Senior House Democrats are calling on the Office of Special Counsel to investigate potential whistleblower retaliation after the Federal Emergency Management Agency renewed suspensions for FEMA employees who signed a public letter.
The FEMA staff were placed back on administrative leave despite an agency legal finding, referenced by the letter, that found the employees’ disclosure was protected by law.
In a Dec. 17 letter to acting Special Counsel Jamieson Greer, ranking members on several House committees said OSC should review the FEMA situation. OSC’s primary mission is to protect federal employees from prohibited personnel practices, especially whistleblower retaliation.
The letter comes after FEMA placed 14 signers of the “Katrina Declaration” back on administrative leave after briefly reinstating them earlier this month. At the time, a Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman said the employees “were wrongly and without authorization reinstated by bureaucrats acting outside their authority,” and that “the unauthorized reinstatement was swiftly corrected by senior leadership.”
More than 190 current and former FEMA employees signed the letter in August. FEMA subsequently placed staff who signed the letter with their names on administrative leave.
“We expect that the Office of Special Counsel will find clear evidence of whistleblower retaliation, reinstate the FEMA employees, and pursue disciplinary action against all officials who retaliated against them,” the...
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