Mr. PLATTS. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself as much time as I may consume.
This amendment is intended to address situations in which an employee faces retaliation for being associated with whistleblowers through his or her testimony in a legal proceeding, and to encourage cooperation with Inspector General and Office of Special Counsel investigations, as well as compliance with the law.
Oddly, under current law, whistleblowers who make their disclosures of waste, fraud or abuse in the context of another employee's legal appeal, a grievance hearing, an Inspector General or Office of Special Counsel investigation are not given the same protections as other whistleblowers, such as those who blow the whistle on national television. This simply does not make sense.
My amendment would rectify this situation in three ways. First, the amendment would clarify that a protected disclosure cannot be disqualified because of the forum in which it is made, such as through witness testimony in another employee's appeal.
Second, the amendment would establish more realistic burdens of proof, the same as exist in most whistleblower cases, for those who were retaliated against because they testified on behalf of an employee exercising their legal rights, because they cooperated with an Inspector General or Special Counsel investigation, or because they refused to obey an order that would have required a violation of the law.
And third, the amendment gives these whistleblowers access to the same due process rights as other whistleblowers.
Testifying under oath, cooperating with an Inspector General or Special Counsel investigation, and refusing orders to violate the law are all important ways by which public servants can expose waste, fraud and abuse in the government. Accordingly, I urge a ``yes'' vote on the amendment.
