Whistleblower Change Urged

Several House members active in civil service issues have asked House negotiators in a conference on the Defense Department fiscal 2007 authorization bill (HR-5122) to accept a Senate amendment to that measure that would strengthen whistleblower protections in several ways. That language includes a guarantee of protection no matter to whom a disclosure is made, and the option to appeal cases to federal appellate courts other than the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals—which currently has exclusive jurisdiction and which handed down the rulings that whistleblower rights supporters contend have unnecessarily narrowed protections of those who disclose fraud, waste and abuse.