Like a spring flower that pops open every year, the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act has been reintroduced in the Senate.
Legislation to bolster protection for government employees who bring attention to waste, fraud and abuse, sometimes at the risk of ruining their careers, has been around for almost a dozen years.
It came within a whisker of becoming law in December, until Congress once again disappointed whistleblowers and their advocates.
Now, a bipartisan group of senators, led by Daniel K. Akaka (D-Hawaii) and Susan Collins (R-Maine), has reintroduced the bill, largely the same as previous versions except that “of 2011” is attached to the title.
According to a statement from the senators, the legislation:
lclarifies that “any” disclosure of gross waste or mismanagement, fraud, abuse or illegal activity could be protected under the law, but not disagreements over legitimate policy decisions;
lextends coverage and other nondiscrimination and anti-retaliatory laws to all employees of the Transportation Security Administration;
lclarifies that whistleblowers may disclose evidence of censorship of scientific or technical information under the same standards that apply to disclosures of other kinds of waste, fraud and abuse;
lallows jury trials under certain circumstances for workers who take legal action against agencies that allegedly retaliate against employees who expose wrongdoing;
lestablishes protections for the intelligence community modeled on existing whistleblower protections for FBI employees;
lclarifies that employees protected by the legislation could make protected classified disclosures to Congress using the same process as intelligence community employees;
lestablishes a process within the executive branch for review if a security clearance is allegedly denied or revoked because of a protected whistleblower disclosure;
lestablishes whistleblower protection ombudsmen to educate agency personnel about whistleblower rights.
In the statement, Akaka said: “This bill strengthens the Whistleblower Protection Act and restores congressional intent that whistleblowers be protected from retaliation. This protection is crucial to efforts to improve government management, cut the deficit, protect public health and safety, and to secure the nation.”
Collins agreed: “Congress has consistently supported the principle that federal employees should not be subject to prior restraint or punishment from disclosing wrongdoing. This should give federal workers the peace of mind that if they speak out, they will be protected.”
If it passes.
Training bill
Akaka, joined by three Northern Virginia congressmen, introduced a bill this week designed to improve the training of federal supervisors. This legislation also has been around for years, although not as long as the whistleblower measure.
The training bill, which is supported by government management associations, labor unions and good-government groups, would require employees to receive training within a year of being appointed to a supervisory position and once every three years after that.
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