By Joe Davidson
Wednesday, October 29, 2008

With John McCain and Barack Obama waging a fierce battle for America's top prize, it's easy to get caught up in the excitement of this year's presidential election.

But for public employees, getting too involved can have serious consequences -- like suspension or dismissal.

Federal workers, and many state and local government employees, are covered by the Hatch Act. It restricts, but does not prohibit, political activity by workers.

This year, complaints about violations of the act are skyrocketing.

"I can say yes . . . absolutely," there are more complaints, said Ana Galindo-Marrone, chief of the Hatch Act unit of the Office of Special Counsel.

The unofficial tab for fiscal 2008 indicates that her office received 445 Hatch Act complaints, she said. That compares with 282 the year before. "Going back through fiscal year 2003, the highest we've ever received is 299 cases. . . . This year is unprecedented."

One recently resolved case involved a NASA employee who used his work e-mail account to send partisan political messages. He also posted partisan comments during work time on his blog. He was suspended for 180 days without pay.

After a Hatch Act unit investigation, an employee in the Washtenaw County, Mich., prosecutor's office resigned in July so he could run for partisan office. And a Navy employee withdrew as a candidate in a partisan Borough Council election after the special counsel's office laid down the law.

The act gets mixed reviews from federal workers.

Peter Winkler, a National Labor Relations Board attorney, likes it. He says its restrictions are "a small price to pay for the neutrality of the government." And he's glad employees are protected "from harassment either by political appointees or overzealous supervisory personnel."

He appreciates the strenuous effort his agency makes to inform employees about the act's provisions. It distributes memos outlining what is permitted and what is not and senior executives must watch a film on the act as part of their training.

But Harry Spafford, a computer specialist at the Navy's Trident Refit Facility in Kings Bay, Ga., has a starkly different view. "My right under the Constitution is to express my views and concerns," he said. "But as a federal employee, I don't have the right to do that because of the Hatch Act."

John Griffin, a National Federation of Federal Employees business representative for the area from North Carolina to Texas, agrees. The act discourages well-qualified people from running for elective office and supervisors impose it arbitrarily on workers not trained in its provisions, he added.

"To me, the Hatch Act should be abolished in its entirety," he said.

He shouldn't hold his breath waiting for that.

The law has been around since 1939, but policies restricting political activity go back much further. Thomas Jefferson's administration issued an order that said "it is expected that [federal workers] will not attempt to influence the votes of others nor take part in the business of electioneering."

Now the business of electioneering is not completely out of bounds. "While federal employees are still prohibited from seeking public office in partisan elections, most employees are free to work, while off duty, on the partisan campaigns of candidates of their choice," says guidance from the Office of Special Counsel.

District government employees face the same Hatch Act restrictions as federal workers. Penalties range from a 30-day suspension to dismissal. State and local employees who work in federally funded programs have similar limitations, but the only penalty for them is dismissal, with a prohibition against employment with a state or local agency in the same state for 18 months.

Galindo-Marrone couldn't explain why the punishments differ so much, except to say that's what Congress passed "and the legislative history doesn't really provide much insight into the difference."

For more information about the Hatch Act, go tohttp://osc.gov/hatchact.htm. Contact Joe Davidson atfederaldiary@washpost.com.