Appointment of members of the Merit Systems Protection Board
Source
(Added Pub. L. 95–454, title II, § 202(a),Notes
Amendments
Effective Date of 1989 Amendment
Effective Date
Short Title of 1989 Amendment
Savings Provision
Orders, Rules, and Regulations.—
All orders, rules, and regulations issued by the Merit Systems Protection Board or the Special Counsel before the effective date of this Act [see Effective Date of 1989 Amendment note above] shall continue in effect, according to their terms, until modified, terminated, superseded, or repealed.
Administrative Proceedings.—
No provision of this Act [see Short Title of 1989 Amendment note above] shall affect any administrative proceeding pending at the time such provisions take effect. Orders shall be issued in such proceedings, and appeals shall be taken therefrom, as if this Act had not been enacted.
Suits and Other Proceedings.—
No suit, action, or other proceeding lawfully commenced by or against the members of the Merit Systems Protection Board, the Special Counsel, or officers or employees thereof, in their official capacity or in relation to the discharge of their official duties, as in effect immediately before the effective date of this Act [see Effective Date of 1989 Amendment note above], shall abate by reason of the enactment of this Act. Determinations with respect to any such suit, action, or other proceeding shall be made as if this Act had not been enacted.”
Whistleblower Protection; Congressional Statement of Findings and Purpose
Findings.—
The Congress finds that—
Federal employees who make disclosures described in section 2302(b)(8) of title 5, United States Code, serve the public interest by assisting in the elimination of fraud, waste, abuse, and unnecessary Government expenditures;
protecting employees who disclose Government illegality, waste, and corruption is a major step toward a more effective civil service; and
in passing the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 [Pub. L. 95–454, see Tables for classification], Congress established the Office of Special Counsel to protect whistleblowers (those individuals who make disclosures described in such section 2302(b)(8)) from reprisal.
Purpose.—
The purpose of this Act [see Short Title of 1989 Amendment note above] is to strengthen and improve protection for the rights of Federal employees, to prevent reprisals, and to help eliminate wrongdoing within the Government by—
mandating that employees should not suffer adverse consequences as a result of prohibited personnel practices; and
establishing—
that the primary role of the Office of Special Counsel is to protect employees, especially whistleblowers, from prohibited personnel practices;
that the Office of Special Counsel shall act in the interests of employees who seek assistance from the Office of Special Counsel; and
that while disciplining those who commit prohibited personnel practices may be used as a means by which to help accomplish that goal, the protection of individuals who are the subject of prohibited personnel practices remains the paramount consideration.”