House votes to boost protection for FBI whistleblowers

The House of Representatives voted Wednesday to give more protections to whistleblowers at the FBI.

In a 404-0 vote, the House passed H.R. 5790, which was sponsored by Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah. The bill would broaden the protections for whistleblowers so they are not retaliated against by supervisors, putting them in the same position as other protected federal workers in other areas of the government.

“We have great respect and admiration for the FBI. They do wonderful work,” Chaffetz said. “It’s because I respect the FBI and it’s agents that I helped introduce this bill … The whistleblowers protections in the FBI have really not kept up with the rest of government, and that’s why we need a change here. The whistleblowers at the FBI should be treated the same as they are within the rest of the federal government.”

Chaffetz introduced the bill after a 2015 report found that protections for FBI whistleblowers were not as strong as those enjoyed by other federal workers.

to read the entire article, please click on the above link