Protecting Those Who
Speak Out
EDITORIAL, NYTimes on
the Web, February 16, 2007
The plight of federal workers who
raise alarms about waste and fraud in government has become a scandal unto
itself. That candid air marshal suddenly assigned to desk duty after
complaining of shoddy agency practices has plenty of company, including workers
who have lost security clearances or found their jobs suddenly relocated far
from home. But in a vote this week of bipartisan unanimity, the House
government reform committee offered whistle-blowers fresh hope with a much
needed measure to protect them against official retaliation.
Existing law gives too much of an edge to oversight boards that are inclined to
dismiss or belittle the charges of whistle-blowers. The bill, sponsored by
Henry Waxman, Democrat of California, and Tom Davis, Republican of Virginia,
would guarantee a worker the right to a court review of a complaint if it
lingers beyond six months without action.
The protection against retaliation would also be extended for the first time to
the F.B.I. and to intelligence agencies where wastefulness is draped in secrecy.
(Maybe someone on the inside could finally explain the hundreds of F.B.I.
computers and firearms that are regularly lost.) And nongovernment workers
employed by federal contractors would finally have protection if they blew the
whistle. The bill would extend anti-retaliation rights to those workers
who courageously complained about the politicization of science by patronage
appointees, and to airport security workers.
Politicians campaign endlessly on promises to end waste, fraud and abuse.
Congress has a golden opportunity to protect the people whose courage can make
that possible.
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