Washington D.C. -On Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2020, Rep. Gerry E. Connolly, the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Government Operations, will hold a bipartisan hearing to examine who qualifies as a federal whistleblower; what protections such a designation affords to those who make allegations of waste, fraud, abuse, or mismanagement, and whether new legal provisions would improve whistleblower protections.
WHERE: 2154 Rayburn House Office Building
WHEN: Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2020
TIME: 2:00 p.m. EST
BACKGROUND
* Whistleblower disclosures promote an effective and efficient civil service and benefit the public interest by “assisting in the elimination of fraud, waste, abuse, and unnecessary Government expenditures."
* Whistleblowers play a critical role in the government, promoting government accountability and reform while curtailing abuses.
* Numerous laws provide whistleblowers in the public and private sectors with important protections, including more than one-hundred federal laws that include either a whistleblower-related or retaliation-prohibition provision. Among them are two key laws, the Whistleblower Protection Act of 1989 (WPA) and the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2012 (WPEA), which specifically protect whistleblowers who are federal employees. Additional legislation has extended whistleblower protections to federal contractors and grantees.
WITNESSES
Elizabeth Hempowicz
Director of Public Policy
Project on Government Oversight
David K. Colapinto
Founder and General Counsel
National Whistleblower Center
Paul Rosenzweig
Resident Senior Fellow, National Security and Cybersecurity
R Street
The Honorable Glenn A. Fine
Principal Deputy Inspector General Performing the Duties of the Inspector General
Department of Defense
The Honorable Michael E. Horowitz
Inspector General
U.S. Department of Justice
