Feds to Furloughed Employees: Checking Gov't Email During Shutdown a "Criminal Offense"

    A notice posted on the website of the Small Business Administration (SBA) warns idled employees that it is a "criminal offense" to use federal resources during the furlough period, including accessing government email accounts.  Although the notice is directed to SBA employees, presumably the directive applies to furloughed employees of all government agencies.  The full notice reads as follows:

Please be advised, during the furlough period, non-excepted employees will no longer be permitted to utilize SBA email or other federal resources. Please know that use of federal resources while on furlough status is prohibited by law and is considered a criminal offense. Employees must NOT represent the agency in any formal or informal capacity.

    The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) issued a document on October 4, 2013, entitled "Guidance for Shutdown Furloughs" for all government employees.  The guidance does not specifically address the email issue, and makes no mention of "criminal offenses."  The closest the document comes to addressing the issue appears under a section entitled "Working during Furlough" (page 3):

1. May an employee volunteer to do his or her job on a nonpay basis during a shutdown furlough?  

A.  No.  Unless otherwise authorized by law, an agency may not accept the voluntary services of an employee.  (See 31 U.S.C. 1342.) [Link added]

     During the lead up to a possible government shutdown in 2011, the SBA released guidance for its employees in preparation.  The website FedSmith published the guidance that was sent in by one of its SBA readers, and it included almost verbatim the email warning that is currently on the SBA website.


Note: A version of this article first appeared at The Weekly Standard.

"Whole-of-Government" Commitment: And This is a Good Thing?

    Today, an article appeared on the White House blog with the grandiose title "A Whole-of-Government Commitment to Inclusive Entrepreneurial Growth." The post begins:

Entrepreneurs and small businesses are the engines of American innovation and our economic success, and President Obama is committed to helping them grow and prosper. Our nation’s small businesses employ over 60 million Americans, or half of the private sector workforce. 

    The article goes on to list a multitude of government resources available to entrepreneurs and small business owners, but the tone of the piece is set early with this [emphasis mine]:

Last year, President Obama spoke with his Cabinet about how every Federal agency has a role to play in promoting the success of American entrepreneurs[.]

    Every Federal agency?  All 479 of them?  Including the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry?  The President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports?  Even the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation?  The disturbing answer is probably, yes, although a cynic might substitute "thwarting" for "promoting" in the sentence above.

    I realize the Small Business Administration has been around for decades (since 1953,) but the level of government involvement in the creation, direction, and nurturing of small businesses has been taken to a whole new level by the Obama administration.  One of the websites featured in the White House blog article is business.usa.gov.  Based on its interface, it might as well be named Starting a Small Business for Dummies:

    If that's not enough, the About Us page of the website spells out the administration's vision of small business in America, 2013:

To strengthen America's competitiveness in the global economy, businesses will need to be equipped with the best tools and information available to support innovation and job growth in the 21st century. BusinessUSA is your front door to all the government has to offer...

    "All the government has to offer."  I fully expect the Obama administration to soon throw all pretense to the wind and name its next website "youdidntbuildthat.gov".  Hey, maybe I should register that domain name now!  I wonder where I could find out how to do that?