WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Financial & Contracting Oversight, today called for swift action and requested additional information from the Office of Special Counsel (OSC) on its investigation of whistleblower retaliation by Veterans Affairs employees. OSC is currently investigating 37 cases of whistleblower retaliation at the VA.
“As you know, the federal government relies on whistleblowers to report government waste, fraud, abuse, and the mismanagement of taxpayer dollars,” wrote McCaskill, a longtime advocate for stronger whistleblower protections. “Their protection is not only mandated by law but also necessary to ensure the successful oversight of government affairs. I therefore request that you take prompt action in investigating and adjudicating these cases and that you keep me apprised of any developments that might arise.”
McCaskill requested the information from OSC to determine the scope of the retaliation problem and protect future whistleblowers.
McCaskill also asked OSC to identify the number of whistleblower retaliation complaints brought to OSC by VA employees related to the VA waiting list issues, the number of complaints by worksite location, the number of managerial employees implicated by multiple complainants, the number of SES employees accused, the number of complainants who asked the VA Inspector General to investigate alleged retaliation, and the number of claims that have been resolved and what disciplinary or administrative actions were taken.
Earlier this week, McCaskill used a Senate Homeland Security Committee hearing to call for expanded whistleblower protections for intelligence contractors – to better protect those who blow the whistle on waste, fraud and abuse in the intelligence community. She also recently introduced bipartisan legislation to bolster the independence of the National Security Agency’s Inspector General-in part by requiring the office to conduct annual reviews of whistleblower protections for agency employees and contractors, and provide recommendations to improve those mechanisms.