Lawmakers want to beef up whistleblower
protection
DES MOINES -- In the wake of a salary scandal revealed by a
government employee, legislators said Thursday they hope to beef up the state
law that protects whistleblowers.
The current law bans managers from retaliating against an employee who
discloses wrongdoing. But the employee faces a time-consuming and costly
process to use the law.
"It shoves all the burden on that employee and we
want to improve that," said Senate co-president Jeff Lamberti, R-Ankeny.
Senate Republicans are working on a plan to increase the state staff and
resources available to protect whistleblowers. Lamberti said this would likely
be done through the Iowa Office of the Citizen'sAide/Ombudsman. Right now, a
whistleblower needs to pay for his or her own lawyer and cannot invoke the
state law until there is evidence of retaliation.
Lamberti is proposing that the state cover legal fees and get involved before
there is evidence of retaliation.
Democrats want to take the proposal a step further. "If this is good
enough for the public sector, it should be good enough for the private
sector," said House Minority Leader Pat Murphy, D-Dubuque.
Murphy wants to expand protection to whistleblowers at private companies, if an
employee provides evidence that the company is misusing a government contract
or grant. Republicans said they are willing to consider the idea.
Lamberti said any new services would be limited to employees who come forward
with solid evidence of wrongdoing. "It's not, and should not be, for
people who are disgruntled and want to complain," he said.
The reason for the interest in whistleblowers is the ongoing investigation into
high salaries and bonuses at a Des Moines-area jobs program. Kelly Taylor, a
budget analyst for Iowa Workforce Development blew the whistle.
This led to the firing and resignation of top executives in state and local
offices, while raising concerns that
If the state expands protection for whistleblowers, state Ombudsman Bill
Angrick is the person most likely to supervise the effort. To do so, the
Legislature would need to reverse one of the main laws governing his office.
"We are specifically prohibited from dealing with employment relationship
matters," Angrick said If that part of the law is changed, he said he
thinks his office is a natural fit to oversee whistleblower matters.
Right now, his 14-person staff mainly handles complaints from citizens about
government services. But ombudsman offices in other jurisdictions do offer the
kind of services envisioned by lawmakers. Angrick said he had conversations in
recent days with his counterparts in