The House could vote this week to approve legislation (HR-3281) designed to strengthen protections for federal employees who disclose fraud, waste and misconduct, by broadening the legal definitions of what is considered whistleblowing. The measure is designed to override court decisions that have limited what types of disclosures are deemed to be protected from retaliation, by stating that any such disclosures are protected, for example regardless of whether the disclosure is made in the course of ordinary job duties, or to a supervisor, or whether someone else already has made a similar disclosure. The measure also would lower the standard of proof applied when deciding whether the employee had a reasonable belief that the disclosures were true. Sponsors are trying to get the bill enacted before Congress finishes work for this year, possibly by combining it with similar legislation (S-2628) that has passed the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee.