described in section 1221(i)(2) of title 5, 
United States Code, (as added by subpara-
graph (A) if that individual— 
(I) provides written notice to the 
Office of Special Counsel and the Merit 
Systems Protection Board not later 
than 90 days after the date of enact-
ment of this Act; and 
(II) brings such action not later 
than 20 days after providing such no-
tice. 
(d) 
RECIPIENTS
OF
WHISTLEBLOWER
DISCLO-
SURES.—Section 2302(b)(8)(B) of title 5, United States 
Code, is amended by striking ‘‘or to the Inspector General 
of an agency or another employee designated by the head 
of the agency to receive such disclosures’’ and inserting ‘‘the 
Inspector General of an agency, a supervisor in the employ-
ee’s direct chain of command up to and including the head 
of the employing agency, or to an employee designated by 
any of the aforementioned individuals for the purpose of 
receiving such disclosures’’. 
(e) ATTORNEY FEES.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Section 7703(a) of title 5, 
United States Code, is amended by adding at the end 
the following: 
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‘‘(3) If an employee, former employee, or appli-
cant for employment is the prevailing party under a 
proceeding brought under this section, the employee, 
former employee, or applicant for employment shall 
be entitled to attorney fees for all representation car-
ried out pursuant to this section. In such an action 
for attorney fees, the agency responsible for taking the 
personnel action shall be the respondent and shall be 
responsible for paying the fees.’’. 
(2) APPLICATION.—In addition to any pro-
ceeding brought by an employee, former employee, or 
applicant for employment on or after the date of en-
actment of this Act to a Federal court under section 
7703 of title 5, United States Code, the amendment 
made by paragraph (1) shall apply to any proceeding 
brought by an employee, former employee, or appli-
cant for employment under such section before the 
date of enactment of this Act with respect to which 
the applicable Federal court has not issued a final de-
cision. 
(f) EXTENDING WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTION ACT TO 
CERTAIN EMPLOYEES.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 2302(a)(2)(A) of title 
5, United States Code, is amended in the matter fol-
lowing clause (xiii)— 
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(A) by inserting ‘‘subsection (b)(9)(A)(i), 
(B), (C), (D), or (E), subsection (b)(13), or sub-
section (g),’’ after ‘‘subsection (b)(8),’’; and 
(B) by inserting after ‘‘title 31’’ the fol-
lowing: ‘‘, a commissioned officer or applicant 
for employment in the Public Health Service, an 
officer or applicant for employment in the com-
missioned officer corps of the National Oceanic 
and Atmospheric Administration, and a non-
career appointee in the Senior Executive Serv-
ice’’. 
(2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 261 of 
the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administra-
tion Commissioned Officer Corps Act of 2002 (33 
U.S.C. 3071) is amended— 
(A) in subsection (a)— 
(i) by striking paragraph (8); and 
(ii) by redesignating paragraphs (9) 
through (26) as paragraphs (8) through 
(25), respectively; and 
(B) in subsection (b), by striking the second 
sentence. 
(3) APPLICATION.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—With respect to an offi-
cer or applicant for employment in the commis-
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sioned officer corps of the National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration, the amendments 
made by paragraphs (1) and (2) shall apply to 
any personnel action taken against such officer 
or applicant on or after the date of enactment of 
the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminis-
tration Commissioned Officer Corps Amend-
ments Act of 2020 (Public Law 116–259) for 
making any disclosure protected under section 
2302(8) of title 5, United States Code. 
(B) EXCEPTION.—Subparagraph (A) shall 
not apply to any personnel action with respect 
to which a complaint has been filed pursuant to 
section 1034 of title 10, United States Code, and 
a final decision has been rendered regarding such 
complaint. 
(g) RELIEF.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 7701(b)(2)(A) of title 
5, United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘upon 
the making of the decision’’ and inserting ‘‘upon 
making of the decision, necessary to make the em-
ployee whole as if there had been no prohibited per-
sonnel practice, including training, seniority and 
promotions consistent with the employee’s prior 
record’’. 
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(2) APPLICATION.—In addition to any appeal 
made on or after the date of enactment of this Act to 
the Merit Systems Protection Board under section 
7701 of title 5, United States Code, the amendment 
made by paragraph (1) shall apply to any appeal 
made under such section before the date of enactment 
of this Act with respect to which the Board has not 
issued a final decision. 
SEC. 4. CLASSIFYING CERTAIN FURLOUGHS AS ADVERSE 
PERSONNEL ACTIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 7512 of title 5, United 
States Code, is amended— 
(1) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 
end; and 
(2) by striking paragraph (5) and inserting the 
following: 
‘‘(5) a furlough of more than 14 days but less 
than 30 days; and 
‘‘(6) a furlough of 13 days or less that is not due 
to a lapse in appropriations;’’. 
(b) APPLICATION.—The amendment made by sub-
section (a) shall apply to any furlough covered by such sec-
tion 7512(5) or (6) (as amended by such subsection) occur-
ring on or after the date of enactment of this Act. 
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SEC. 5. CODIFICATION OF PROTECTIONS FOR DISCLO-
SURES OF CENSORSHIP RELATED TO RE-
SEARCH, ANALYSIS, OR TECHNICAL INFORMA-
TION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 2302 of title 5, United 
States Code, as amended by section 2(c)(1), is further 
amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(h)(1) In this subsection— 
‘‘(A) the term ‘applicant’ means an applicant 
for a covered position; 
‘‘(B) the term ‘censorship related to research, 
analysis, or technical information’ means any effort 
to distort, misrepresent, or suppress research, anal-
ysis, or technical information; and 
‘‘(C) the term ‘employee’ means an employee in 
a covered position in an agency. 
‘‘(2)(A) Any disclosure of information by an employee 
or applicant for employment that the employee or applicant 
reasonably believes is evidence of censorship related to re-
search, analysis, or technical information— 
‘‘(i) shall come within the protections of sub-
section (b)(8)(A) if— 
‘‘(I) the employee or applicant reasonably 
believes that the censorship related to research, 
analysis, or technical information is or will 
cause— 
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‘‘(aa) any violation of law, rule, or 
regulation; or 
‘‘(bb) gross mismanagement, a gross 
waste of funds, an abuse of authority, or a 
substantial and specific danger to public 
health or safety; and 
‘‘(II) such disclosure is not specifically pro-
hibited by law or such information is not specifi-
cally required by Executive order to be kept clas-
sified in the interest of national defense or the 
conduct of foreign affairs; and 
‘‘(ii) shall come within the protections of sub-
section (b)(8)(B) if— 
‘‘(I) the employee or applicant reasonably 
believes that the censorship related to research, 
analysis, or technical information is or will 
cause— 
‘‘(aa) any violation of law, rule, or 
regulation; or 
‘‘(bb) gross mismanagement, a gross 
waste of funds, an abuse of authority, or a 
substantial and specific danger to public 
health or safety; and 
‘‘(II) the disclosure is made to the Special 
Counsel, or to the Inspector General of an agency 
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or another person designated by the head of the 
agency to receive such disclosures, consistent 
with the protection of sources and methods. 
‘‘(3) A disclosure shall not be excluded from paragraph 
(2) for any reason described under subsection (f)(1) or (2). 
‘‘(4) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to 
imply any limitation on the protections of employees and 
applicants afforded by any other provision of law, includ-
ing protections with respect to any disclosure of informa-
tion believed to be evidence of censorship related to research, 
analysis, or technical information.’’. 
(b) REPEAL.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 110 of the Whistle-
blower Protection Enhancement Act of 2012 (Public 
Law 112–199) is hereby repealed. 
(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this 
section shall be construed to limit or otherwise affect 
any action under such section 110 commenced before 
the date of enactment of this Act or any protections 
afforded by such section with respect to such action. 
SEC. 6. TITLE 5 TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMEND-
MENTS. 
Title 5, United States Code, is amended— 
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(1) in section 1212(h), by striking ‘‘or (9)’’ each 
place it appears and inserting ‘‘, (b)(9), (b)(13), or 
(g)’’; 
(2) in section 1214— 
(A) in subsections (a) and (b), by striking 
‘‘section 2302(b)(8) or section 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), 
(B), (C), or (D)’’ each place it appears and in-
serting 
‘‘section 
2302(b)(8), 
section 
2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), (D), or (E), section 
2302(b)(13), or section 2302(g)’’; and 
(B) in subsection (i), by striking ‘‘section 
2302(b)(8) or subparagraph (A)(i), (B), (C), or 
(D) of section 2302(b)(9)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 
2302(b)(8), subparagraph (A)(i), (B), (C), (D), 
or (E) of section 2302(b)(9), section 2302(b)(13), 
or section 2302(g)’’; 
(3) in section 1215(a)(3)(B), by striking ‘‘section 
2302(b)(8), or 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), or (D)’’ each 
place it appears and inserting ‘‘section 2302(b)(8), 
section 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), (D), or (E), section 
2302(b)(13), or section 2302(g)’’; 
(4) in section 2302— 
(A) in subsection (a)— 
(i) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘or 
(g)’’ after ‘‘subsection (b)’’; and 
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(ii) in paragraph (2)(C)(i), by striking 
‘‘subsection 
(b)(8) 
or 
section 
2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), or (D)’’ and in-
serting 
‘‘section 
2302(b)(8), 
section 
2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), (D), or (E), sec-
tion 2302(b)(13), or section 2302(g)’’; and 
(B) in subsection (c)(1)(B), by striking 
‘‘paragraph (8) or subparagraph (A)(i), (B), (C), 
or (D) of paragraph (9) of subsection (b)’’ and 
inserting ‘‘paragraph (8), subparagraph (A)(i), 
(B), (C), or (D) of paragraph (9), or paragraph 
(13) of subsection (b) or subsection (g)’’; 
(5) in section 7515(a)(2), by striking ‘‘para-
graph (8), (9), or (14) of section 2302(b)’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘paragraph (8), (9), (13), or (14) of section 
2302(b) or section 2302(g)’’; 
(6) in section 7701(c)(2)(B), by inserting ‘‘or 
section 2302(g)’’ after ‘‘section 2302(b)’’; and 
(7) in section 7703(b)(1)(B), by striking ‘‘section 
2302(b)(8), or 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), or (D)’’ and 
inserting 
‘‘section 
2302(b)(8), 
section 
2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), (D), or (E), section 
2302(b)(13), or section 2302(g)’’. 
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Union Calendar No. 251 
117TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 2988 
[Report No. 117–334] 
A BILL 
To amend title 5, United States Code, to modify 
and enhance protections for Federal Government 
whistleblowers, and for other purposes. 
MAY 17, 2022 
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Com-
mittee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, 
and ordered to be printed 
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