Whistleblower Measure Advances

Legislation designed to overturn federal court opinions of recent years that effectively limited what types of disclosures are considered protected under whistleblower law has passed the House Government Reform Committee (HR-1317). The legislation would include as a protected disclosure by a federal employee any lawful disclosure an employee or applicant reasonably believes is credible evidence of waste, abuse, or gross mismanagement, without restriction as to time, place, form, motive, context, or prior disclosure. The bill also would order a Government Accountability Office study of security clearances being revoked as retaliation. The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee has passed a counterpart (S-494).