IC 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 582 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

AUGUST 4, 2017 

Referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform 

AN ACT 

To reauthorize the Office of Special Counsel, and for other 

purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Office of Special Coun3 sel Reauthorization Act of 2017’’. 

4 SEC. 2. ADEQUATE ACCESS OF SPECIAL COUNSEL TO IN5 FORMATION. 

6 Section 1212(b) of title 5, United States Code, is 

7 amended by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(5)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the 

9 Special Counsel, in carrying out this subchapter, is au10 thorized to— 

11 ‘‘(i) have timely access to all records, data, re12 ports, audits, reviews, documents, papers, rec13 ommendations, or other material available to the ap14 plicable agency that relate to an investigation, re15 view, or inquiry conducted under— 

16 ‘‘(I) section 1213, 1214, 1215, or 1216 of 

17 this title; or 

18 ‘‘(II) section 4324(a) of title 38; 

19 ‘‘(ii) request from any agency the information 

20 or assistance that may be necessary for the Special 

21 Counsel to carry out the duties and responsibilities 

22 of the Special Counsel under this subchapter; and 

23 ‘‘(iii) require, during an investigation, review, or 

24 inquiry of an agency, the agency to provide to the 

25 Special Counsel any record or other information that 

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1 relates to an investigation, review, or inquiry con2 ducted under— 

3 ‘‘(I) section 1213, 1214, 1215, or 1216 of 

4 this title; or 

5 ‘‘(II) section 4324(a) of title 38. 

6 ‘‘(B)(i) The authorization of the Special Counsel 

7 under subparagraph (A) shall not apply with respect to 

8 any entity that is an element of the intelligence commu9 nity, as defined in section 3 of the National Security Act 

10 of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3003), unless the Special Counsel is 

11 investigating, or otherwise carrying out activities relating 

12 to the enforcement of, an action under subchapter III of 

13 chapter 73. 

14 ‘‘(ii) An Inspector General may withhold 

15 from the Special Counsel material described in 

16 subparagraph (A) if the Inspector General de17 termines that the material contains information 

18 derived from, or pertaining to, intelligence ac19 tivities. 

20 ‘‘(iii) The Attorney General or an Inspec21 tor General may withhold from the Special 

22 Counsel material described in subparagraph (A) 

23 if— 

24 ‘‘(I)(aa) disclosing the material could 

25 reasonably be expected to interfere with a 

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1 criminal investigation or prosecution that 

2 is ongoing as of the date on which the Spe3 cial Counsel submits a request for the ma4 terial; or 

5 ‘‘(bb) the material— 

6 ‘‘(AA) may not be disclosed pur7 suant to a court order; or 

8 ‘‘(BB) has been filed under seal 

9 under section 3730 of title 31; and 

10 ‘‘(II) the Attorney General or the In11 spector General, as applicable, submits to 

12 the Special Counsel a written report that 

13 describes— 

14 ‘‘(aa) the material being with15 held; and 

16 ‘‘(bb) the reason that the mate17 rial is being withheld. 

18 ‘‘(C)(i) A claim of common law privilege by an agen19 cy, or an officer or employee of an agency, shall not pre20 vent the Special Counsel from obtaining any material de21 scribed in subparagraph (A)(i) with respect to the agency. 

22 ‘‘(ii) The submission of material described in sub23 paragraph (A)(i) by an agency to the Special Counsel may 

24 not be deemed to waive any assertion of privilege by the 

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1 agency against a non-Federal entity or against an indi2 vidual in any other proceeding. 

3 ‘‘(iii) With respect to any record or other information 

4 made available to the Special Counsel by an agency under 

5 subparagraph (A), the Special Counsel may only disclose 

6 the record or information for a purpose that is in further7 ance of any authority provided to the Special Counsel in 

8 this subchapter. 

9 ‘‘(6) The Special Counsel shall submit to the Com10 mittee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 

11 of the Senate, the Committee on Oversight and Govern12 ment Reform of the House of Representatives, and each 

13 committee of Congress with jurisdiction over the applica14 ble agency a report regarding any case of contumacy or 

15 failure to comply with a request submitted by the Special 

16 Counsel under paragraph (5)(A).’’. 

17 SEC. 3. INFORMATION ON WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTIONS. 

18 (a) AGENCY RESPONSIBILITIES.—Section 2302 of 

19 title 5, United States Code, is amended by striking sub20 section (c) and inserting the following: 

21 ‘‘(c)(1) In this subsection— 

22 ‘‘(A) the term ‘new employee’ means an indi23 vidual— 

24 ‘‘(i) appointed to a position as an employee 

25 on or after the date of enactment of the Office 

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1 of Special Counsel Reauthorization Act of 2017; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(ii) who has not previously served as an 

4 employee; and 

5 ‘‘(B) the term ‘whistleblower protections’ means 

6 the protections against and remedies for a prohibited 

7 personnel practice described in paragraph (8) or 

8 subparagraph (A)(i), (B), (C), or (D) of paragraph 

9 (9) of subsection (b). 

10 ‘‘(2) The head of each agency shall be responsible 

11 for— 

12 ‘‘(A) preventing prohibited personnel practices; 

13 ‘‘(B) complying with and enforcing applicable 

14 civil service laws, rules, and regulations, and other 

15 aspects of personnel management; and 

16 ‘‘(C) ensuring, in consultation with the Special 

17 Counsel and the Inspector General of the agency, 

18 that employees of the agency are informed of the 

19 rights and remedies available to the employees under 

20 this chapter and chapter 12, including— 

21 ‘‘(i) information with respect to whistle22 blower protections available to new employees 

23 during a probationary period; 

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1 ‘‘(ii) the role of the Office of Special Coun2 sel and the Merit Systems Protection Board 

3 with respect to whistleblower protections; and 

4 ‘‘(iii) the means by which, with respect to 

5 information that is otherwise required by law or 

6 Executive order to be kept classified in the in7 terest of national defense or the conduct of for8 eign affairs, an employee may make a lawful 

9 disclosure of the information to— 

10 ‘‘(I) the Special Counsel; 

11 ‘‘(II) the Inspector General of an 

12 agency; 

13 ‘‘(III) Congress; or 

14 ‘‘(IV) another employee of the agency 

15 who is designated to receive such a disclo16 sure. 

17 ‘‘(3) The head of each agency shall ensure that the 

18 information described in paragraph (2) is provided to each 

19 new employee of the agency not later than 180 days after 

20 the date on which the new employee is appointed. 

21 ‘‘(4) The head of each agency shall make available 

22 information regarding whistleblower protections applicable 

23 to employees of the agency on the public website of the 

24 agency and on any online portal that is made available 

25 only to employees of the agency, if such portal exists. 

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1 ‘‘(5) Any employee to whom the head of an agency 

2 delegates authority for any aspect of personnel manage3 ment shall, within the limits of the scope of the delegation, 

4 be responsible for the activities described in paragraph 

5 (2).’’. 

6 (b) TRAINING FOR SUPERVISORS.— 

7 (1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection— 

8 (A) the term ‘‘agency’’ means any entity 

9 the employees of which are covered by para10 graphs (8) and (9) of section 2302(b) of title 5, 

11 United States Code, without regard to whether 

12 any other provision of that title is applicable to 

13 the entity; and 

14 (B) the term ‘‘whistleblower protections’’ 

15 has the meaning given the term in section 

16 2302(c)(1)(B) of title 5, United States Code, as 

17 amended by subsection (a). 

18 (2) TRAINING REQUIRED.—The head of each 

19 agency, in consultation with the Special Counsel and 

20 the Inspector General of that agency (or, in the case 

21 of an agency that does not have an Inspector Gen22 eral, the senior ethics official of that agency), shall 

23 provide the training described in paragraph (3). 

24 (3) TRAINING DESCRIBED.—The training de25 scribed in this paragraph shall— 

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1 (A) cover the manner in which the agency 

2 shall respond to a complaint alleging a violation 

3 of whistleblower protections that are available 

4 to employees of the agency; and 

5 (B) be provided— 

6 (i) to each employee of the agency 

7 who— 

8 (I) is appointed to a supervisory 

9 position in the agency; and 

10 (II) before the appointment de11 scribed in subclause (I), had not 

12 served in a supervisory position in the 

13 agency; and 

14 (ii) on an annual basis to all employ15 ees of the agency who serve in supervisory 

16 positions in the agency. 

17 (c) INFORMATION ON APPEAL RIGHTS.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Any notice provided to an 

19 employee under section 7503(b)(1), section 

20 7513(b)(1), or section 7543(b)(1) of title 5, United 

21 States Code, shall include detailed information with 

22 respect to— 

23 (A) the right of the employee to appeal an 

24 action brought under the applicable section; 

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1 (B) the forums in which the employee may 

2 file an appeal described in subparagraph (A); 

3 and 

4 (C) any limitations on the rights of the 

5 employee that would apply because of the forum 

6 in which the employee decides to file an appeal. 

7 (2) DEVELOPMENT OF INFORMATION.—The in8 formation described in paragraph (1) shall be devel9 oped by the Director of the Office of Personnel Man10 agement, in consultation with the Special Counsel, 

11 the Merit Systems Protection Board, and the Equal 

12 Employment Opportunity Commission. 

13 SEC. 4. ADDITIONAL WHISTLEBLOWER PROVISIONS. 

14 (a) PROHIBITED PERSONNEL PRACTICES.—Section 

15 2302 of title 5, United States Code, is amended— 

16 (1) in subsection (b)— 

17 (A) in paragraph (9)— 

18 (i) in subparagraph (C), by inserting 

19 ‘‘(or any other component responsible for 

20 internal investigation or review)’’ after 

21 ‘‘Inspector General’’; and 

22 (ii) in subparagraph (D), by inserting 

23 ‘‘, rule, or regulation’’ after ‘‘law’’; 

24 (B) in paragraph (12), by striking ‘‘or’’ at 

25 the end; 

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1 (C) in paragraph (13), by striking the pe2 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

3 (D) by inserting after paragraph (13) the 

4 following: 

5 ‘‘(14) access the medical record of another em6 ployee or an applicant for employment as a part of, 

7 or otherwise in furtherance of, any conduct de8 scribed in paragraphs (1) through (13).’’; and 

9 (2) in subsection (f)— 

10 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

11 (i) in subparagraph (E), by striking 

12 ‘‘or’’ at the end; 

13 (ii) by redesignating subparagraph 

14 (F) as subparagraph (G); and 

15 (iii) by inserting after subparagraph 

16 (E) the following: 

17 ‘‘(F) the disclosure was made before the date 

18 on which the individual was appointed or applied for 

19 appointment to a position; or’’; and 

20 (B) by striking paragraph (2) and insert21 ing the following: 

22 ‘‘(2) If a disclosure is made during the normal course 

23 of duties of an employee, the principal job function of 

24 whom is to regularly investigate and disclose wrongdoing 

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1 ployee’), the disclosure shall not be excluded from sub2 section (b)(8) if the disclosing employee demonstrates that 

3 an employee who has the authority to take, direct other 

4 individuals to take, recommend, or approve any personnel 

5 action with respect to the disclosing employee took, failed 

6 to take, or threatened to take or fail to take a personnel 

7 action with respect to the disclosing employee in reprisal 

8 for the disclosure made by the disclosing employee.’’. 

9 (b) EXPLANATIONS FOR FAILURE TO TAKE AC10 TION.—Section 1213 of title 5, United States Code, is 

11 amended— 

12 (1) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘15 days’’ and 

13 inserting ‘‘45 days’’; and 

14 (2) in subsection (e)— 

15 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘Any 

16 such report’’ and inserting ‘‘Any report re17 quired under subsection (c) or paragraph (5) of 

18 this subsection’’; 

19 (B) by striking paragraph (2) and insert20 ing the following: 

21 ‘‘(2) Upon receipt of any report that the head of an 

22 agency is required to submit under subsection (c), the Spe23 cial Counsel shall review the report and determine wheth24 er— 

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1 ‘‘(A) the findings of the head of the agency ap2 pear reasonable; and 

3 ‘‘(B) if the Special Counsel requires the head of 

4 the agency to submit a supplemental report under 

5 paragraph (5), the reports submitted by the head of 

6 the agency collectively contain the information re7 quired under subsection (d).’’; 

8 (C) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘agency 

9 report received pursuant to subsection (c) of 

10 this section’’ and inserting ‘‘report submitted to 

11 the Special Counsel by the head of an agency 

12 under subsection (c) or paragraph (5) of this 

13 subsection’’; and 

14 (D) by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(5) If, after conducting a review of a report under 

16 paragraph (2), the Special Counsel concludes that the 

17 Special Counsel requires additional information or docu18 mentation to determine whether the report submitted by 

19 the head of an agency is reasonable and sufficient, the 

20 Special Counsel may request that the head of the agency 

21 submit a supplemental report— 

22 ‘‘(A) containing the additional information or 

23 documentation identified by the Special Counsel; and 

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1 ‘‘(B) that the head of the agency shall submit 

2 to the Special Counsel within a period of time speci3 fied by the Special Counsel.’’. 

4 (c) TRANSFER REQUESTS DURING STAYS.— 

5 (1) PRIORITY GRANTED.—Section 1214(b)(1) of 

6 title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding 

7 at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(E) If the Board grants a stay under subparagraph 

9 (A), the head of the agency employing the employee who 

10 is the subject of the action shall give priority to a request 

11 for a transfer submitted by the employee.’’. 

12 (2) PROBATIONARY EMPLOYEES.—Section 1221 

13 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding 

14 at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(k) If the Board grants a stay under subsection (c) 

16 and the employee who is the subject of the action is in 

17 probationary status, the head of the agency employing the 

18 employee shall give priority to a request for a transfer sub19 mitted by the employee.’’. 

20 (d) RETALIATORY INVESTIGATIONS.—Section 1214 

21 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at 

22 the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(i) The Special Counsel may petition the Board to 

24 order corrective action, including fees, costs, or damages 

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1 tion of the employee by an agency, if the investigation by 

2 an agency was commenced, expanded, or extended in retal3 iation for a disclosure or protected activity described in 

4 section 2302(b)(8) or subparagraph (A)(i), (B), (C), or 

5 (D) of section 2302(b)(9), without regard to whether a 

6 personnel action, as defined in section 2302(a)(2)(A), is 

7 taken.’’. 

8 SEC. 5. SUICIDE BY EMPLOYEES. 

9 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

10 (1) the term ‘‘agency’’ means any entity the 

11 employees of which are covered by paragraphs (8) 

12 and (9) of section 2302(b) of title 5, United States 

13 Code, without regard to whether any other provision 

14 of that title is applicable to the entity; and 

15 (2) the term ‘‘personnel action’’ has the mean16 ing given the term in section 2302(a)(2)(A) of title 

17 5, United States Code. 

18 (b) REFERRAL.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—The head of an agency shall 

20 refer to the Special Counsel, along with any informa21 tion known to the agency regarding the cir22 cumstances described in paragraph (2), any instance 

23 in which the head of the agency has information in24 dicating that an employee of the agency committed 

25 suicide. 

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1 (2) INFORMATION.—The circumstances de2 scribed in this paragraph are as follows: 

3 (A) Before the death of an employee de4 scribed in paragraph (1), the employee made a 

5 disclosure of information that reasonably evi6 dences— 

7 (i) a violation of a law, rule, or regu8 lation; 

9 (ii) gross mismanagement; 

10 (iii) a gross waste of funds; 

11 (iv) an abuse of authority; or 

12 (v) a substantial and specific danger 

13 to public health or safety. 

14 (B) After a disclosure described in sub15 paragraph (A), a personnel action was taken 

16 with respect to the employee who made the dis17 closure. 

18 (c) OFFICE OF SPECIAL COUNSEL REVIEW.—Upon 

19 receiving a referral under subsection (b)(1), the Special 

20 Counsel shall— 

21 (1) examine whether a personnel action was 

22 taken with respect to an employee because of a dis23 closure described in subsection (b)(2)(A); and 

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1 (2) take any action that the Special Counsel de2 termines is appropriate under subchapter II of chap3 ter 12 of title 5, United States Code. 

4 SEC. 6. PROTECTION OF WHISTLEBLOWERS AS CRITERIA 

5 IN PERFORMANCE APPRAISALS. 

6 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF SYSTEMS.—Section 4302 of 

7 title 5, United States Code, is amended— 

8 (1) by redesignating subsections (b) and (c) as 

9 subsections (c) and (d), respectively; and 

10 (2) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘(b)(1) The head of each agency, in consultation with 

13 the Director of the Office of Personnel Management and 

14 the Special Counsel, shall develop criteria that— 

15 ‘‘(A) the head of the agency shall use as a crit16 ical element for establishing the job requirements of 

17 a supervisory employee; and 

18 ‘‘(B) promote the protection of whistleblowers. 

19 ‘‘(2) The criteria required under paragraph (1) shall 

20 include— 

21 ‘‘(A) principles for the protection of whistle22 blowers, such as the degree to which supervisory em23 ployees— 

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1 ‘‘(i) respond constructively when employees 

2 of the agency make disclosures described in 

3 subparagraph (A) or (B) of section 2302(b)(8); 

4 ‘‘(ii) take responsible actions to resolve the 

5 disclosures described in clause (i); and 

6 ‘‘(iii) foster an environment in which em7 ployees of the agency feel comfortable making 

8 disclosures described in clause (i) to supervisory 

9 employees or other appropriate authorities; and 

10 ‘‘(B) for each supervisory employee— 

11 ‘‘(i) whether the agency entered into an 

12 agreement with an individual who alleged that 

13 the supervisory employee committed a prohib14 ited personnel practice; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) if the agency entered into an agree16 ment described in clause (i), the number of in17 stances in which the agency entered into such 

18 an agreement with respect to the supervisory 

19 employee. 

20 ‘‘(3) In this subsection— 

21 ‘‘(A) the term ‘agency’ means any entity the 

22 employees of which are covered by paragraphs (8) 

23 and (9) of section 2302(b), without regard to wheth24 er any other provision of this section is applicable to 

25 the entity; 

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1 ‘‘(B) the term ‘prohibited personnel practice’ 

2 has the meaning given the term in section 

3 2302(a)(1); 

4 ‘‘(C) the term ‘supervisory employee’ means an 

5 employee who would be a supervisor, as defined in 

6 section 7103(a), if the agency employing the em7 ployee was an agency for purposes of chapter 71; 

8 and 

9 ‘‘(D) the term ‘whistleblower’ means an em10 ployee who makes a disclosure described in section 

11 2302(b)(8).’’. 

12 (b) CRITERIA FOR PERFORMANCE APPRAISALS.— 

13 Section 4313 of title 5, United States Code, is amended— 

14 (1) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

15 end; 

16 (2) in paragraph (5), by striking the period at 

17 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

18 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(6) protecting whistleblowers, as described in 

20 section 4302(b)(2).’’. 

21 (c) ANNUAL REPORT TO CONGRESS ON UNACCEPT22 ABLE PERFORMANCE IN WHISTLEBLOWER PROTEC23 TION.— 

24 (1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection, the 

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1 ings given the terms in section 4302(b)(3) of title 5, 

2 United States Code, as amended by subsection (a). 

3 (2) REPORT.—Each agency shall annually sub4 mit to the Committee on Homeland Security and 

5 Governmental Affairs of the Senate, the Committee 

6 on Oversight and Government Reform of the House 

7 of Representatives, and each committee of Congress 

8 with jurisdiction over the agency a report that de9 tails— 

10 (A) the number of performance appraisals, 

11 for the year covered by the report, that deter12 mined that an employee of the agency failed to 

13 meet the standards for protecting whistle14 blowers that were established under section 

15 4302(b) of title 5, United States Code, as 

16 amended by subsection (a); 

17 (B) the reasons for the determinations de18 scribed in subparagraph (A); and 

19 (C) each performance-based or corrective 

20 action taken by the agency in response to a de21 termination under subparagraph (A). 

22 (d) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

23 Section 4301 of title 5, United States Code, is amended, 

24 in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘For 

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1 the purpose of’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as otherwise ex2 pressly provided, for the purpose of’’. 

3 SEC. 7. DISCIPLINE OF SUPERVISORS BASED ON RETALIA4 TION AGAINST WHISTLEBLOWERS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter II of chapter 75 of 

6 title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

7 end the following: 

8 ‘‘§ 7515. Discipline of supervisors based on retaliation 

9 against whistleblowers 

10 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

11 ‘‘(1) the term ‘agency’— 

12 ‘‘(A) has the meaning given the term in 

13 section 2302(a)(2)(C), without regard to wheth14 er any other provision of this chapter is applica15 ble to the entity; and 

16 ‘‘(B) does not include any entity that is an 

17 element of the intelligence community, as de18 fined in section 3 of the National Security Act 

19 of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3003); 

20 ‘‘(2) the term ‘prohibited personnel action’ 

21 means taking or failing to take an action in violation 

22 of paragraph (8) or (9) of section 2302(b) against 

23 an employee of an agency; and 

24 ‘‘(3) the term ‘supervisor’ means an employee 

25 who would be a supervisor, as defined in section 

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1 7103(a), if the entity employing the employee was 

2 an agency. 

3 ‘‘(b) PROPOSED DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the head of the agency 

5 in which a supervisor is employed, an administrative 

6 law judge, the Merit Systems Protection Board, the 

7 Special Counsel, a judge of the United States, or the 

8 Inspector General of the agency in which a super9 visor is employed has determined that the supervisor 

10 committed a prohibited personnel action, the head of 

11 the agency in which the supervisor is employed, con12 sistent with the procedures required under para13 graph (2)— 

14 ‘‘(A) for the first prohibited personnel ac15 tion committed by the supervisor— 

16 ‘‘(i) shall propose suspending the su17 pervisor for a period that is not less than 

18 3 days; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) may propose an additional action 

20 determined appropriate by the head of the 

21 agency, including a reduction in grade or 

22 pay; and 

23 ‘‘(B) for the second prohibited personnel 

24 action committed by the supervisor, shall pro25 pose removing the supervisor. 

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1 ‘‘(2) PROCEDURES.— 

2 ‘‘(A) NOTICE.—A supervisor against whom 

3 an action is proposed to be taken under para4 graph (1) is entitled to written notice that— 

5 ‘‘(i) states the specific reasons for the 

6 proposed action; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) informs the supervisor about the 

8 right of the supervisor to review the mate9 rial that constitutes the factual support on 

10 which the proposed action is based. 

11 ‘‘(B) ANSWER AND EVIDENCE.— 

12 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—A supervisor who 

13 receives notice under subparagraph (A) 

14 may, not later than 14 days after receiving 

15 the notice, submit an answer and furnish 

16 evidence in support of that answer. 

17 ‘‘(ii) NO EVIDENCE FURNISHED; IN18 SUFFICIENT EVIDENCE FURNISHED.—If, 

19 after the end of the 14-day period de20 scribed in clause (i), a supervisor does not 

21 furnish any evidence as described in that 

22 clause, or if the head of the agency in 

23 which the supervisor is employed deter24 mines that the evidence furnished by the 

25 supervisor is insufficient, the head of the 

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1 agency shall carry out the action proposed 

2 under subparagraph (A) or (B) of para3 graph (1). 

4 ‘‘(C) SCOPE OF PROCEDURES.—An action 

5 carried out under this section— 

6 ‘‘(i) except as provided in clause (ii), 

7 shall be subject to the same requirements 

8 and procedures, including those with re9 spect to an appeal, as an action under sec10 tion 7503, 7513, or 7543; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) shall not be subject to— 

12 ‘‘(I) paragraphs (1) and (2) of 

13 section 7503(b); 

14 ‘‘(II) paragraphs (1) and (2) of 

15 subsection (b) and subsection (c) of 

16 section 7513; and 

17 ‘‘(III) paragraphs (1) and (2) of 

18 subsection (b) and subsection (c) of 

19 section 7543. 

20 ‘‘(3) NON-DELEGATION.—If the head of an 

21 agency is responsible for determining whether a su22 pervisor has committed a prohibited personnel action 

23 for purposes of paragraph (1), the head of the agen24 cy may not delegate that responsibility.’’. 

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1 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

2 The table of sections for subchapter II of chapter 75 of 

3 title 5, United States Code, is amended by inserting after 

4 the item relating to section 7514 the following: 

‘‘7515. Discipline of supervisors based on retaliation against whistleblowers.’’. 

5 SEC. 8. TERMINATION OF CERTAIN INVESTIGATIONS BY 

6 THE OFFICE OF SPECIAL COUNSEL. 

7 Section 1214(a) of title 5, United States Code, is 

8 amended by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(6)(A) Notwithstanding any other provision of this 

10 section, not later than 30 days after receiving an allega11 tion of a prohibited personnel practice under paragraph 

12 (1), the Special Counsel may terminate an investigation 

13 of the allegation without further inquiry if the Special 

14 Counsel determines that— 

15 ‘‘(i) the same allegation, based on the same set 

16 of facts and circumstances had previously been— 

17 ‘‘(I)(aa) made by the individual; and 

18 ‘‘(bb) investigated by the Special Counsel; 

19 or 

20 ‘‘(II) filed by the individual with the Merit 

21 Systems Protection Board; 

22 ‘‘(ii) the Special Counsel does not have jurisdic23 tion to investigate the allegation; or 

24 ‘‘(iii) the individual knew or should have known 

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1 fore the date that is 3 years before the date on 

2 which the Special Counsel received the allegation. 

3 ‘‘(B) Not later than 30 days after the date on which 

4 the Special Counsel terminates an investigation under sub5 paragraph (A), the Special Counsel shall provide a written 

6 notification to the individual who submitted the allegation 

7 of a prohibited personnel practice that states the basis of 

8 the Special Counsel for terminating the investigation.’’. 

9 SEC. 9. ALLEGATIONS OF WRONGDOING WITHIN THE OF10 FICE OF SPECIAL COUNSEL. 

11 Section 1212 of title 5, United States Code, is 

12 amended by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(i) The Special Counsel shall enter into at least one 

14 agreement with the Inspector General of an agency under 

15 which— 

16 ‘‘(1) the Inspector General shall— 

17 ‘‘(A) receive, review, and investigate allega18 tions of prohibited personnel practices or 

19 wrongdoing filed by employees of the Office of 

20 Special Counsel; and 

21 ‘‘(B) develop a method for an employee of 

22 the Office of Special Counsel to directly com23 municate with the Inspector General; and 

24 ‘‘(2) the Special Counsel— 

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1 ‘‘(A) may not require an employee of the 

2 Office of Special Counsel to seek authorization 

3 or approval before directly contacting the In4 spector General in accordance with the agree5 ment; and 

6 ‘‘(B) may reimburse the Inspector General 

7 for services provided under the agreement.’’. 

8 SEC. 10. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. 

9 (a) ANNUAL REPORT.—Section 1218 of title 5, 

10 United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

11 ‘‘§ 1218. Annual report 

12 ‘‘The Special Counsel shall submit to Congress, on 

13 an annual basis, a report on the activities of the Special 

14 Counsel, which shall include, for the year preceding the 

15 submission of the report— 

16 ‘‘(1) the number, types, and disposition of alle17 gations of prohibited personnel practices filed with 

18 the Special Counsel and the costs of resolving such 

19 allegations; 

20 ‘‘(2) the number of investigations conducted by 

21 the Special Counsel; 

22 ‘‘(3) the number of stays and disciplinary ac23 tions negotiated with agencies by the Special Coun24 sel; 

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1 ‘‘(4) the number of subpoenas issued by the 

2 Special Counsel; 

3 ‘‘(5) the number of instances in which the Spe4 cial Counsel reopened an investigation after the Spe5 cial Counsel had made an initial determination with 

6 respect to the investigation; 

7 ‘‘(6) the actions that resulted from reopening 

8 investigations, as described in paragraph (5); 

9 ‘‘(7) the number of instances in which the Spe10 cial Counsel did not make a determination before 

11 the end of the 240-day period described in section 

12 1214(b)(2)(A)(i) regarding whether there were rea13 sonable grounds to believe that a prohibited per14 sonnel practice had occurred, existed, or was to be 

15 taken; 

16 ‘‘(8) a description of the recommendations and 

17 reports made by the Special Counsel to other agen18 cies under this subchapter and the actions taken by 

19 the agencies as a result of the recommendations or 

20 reports; 

21 ‘‘(9) the number of— 

22 ‘‘(A) actions initiated before the Merit Sys23 tems Protection Board, including the number of 

24 corrective action petitions and disciplinary ac25 tion complaints initiated; and 

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1 ‘‘(B) stays and extensions of stays ob2 tained from the Merit Systems Protection 

3 Board; 

4 ‘‘(10) the number of prohibited personnel prac5 tice complaints that resulted in a favorable action 

6 for the complainant, other than a stay or an exten7 sion of a stay, organized by actions in— 

8 ‘‘(A) complaints dealing with reprisals 

9 against whistleblowers; and 

10 ‘‘(B) all other complaints; and 

11 ‘‘(11) the number of prohibited personnel prac12 tice complaints that were resolved by an agreement 

13 between an agency and an individual, organized by 

14 agency and agency components, in— 

15 ‘‘(A) complaints dealing with reprisals 

16 against whistleblowers; and 

17 ‘‘(B) all other complaints; 

18 ‘‘(12) the number of corrective actions that the 

19 Special Counsel required an agency to take after a 

20 finding by the Special Counsel of a prohibited per21 sonnel practice, as defined in section 2302(a)(1); 

22 and 

23 ‘‘(13) the results for the Office of Special Coun24 sel of any employee viewpoint survey conducted by 

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1 the Office of Personnel Management or any other 

2 agency.’’. 

3 (b) PUBLIC INFORMATION.—Section 1219(a)(1) of 

4 title 5, United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

5 ‘‘(1) a list of any noncriminal matters referred 

6 to the head of an agency under section 1213(c), to7 gether with— 

8 ‘‘(A) a copy of the information transmitted 

9 to the head of the agency under section 

10 1213(c)(1); 

11 ‘‘(B) any report from the agency under 

12 section 1213(c)(1)(B) relating to the matter; 

13 ‘‘(C) if appropriate, not otherwise prohib14 ited by law, and consented to by the complain15 ant, any comments from the complainant under 

16 section 1213(e)(1) relating to the matter; and 

17 ‘‘(D) the comments or recommendations of 

18 the Special Counsel under paragraph (3) or (4) 

19 of section 1213(e);’’. 

20 (c) NOTICE OF COMPLAINT SETTLEMENTS.—Section 

21 1217 of title 5, United States Code, is amended— 

22 (1) by striking ‘‘The Special Counsel’’ and in23 serting: 

24 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Special Counsel’’; and 

25 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

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1 ‘‘(b) ADDITIONAL REPORT REQUIRED.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If an allegation submitted 

3 to the Special Counsel is resolved by an agreement 

4 between an agency and an individual, the Special 

5 Counsel shall submit to Congress and each congres6 sional committee with jurisdiction over the agency a 

7 report regarding the agreement. 

8 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—The report required under 

9 paragraph (1) shall identify, with respect to an 

10 agreement described in that paragraph— 

11 ‘‘(A) the agency that entered into the 

12 agreement; 

13 ‘‘(B) the position and employment location 

14 of the employee who submitted the allegation 

15 that formed the basis of the agreement; 

16 ‘‘(C) the position and employment location 

17 of any employee alleged by an employee de18 scribed in subparagraph (B) to have committed 

19 a prohibited personnel practice, as defined in 

20 section 2302(a)(1); 

21 ‘‘(D) a description of the allegation de22 scribed in subparagraph (B); and 

23 ‘‘(E) whether the agency that entered into 

24 the agreement has agreed to pursue any dismstockstill on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS

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1 ciplinary action as a result of the allegation de2 scribed in subparagraph (B).’’. 

3 SEC. 11. ESTABLISHMENT OF SURVEY PILOT PROGRAM. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Office of Special Counsel 

5 shall design and establish a pilot program under which 

6 the Office shall conduct, during the first full fiscal year 

7 after the date of enactment of this Act, a survey of individ8 uals who have filed a complaint or disclosure with the Of9 fice. 

10 (b) PURPOSE.—The survey under subsection (a) shall 

11 be designed for the purpose of collecting information and 

12 improving service at various stages of a review or inves13 tigation by the Office of Special Counsel. 

14 (c) RESULTS.—The results of the survey under sub15 section (a) shall be published in the annual report of the 

16 Office of Special Counsel. 

17 (d) SUSPENSION OF OTHER SURVEYS.—During the 

18 period beginning on October 1, 2017, and ending on Sep19 tember 30, 2018, section 13 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act 

20 to reauthorize the Office of Special Counsel, and for other 

21 purposes’’, approved October 29, 1994 (5 U.S.C. 1212 

22 note), shall have no force or effect. 

23 SEC. 12. REGULATIONS. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after the 

25 date of enactment of this Act, the Special Counsel shall 

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1 prescribe such regulations as may be necessary to per2 form— 

3 (1) the functions of the Special Counsel under 

4 subchapter II of chapter 12 of title 5, United States 

5 Code, including regulations that are necessary to 

6 carry out sections 1213, 1214, and 1215 of that 

7 title; and 

8 (2) any functions of the Special Counsel that 

9 are required because of the amendments made by 

10 this Act. 

11 (b) PUBLICATION.—Any regulations prescribed under 

12 subsection (a) shall be published in the Federal Register. 

13 SEC. 13. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 8(a)(2) of the Whistle15 blower Protection Act of 1989 (5 U.S.C. 5509 note) is 

16 amended by striking ‘‘2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2007’’ 

17 and inserting ‘‘2017 through 2022’’. 

18 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

19 subsection (a) shall take effect as though enacted on Sep20 tember 30, 2015. 

21 SEC. 14. TECHNICAL AMENDMENT. 

22 Section 1214(b)(1)(B)(ii) of title 5, United States 

23 Code, as amended by section 1 of the Act entitled ‘‘An 

24 Act to amend section 1214 of title 5, United States Code, 

25 to provide for stays during a period that the Merit Sysmstockstill on DSK30JT082PROD with BILLS

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1 tems Protection Board lacks a quorum.’’ (S. 1083, 115th 

2 Congress, 1st Session), is amended by striking ‘‘who was 

3 appointed, by and with the advice and consent of the Sen4 ate,’’. 

Passed the Senate August 1, 2017. 

Attest: JULIE E. ADAMS, 

Secretary. 

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