Bills Would Affirm Anti-Bias Laws Cover Sexual Orientation

Scott Bloch, who heads the Office of Special Counsel, differs with OPM on discrimination.. (By Lois Raimondo -- The Washington Post)

In an effort to clear up conflicting interpretations of civil service law, legislation has been introduced to provide protection for federal employees against discrimination based on sexual orientation.

Bills sponsored by Sen. Daniel K. Akaka (D-Hawaii) and Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Calif.) would affirm that the government's gay employees may appeal to the Merit Systems Protection Board and that the Office of Special Counsel may prosecute cases in which employees believe they have encountered bias, such as a supervisor who fires a worker because of his or her sexual orientation.

At issue are differing and legally complex views on civil service law that emerged shortly after President Bush took office and appointed Scott Bloch as the head of the Office of Special Counsel.

Bloch's agency investigates complaints from federal workers who allege unfair treatment by their superiors or their agencies. The merit board rules in cases brought by employees who are appealing major disciplinary action by their agencies.

The House and Senate bills would repudiate a stance taken by Bloch, who has said that, under the law, federal employees are protected from discrimination based on their conduct, such as an off-duty appearance in a gay pride celebration, but that the law does not extend to protections against discrimination based on sexual orientation.

Akaka and others, however, point out that the law has been interpreted by the Office of Personnel Management since 1980 as protecting federal employees against inquiries or personnel actions based on their sexual orientation.

Bloch, in turn, contends that is a policy statement by the OPM, while his office is chartered to enforce laws.

In a statement introducing the Senate bill, Akaka said, "We cannot allow one Administration official's opinion to undermine the merit system or the rights and protections of federal workers."

The legislation would affirm that Congress bans discrimination against federal employees and federal job applicants on the basis of their sexual orientation and would add it to the section of law that prohibits discrimination against federal employees on other grounds, such as gender, race and marital status.

Mall Tribute Draws Accolades

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There's nothing like setting up shop on the Mall to draw a crowd.

Organizers for Public Service Recognition Week estimate that 35,000 to 50,000 people visited the exhibits sponsored by federal agencies during the fest, which ended Sunday. They came from at least 35 states and more than two dozen nations, said the nonprofit Council for Excellence in Government, a chief sponsor of the public service salute.

About a half-dozen members of Congress were spotted in the crowds, including freshman Rep. John Sarbanes (D-Md.), who has taken a seat on the House federal workforce subcommittee. He checked out NASA's James Webb Space Telescope, a boat and helicopter used by Customs and Border Protection, a high-tech mobile field headquarters van used by the FBI, and a series of agency exhibits.

"This gathering is an incredible tribute to the federal workforce, and I didn't appreciate that they did it on this scale," Sarbanes said. "You walk through here, and you see a lot of agencies familiar to you and you see all these other ones that you had no idea about. Then you listen to what they do, and you realize how critical they are for the service they provide."

From his visit to the Mall, Sarbanes added: "You come away with a much better sense of the impact that the federal workforce is making, the level of commitment that they have to the jobs that they perform. You see a lot of the state-of-the-art equipment, which is something that people don't appreciate a lot."

Others who toured the Mall exhibits included John E. Potter, the postmaster general; Shana Dale, deputy administrator of NASA; Edward J. Weiler, director of the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center; Allen Weinstein, archivist of the United States; Charles F. Conner, deputy secretary of agriculture, and Michael J. Sullivan, acting director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Stephen Barr's e-mail address isbarrs@washpost.com.