A Senate Committee proved its commitment to holding government accountable this week by voting once again to advance the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act (WPEA). But the real question: why on earth hasn't it passed yet?
This bill, which my organization, the Project on Government Oversight has supported repeatedly, has the potential to save billions of taxpayer dollars by protecting legitimate whistleblowers who expose waste, fraud, and abuse. Now that the bill has passed unanimously through the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, it will advance to a full Senate vote.
Incarnations of the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act (WPEA) have come close to passing many times since Sen. Akaka first introduced the reform ten years ago. Most recently, the legislation was killed on the last day of the 111th Congress by a last-minute secret hold. It's likely that bill—versions of which passed both chambers unanimously within two weeks—was killed after it was mistakenly connected to the WikiLeaks controversy. (According to POGO, this connection was a complete red herring.)
You can read more about what the bill specifically does here. POGO's Angela Canterbury told me that the bill's passage is vitally important because:
Our country is in dire straights. Now more than ever, we must fix the status quo to allow federal workers on the front lines to help us end waste, fraud, and abuse in government. We cannot wait any longer for more accountability.
Or in the haunting words of military whistleblower Gene McCarty, “Anyone who is willing to stand up and tell the truth is committing suicide in today's society.”
Do you support this legislation? If so, how are you showing your support?