SF 278 Financial Disclosure Form

[sidney]

Can anyone tell me if filling out a SF 278, financial disclosure, is normally required as part of the application and interview process or after receiving a job offer? Will SSA require one after the interview or after a job is offered?

[morgullord]

As an ALJ you will be doing financial disclosure statements annually, if I recall.

[morgullord]

A financial disclosure statement will be easy for me. Years ago I started out with nothing and I still have most of it.

[sidney]

OK, I guess my question was not all that direct. Has anyone out there had to fill out a SF 278, financial disclosure, as part of their post interview process? Is this a typical agency request after an interview?

[chris]

The SF 278 is required as part of the hiring process when you reach a certain salary level in federal employment. It's also required in some jobs regardless of salary. I was under the impression it is required of all ALJs. I imagine some agencies require all interviewees to sign one while others only require you to sign when you get an offer.

[watchfulwaiting]

I had to fill out an SF 278 for OMHA. They said it was for "pre-review" by their Office of General Counsel. They sent it to me after the interview, and they received the completed form the day before they offered me the job.

[Pixie]

You will have to fill out the financial disclosure form after you start with the agency, and annually thereafter. The first one is a bear to complete. Do it right the first time, save it and use it as a guide for the next year. Pix.

[sidney]

OK, great. I really appreciate all the information on the SF 278. It really was an absolute bear to fill out. I'm not complaining. I guess I'll be able to use it later if I ever do get an offer.

[aljsouth]

We do it every year. I did one in October when hired and then again the next spring (around april) which is the yearly time for this form.

Pixie is dead right. Save it! On paper. Then use it for the next year making any necessary changes. Read the instructions carefully. Your house is not reported and some other items as well. It is not a balance sheet. I was lucky since most of I disagreeets are in mutual funds, which make reporting easy. Look at the detailed instructions.

You have to list what you are owed from your last job. Since I was a state alj that was easy, back vacation. Apparently for private sector candidates it was not so easy.

[testtaker]

I just took a look at the disclosure form. Yikes. Hey, if I get the job, I don't care how long or burdensome the form is!

[counselor95]

The acceptance package I got said the form SF 278 was due within 30 days of appointment, to be sent to the RCALJ. Just to make sure I am interpreting this correctly, does this mean to wait to submit the SF 278 after I actually report to my ALJ duty station?

[judgegal]

Yes, counselor, take it with you, along with your 2007 tax return and do it on company time. Completing the form the first time is harder than the ALJ job. If tracking transactions is too much, you can attach statements and let them figure it out. Or, you can do what our presidential cnadidates probably do--have your accountant do it.

[aljsouth]

Mar 23, 2008 22:23:36 GMT -5 counselor95 said:

The acceptance package I got said the form SF 278 was due within 30 days of appointment, to be sent to the RCALJ. Just to make sure I am interpreting this correctly, does this mean to wait to submit the SF 278 after I actually report to my ALJ duty station?

It means 30 days from appointment which should be the Sunday before you report for the two week period at your hearing site before the 4 weeks training. We had to do it too,but turned it in at training. Do it carefully, AND KEEP A COPY. Not only because it might get lost by Region, but because you will find it a great help next April when you have to do it again.

[testtaker]

thought I'd revive this for us soon-to-be newbies. Wow, what a form! The packet I received last night was so thick. They want the SF-278 sent in within 30 days of our appointment, but they want everything else completed and sent in TWO WEEKS before we report to our duty station. So we basically have to have everything but the 278 out the door before July 4th. All I can say is, "Yikes - time to go get fingerprinted!"

[judicature]

Just a little advance warning, I was surprised to discover that under the "Assets Section" on the SF-278 I needed to come up with a present value for a vested pension (defined benefit plan). If your former employer will provide this for you, it will be a big help.

I had to come up with a way to calculate it myself.

[tdtksbp]

The package includes Withholding Certificates for state taxes and city taxes. These should be completed for only the work location and not residential, right? Since I will be living in KY and working in OH, I just want to make sure I did not need to list both.

[tdtksbp]

If we have no prior federal service, do we need to complete and return the Form 144?

[magbob]

tdtksbp- fwiw- please ask your accountant about this- way back when, I worked in nj - I live in ny- i had to file state taxes for both- i didn't pay double, but I definitely needed an accountant who knew what he was doing-
you don't want to be surprised at a later date

[nonamouse]

This form and many others are available through the GSA forms library on their website. The link for the SF 278 is below. You can download it either as a PDF or in another form for which they provide a software download on the same page. It will be much easier to make a few tweaks each year instead of filling in the entire thing each time.

www.gsa.gov/Portal/gsa/ep/formslibrary.do?viewType=DETAIL&formId=D8518389B77405A28525710700646745