The most important point to emphasize is that SGEs ARE Government employees, for purposes of the conflict of interest laws and ethics rules. It's crucial to distinguish SGEs both from Regular Government Employees (RGEs) and from individuals who are not Government employees at all (e.g., "interest group representatives" serving on advisory groups, or independent contractors).
These distinctions are important because SGEs are subject to less restrictive conflict of interest requirements and ethics rules than RGEs, but are subject to more restrictive requirements than non-employees, who generally are not covered by the conflict of interest laws at all.
Now, let's take a look at one of your obligations as an SGE: completing your financial disclosure report.