Public Citizen Applauds House Vote to Encourage Federal Workers to Watchdog Spending of Taxpayer Dollars
We applaud the House of Representatives for answering
the call on Wednesday for more meaningful transparency and
accountability in the federal spending bill. House lawmakers passed a
critical, bipartisan whistleblower protection amendment offered by
Reps. Todd Platts (R-Pa.) and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) that will
strengthen and expand protections for federal workers and contractors
who report waste, fraud and abuse. We strongly urge the Senate to
include the same commonsense whistleblower protections in its stimulus
spending legislation.
This is a true victory for taxpayers who will be
well-served if the final stimulus bill empowers hard-working federal
employees and contractors who are uniquely positioned to observe and
report if funds are mishandled. Workplace retaliation for reporting
wrongdoing is real and ruthless. That’s why we have long fought for
these critical protections.
The original Whistleblower Protection Act of 1989 has
become ineffective, worn down by obstructionist administrative policies
and a monopoly court that repeatedly left whistleblowers vulnerable and
without justice. The consequences of the gutting of this law have never
been more apparent as we suffer an economic crisis brought on by a
culture of secrecy in government and unregulated greed and corruption
on Wall Street.
The new whistleblower provisions should become law so
that federal whistleblowers will no longer fear intimidation and
retaliation for reporting wrongdoing. The whistleblower measures
overturn a series of activist court decisions and include consideration
for and protections of disclosures of possible wrongdoing made during
regular job duties; codify protections against retaliatory
investigations; allow for due process for security clearance revocation
– a favorite reprisal technique; extend specific protections to
federally funded scientists, as well as baggage screeners and other
Transportation Security Administration personnel; and end the monopoly
of the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals of appellate review, restoring
the right to an appeal in any appropriate U.S. court of appeals and
access to jury trials.
The new whistleblower protection measure originally was
championed by Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) and passed the House by a
vote of 331-94 in 2007, but eventually was stymied by Senate inaction.
Thanks largely to the support and leadership of House Speaker Nancy
Pelosi, as well as that of Reps. Platts, Van Hollen, Waxman, Bruce
Braley (D-Iowa), Chellie Pingree (D-Maine), House Oversight and
Government Reform Chairman Edolphus Towns (D-N.Y.), Homeland Security
Chairman Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) and the other representatives who
have spoken out in support of the measure, these effective protections
now can become the law of the land.
With our allies from a broad coalition of groups representing
millions of concerned individuals, Public Citizen will continue to
advocate for strong protections for federal workers and contractors so
they can effectively safeguard the public trust and taxpayer dollars.
It should not take incredible acts of courage to become a government
whistleblower, as it does now, when only the bravest civil servants
come forward to report waste, fraud and abuse. It’s time to end the era
of repression and ensure that all civil servants feel safe to do their
jobs and make our government more open and accountable to the American
people.