Washington, DC – U.S. Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD) lauded final passage of the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act (S. 743) that extends to federal workers, including Transportation Safety Administration employees, landmark whistleblower protections for uncovering illegal activity, gross mismanagement or waste, abuse of authority or danger to the public.

“Classified information should be protected, but if and when the public trust is abused and taxpayer funds are wasted, federal workers have a responsibility to do the right thing without fear of retribution,” said Senator Cardin, an original cosponsor of the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act.  “This legislation takes a giant leap forward in ensuring that legitimate disclosure of wrongdoing will be protected and accountability to taxpayers increased greatly. The bill also will strengthen failed procedures, close loopholes, create efficiencies, and affirm lawful disclosures.

The Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act (S. 743) would extend existing whistleblower protections to TSA employees and to current or prospective employees who disclose information about the censorship of research and technical information that they think would result in unlawfulness, mismanagement, significant waste, the abuse of authority, or a danger to the public.  For the first time, agencies will have Whistleblower Protection Ombudsmen to educate employees about whistleblower rights, and supervisors can be held accountable for retaliatory actions taken against whistleblowers.

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