Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley is demanding that the FBI update it’s “incorrect” and outdated guidance on its whistleblower policies to abide by legislation that became law four months ago.
In a letter sent to FBI Director James Comey on Friday, Grassley asks for an explanation as to why the agency hasn’t updated its employee training and internal communications to comply with the Federal Bureau of Investigation Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act, which the senator and his panel’s ranking member Patrick Leahy introduced last Congress.
The senators introduced the bill in part because they were concerned that FBI employees were not as well protected as other federal employees from reprisal after disclosing wrongdoing to their supervisors.
The Government Accountability Office released a report last year about the FBI’s handling of retaliation cases. It found that 40 of 62 cases were closed by the Justice Department because it didn’t meet regulatory requirements, including cases where a complaint was made to the “wrong person.”
Grassley notes in a press release that the independent Office of Inspector General provided an updated version of employee training on FBI whistleblower protections months ago, but those policies have yet to be implemented.
“Whistleblowers are critical to uncovering wrongdoing in government. However, the old process for reporting waste, fraud or abuse at the FBI was vague, confusing and left whistleblowers with conflicting instructions for how to properly make disclosures without fear of reprisals,” Grassley said in the letter. “The FBI has had months to update its policies. It’s failure to do so suggests a serious gap between rhetoric and reality on whistleblower protection at the FBI.”
Grassley asked that the FBI respond to his letter no later than April 27, including a copy of a “correct, updated policy” and a description of the steps the FBI will take to implement the policies and bring its employees up to speed.
