Congressman Steven Horsford Protects Department of Energy and Nuclear Regulatory Commission Whistleblowers

Washington, D.C. — On Thursday, February 6, 2020, Congressman Steven Horsford (NV-04) introduced the Department of Energy (DOE) and Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Whistleblower Protection Act of 2020 which amends the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974 (ERA) to clarify whistleblower rights and protections. Senator Tammy Duckworth of Illinois introduced companion legislation in the Senate.

This critical legislation will restore equal whistleblower protections—such as freedom to express legitimate complaints about an agency without retaliation—for all DOE and NRC employees in Nevada, and nationwide, as originally intended by Congress.

"Employees of the DOE and NRC must know that they have protection under the law in order to hold their agencies accountable, without fear of retribution," Congressman Horsford said. "When employees have the freedom to highlight any concerns or unethical behaviors, federal agencies run more smoothly and ensure our nation's national security and public safety. I am proud to extend these protections to the dedicated employees of the DOE and NRC."

"Every day thousands of men and women employed by the Department of Energy perform work in Nevada that is critical to our national security and critical to the protection of public health, safety, and our environment," Bob Halstead, Executive Director at the State of Nevada Agency for Nuclear Projects, said. "Congress intended that all of these employees of DOE and NNSS receive the same whistleblower protection whether safeguarding the nation's classified information, accounting for the proper expenditure of public funds, managing low-level radioactive and hazardous wastes, or providing stewardship for the nation's nuclear weapons stockpile."

Additionally, Nevada Governor Steve Sisolakwrote a letter expressing his support for the Congressman's legislation.

Currently, whenever an employee of NRC or DOE brings a whistleblower action under the ERA, either agency may simply have the whistleblower's claim dismissed by asserting sovereign immunity. This bill is a technical fix that will restore whistleblower protections that Congress attempted to expand in 2005 when Congress originally attempted to amend the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974. At the time, administrative law judges ruled that employees of DOE and NRC may not enforce those whistleblower protection rights because there was no unequivocal waiver of sovereign immunity.

This bill will affect approximately 3,000 DOE/NNSS workers in Nevada, including approximately 1,800 in Nye County and approximately 1,575 in Clark County. Under current law, only contractors with DOE are covered by whistleblower protection laws. At the NRC, only employees of a licensee of the Commission are covered, but neither NRC employees nor NRC contractors fall under the protection.