S. Agency for International Development should be shuttered, have drawn fire, literally. Tesla factories and vehicles have become frequent targets of arson and vandalism in recent months.

Federal regulations state that SGEs may only serve under that designation for 130 days during any 1-year period. After that period ends, their status as SGEs is reevaluated, and they may become subject to stricter disclosure and ethics standards.

Over 70 House Democrats signed an April 9 letter seeking assurance from Trump that Musk would indeed leave the government after his term expires. So far, the White House has given no public reply on the matter.

Warren, along with other Democratic lawmakers, has been a perennial critic of Musk, especially his work to dismantle the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and transfer its functions to other agencies. The bureau, which Warren helped create in 2011, works to regulate financial entities like credit card companies and lending agencies.

Musk has not publicly responded to Warren’s proposed legislation as of publication time.