WASHINGTON
– Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) led their colleagues in
the Senate Whistleblower Protection Caucus in a unanimously-passed Senate
resolution celebrating July 30 as National Whistleblower Appreciation Day.
“Support
for whistleblowers is something we can all get behind. It can and should unite
every member of Congress who believes government needs to remain transparent
and accountable to the people. This resolution renews our shared commitment to
strengthen the nation’s whistleblower laws and protect whistleblowers when they
speak up,” Grassley said.
“Whistleblowers
are a fail-safe for our government, who sound the alarm on waste, fraud and
abuse of public resources. Congress should support the brave individuals who
choose to speak out, and strengthen laws that allow them to raise issues
without fear of retaliation,” Wyden
said.
The
resolution, which unanimously passed the Senate, celebrates the brave
contributions of whistleblowers to combating waste, fraud, abuse and violations
of laws and regulations of the United States, dating back to its earliest days.
On
July 30, 1778, the Continental Congress unanimously passed the first
whistleblower legislation in the United States, stating that “it is the duty of
all persons in the service of the United States, as well as all other the
inhabitants thereof, to give the earliest information to Congress or other
proper authority of any misconduct, frauds or misdemeanors committed by any
officers or persons in the service of these states, which may come to their
knowledge.” The resolution reaffirms these principles, and calls on federal
agencies to support and encourage whistleblowers to properly disclose knowledge
of fraud, waste or misconduct.
The
resolution was introduced by the full roster of the Senate Whistleblower
Protection Caucus: Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Thom
Tillis (R-N.C.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Tammy Baldwin
(D-Wis.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), John Boozman (R-Ark.),
Tom Carper (D-Del.), Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Marsha
Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Susan
Collins (R-Maine), Jerry Moran (R-Kansas) and Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.). Joining
the caucus members on the resolution are Sens., Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Dick
Durbin (D-Ill.), James Lankford (R-Okla.) and Raphael Warnock (D-Georgia).
As
the original author of legislation strengthening the
False Claims Act, which supports whistleblowers to help root out
fraud and abuse in government, Grassley has helped save taxpayers over
$70
billion.
Senator
Grassley gave remarks on the floor recognizing ‘National Whistleblower
Appreciation Day’ which can be found
HERE.
The
resolution can be found HERE.
