The Retired Officers Conflict of Interest Act of 2024 strengthens restrictions on military officers and retirees accepting employment, compensation, or payments from foreign governments. The bill prohibits active-duty service members from negotiating future employment with foreign governments and imposes a 30-month waiting period for recently retired officers with access to classified information, with an exception for allies including the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. It requires retired officers to report any foreign government employment for five years after retirement and mandates that both the Defense Department and State Department review employment offers to ensure they do not harm national security. Violators face civil penalties of up to $100,000 or the amount of compensation received, plus potential five-year bans from federal employment and access to classified information, though the President can appeal these penalties. The bill also requires the Defense Department to create a public online database of employment approvals within one year and directs the Comptroller General to review the effectiveness of these restrictions within two years.
Take Action
Your position
Add a comment
to comment on this bill.
Annotate the text
Highlight any passage on the Summary or Full Text tab to attach a note. Annotations appear on the Annotations tab.