Over the past seven years, we have both acknowledged this administration’s progress on open government and decried its failures.
Continue readingSenate launches bipartisan Whistleblower Protection Caucus
A bipartisan group of Senators came together yesterday to launch the Senate Whistleblower Protection Caucus, a positive step to protect individuals who often put their careers on the line to expose instances of fraud and abuse within government.
Continue readingObama Promises Disappear from Web
Change.gov, the website created by the Obama transition team in 2008, has effectively disappeared sometime over the last month. While front splash page for for Change.gov has linked to the main White House website for years, until recently, you could still continue on to see the materials and agenda laid out by the administration. This was a particularly helpful resource for those looking to compare Obama's performance in office against his vision for reform, laid out in detail on Change.gov. According to the Internet Archive, the last time that content (beyond the splash page) was available was June 8th -- last month. Why the change?
Continue readingWhistleblower Protection Act goes to President’s desk
The Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act (WPEA) was unanimously approved by the Senate on Tuesday, marking a positive leap forward for federal employees... View Article
Continue readingWhistleblower directive encourages protections
A new Presidential Policy Directive aimed at protecting whistleblowers with access to classified information marks an important step in securing the rights of government employees who try to expose waste, fraud, and abuse. The directive, issued by President Barack Obama, bans retaliation against employees for protected disclosures, though it does not extend to disclosures to Congress or the public. It sets standards that Congress has so far failed to put into law. The Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act has been approved in the House but has yet to make it through the Senate, and it does not contain the intelligence-community protections outlined in the directive.
Continue readingSenate Homeland Security Committee Votes to Advance Whistleblower Protections
Policy Fellow Matt Rumsey wrote this post. The Senate Homeland Security Committee held a business meeting yesterday morning where they... View Article
Continue readingChamber of Commerce meets with CFTC chairman
Yesterday a lobbyist and executives representing the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which has criticized the whistleblower provisions in the Dodd-Frank financial law, met with Gary Gensler, chairman of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), to discuss the issue.
Under the new law, the CFTC is given the authority to award whistleblowers 10 to 30 percent of the amount recovered when information they provide leads to an enforcement action yielding sanctions of $1 million or more. They can also file for relief if they face retaliation for their disclosures.
"Put simply, the proposed rule creates a set of ...
Continue readingThis Week in Transparency – July 31, 2009
Here are some of the more interesting media mentions of Sunlight and our friends and allies over the past week:... View Article
Continue readingDear Inspector General Barofsky
This morning a letter was sent by numerous organization recommending Whistleblower protection initiatives to enhance accountability Emergency Economic Stabilization Act... View Article
Continue readingConyers Sets up Web Site for Justice Department Whistleblowers
Congressional investigators are using the Web to ask whistleblowers to come forward in crucial investigations. Today, John Conyers (D-MI), chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, announced a new Web page asking current and former employees of the Justice Department to come forward with any information regarding the politicization of the law enforcement agency. Earlier this year, House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA) introduced a whistleblower e-mail hotline for his committee. This seems like a great way for investigators to connect with executive branch employees with a story to tell. Just as members of Congress can use the Internet to better communicate with citizens, congressional investigators can use the Internet to better connect with whistleblowers.
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