The Trump administration has proposed requiring all current and new federal employees to sign non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) in an effort to curb leaks to journalists. According to CBS News, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) posted a notice in the Federal Register on Tuesday seeking comments on a draft NDA that federal agencies could use.
Key Takeaways
The Trump administration proposed requiring all federal employees to sign non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) to curb leaks to journalists. The Office of Personnel Management released a draft agreement that would apply to new and existing employees, with potential civil and criminal penalties for violations.
- OPM proposes NDAs for federal employees to prevent unauthorized disclosures
- Draft agreement includes provisions for former employees seeking to speak to journalists
- Federal law still protects whistleblowers from retaliation
- Unions criticize the move as an attempt to silence federal workers
The proposed agreement aims to "document Federal employees' acknowledgment of, and agreement to comply with, current legal obligations to safeguard non-public, confidential, or proprietary information," according to PBS. The OPM emphasized that the NDA would not create new substantive restrictions on employee speech or disclosure rights and would preserve employees' rights to make disclosures authorized by law.
The administration cited several recent instances of unauthorized disclosures related to rulemaking, policy development, and planned immigration enforcement actions. One notable case involved the New York Times and Washington Post receiving unauthorized information about a U.S. raid in Venezuela last January, which they delayed publishing to avoid endangering U.S. troops.
Critics argue that this move is part of a broader effort by the Trump administration to exert more control over government workers and limit the flow of information to the public. The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) urged the OPM to withdraw the draft, calling it an attempt to "purge the civil service of nonpartisan career employees and replace them with loyalists who won’t speak out against waste, fraud, and abuse."
Despite these concerns, federal law still prohibits government retaliation against workers who disclose fraud, abuse, and misconduct. The proposed NDA would not apply to such disclosures, according to The Guardian. However, former employees would need written permission from an authorized agency official to speak to journalists about information deemed "confidential" after leaving their jobs.
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