[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 231 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 231

  Designating July 30, 2017, as ``National Whistleblower Appreciation 
                                 Day''.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 25, 2017

 Mr. Grassley (for himself, Mr. Johnson, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Carper, Mr. 
Wyden, Mr. Markey, Mr. Boozman, Mrs. McCaskill, Mr. Tillis, Mrs. Ernst, 
 Mrs. Fischer, Mr. Peters, and Mrs. Feinstein) submitted the following 
    resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Designating July 30, 2017, as ``National Whistleblower Appreciation 
                                 Day''.

Whereas, in 1777, before the passage of the Bill of Rights, 10 sailors and 
        marines blew the whistle on fraud and misconduct that was harmful to the 
        United States;
Whereas the Founding Fathers unanimously supported the whistleblowers in words 
        and deeds, including by releasing government records and providing 
        monetary assistance for the reasonable legal expenses necessary to 
        prevent retaliation against the whistleblowers;
Whereas, on July 30, 1778, in demonstration of their full support for 
        whistleblowers, the members of the Continental Congress unanimously 
        enacted the first whistleblower legislation in the United States that 
        read: ``Resolved, That it is the duty of all persons in the service of 
        the United States, as well as all other the inhabitants thereof, to give 
        the earliest information to Congress or other proper authority of any 
        misconduct, frauds or misdemeanors committed by any officers or persons 
        in the service of these states, which may come to their knowledge'' 
        (legislation of July 30, 1778, reprinted in Journals of the Continental 
        Congress, 1774-1789, ed. Worthington C. Ford et al. (Washington, DC, 
        1904-37), 11:732);
Whereas whistleblowers risk their careers, jobs, and reputations by reporting 
        waste, fraud, and abuse to the proper authorities;
Whereas, in providing the proper authorities with lawful disclosures, 
        whistleblowers save the taxpayers of the United States billions of 
        dollars each year and serve the public interest by ensuring that the 
        United States remains an ethical and safe place; and
Whereas it is the public policy of the United States to encourage, in accordance 
        with Federal law (including the Constitution of the United States, 
        rules, and regulations) and consistent with the protection of classified 
        information (including sources and methods of detection of classified 
        information), honest and good faith reporting of misconduct, fraud, 
        misdemeanors, and other crimes to the appropriate authority at the 
        earliest time possible: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) designates July 30, 2017, as ``National Whistleblower 
        Appreciation Day''; and
            (2) ensures that the Federal Government implements the 
        intent of the Founding Fathers, as reflected in the legislation 
        enacted on July 30, 1778, by encouraging each executive agency 
        to recognize National Whistleblower Appreciation Day by--
                    (A) informing employees, contractors working on 
                behalf of United States taxpayers, and members of the 
                public about the legal right of a United States citizen 
                to ``blow the whistle'' to the appropriate authority by 
                honest and good faith reporting of misconduct, fraud, 
                misdemeanors, or other crimes; and
                    (B) acknowledging the contributions of 
                whistleblowers to combating waste, fraud, abuse, and 
                violations of laws and regulations of the United 
                States.
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