Whistleblower Protection Act

Whistleblower Protection Act

The Whistleblower Protection Act of 1989 is a United States federal law that protects federal whistleblowers, or persons who work for the government who report agency misconduct. A federal agency violates the Whistleblower Protection Act if it takes or fails to take (or threatens to take or fail to take) a personnel action with respect to any employee or applicant because of any disclosure of information by the employee or applicant that he or she reasonably believes evidences a violation of a law, rule or regulation; gross mismanagement; gross waste of funds; an abuse of authority; or a substantial and specific danger to public health or safety.

The law created the Office of Special Counsel (OSC), charged with investigating complants from bureaucrats that they were punished after reportng to Congress about waste, fraud, or abuse in their agencies. The OSC has jurisdiction over allegations of whistleblower retaliation for made by employees of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Whistleblower Protection Act of 2007

The U.S. Supreme Court dealt a major blow to government whistleblowers when, in the case of Garcetti v. Ceballos, 04-473, it ruled that government employees do not have protection from retaliation by their employers under the First Amendment of the Constitution when they speak pursuant to their official job duties. [ [http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2006/05/30/national/w132119D75.DTL&type=politics High Court Trims Whistleblower Rights] ]

The free speech protections of the First Amendment have long been used to shield whistleblowers from retaliation by whistleblower attorneys. In response to the Supreme Court decision, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 985, the Whistleblower Protection Act of 2007. President George W. Bush, citing national security concerns, promised to veto the bill should it be enacted into law by Congress. The Senate's version of the Whistleblower Protection Act (S. 274), which has significant bipartisan support, was approved by the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs on June 13, 2007. However, it has yet to reach a vote by Senate as a hold has been placed on the bill by Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK). [ [http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Whistleblower_Protection_Enhancement_Act_of_2007 Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2007 - Congresspedia] ] According to the National Whistleblower Center, Coburn's hold on S. 274 has been done to further President Bush's agenda. [ [http://www.capwiz.com/whistleblowers/issues/alert/?alertid=9904676 Take Action Now] ]

ee also

*Whistleblower

References

External links

* [http://www.sec.gov/eeoinfo/whistleblowers.htm "Whistleblower Protection Act Information."] "U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission". January 30, 2004. Retrieved May 3, 2007
* [http://meritsystemprotectionboard.com/whistleblower.htm FAQs for filing a whistleblower appeal with the Merit Systems Protection Board and Office of Special Counsel.]
* [http://meritsystemprotectionboard.com/osc11.pdf OSC Form 11 for filing a whistleblower retaliation complaint.]


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