Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act

Bill: 108-hr-3281
Sponsor: Rep. Platts, Todd Russell [R-PA-19]
Introduced: 2003-10-08 in the House
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
Subjects: Administrative remedies
Appellate courts
Armed Forces and National Security
Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues
Civil actions and liability
Classified defense information
Congress
Congressional investigations
Congressional oversight
Congressional reporting requirements
Congressional witnesses
Congressional-executive relations
Counterintelligence
Damages
Disciplining of employees
Discrimination in employment
Dismissal of employees
Economics and Public Finance
Employee rights
Evidence (Law)
Executive orders
Federal employees
Fines (Penalties)
Government attorneys
Government paperwork
Governmental investigations
Information leaking
Infrastructure
Infrastructure (Economics)
Injunctions
Judicial review
Jurisdiction
Labor and Employment
Labor contracts
Law
Legal fees
Merit Systems Protection Board
Office of Personnel Management
Office of Special Counsel
Official secrets
Parties to actions
Personnel management
Presidential powers
Promotions
Security clearances
Waste in government spending
Whistle blowing

Summary:
action_date: 2003-10-08
text: 
Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act - Amends Federal law to protect specified disclosures by Federal employees or applicants without restriction as to time, place, form, motive, context, or prior disclosure. 
 
Creates a rebuttable presumption regarding the performance of duty by employees with authority. 
Prohibits implementation or enforcement of nondisclosure documents absent a statement that the restrictions imposed are consistent with and do not supersede specified laws. 
Authorizes the Merit Systems Protection Board or any reviewing court to determine whether there was a violation of prohibited personnel practices in actions relating to security clearances and to provide specified relief. 
Authorizes the President to exclude agencies with certain intelligence functions from coverage under the whistleblower statute only if the exclusion decision, as it relates to a personnel action, is made before that personnel action. 
Includes compensatory damages in the list of authorized corrective actions the Board may impose. Authorizes the Board to impose a combination of discliplinary action and civil penalties. 
 
Permits representation by attorneys for the Office of the Special Counsel in specified civil actions. 
Authorizes the Office of Special Counsel to obtain judicial review of Board decisions. 
Allows petitions for review to be filed in any court of appeals of competent jurisdiction during the five-year period beginning on the effective date of this Act (restricted to the Federal Circuit thereafter). Lengthens the appeal period. 
Amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to clarify that the disclosure of independently obtained critical infrastructure information is a protected disclosure.

Legislative actions:
action_date: 2004-09-29
text: Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by Voice Vote.
action_date: 2004-09-29
text: Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
action_date: 2003-10-08
text: Referred to the House Committee on Government Reform.
action_date: 2003-10-08
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2003-10-08
text: Introduced in House