Whistleblower Protection Law Summaries

The District of Columbia's whistleblower provisions are found in the District of Columbia Code at Division I, Title 1, Chapter 6, Subchapter XV-A; Division I, Title 2, Chapter 2, Subchapter XII; and Title 1, Chapter 25.

DEFINITIONS

See 9-2500 for definitions under the state's fair employment practices law.

The following definitions apply to the District employment whistleblower protection law:

"Employee" means any person who is a former or current District employee, or an applicant for employment by the District government, including but not limited to employees of subordinate agencies, independent agencies, the District of Columbia Board of Education, the Board of Trustees of the University of the District of Columbia, the District of Columbia Housing Authority, and the Metropolitan Police Department, but excluding employees of the Council of the District of Columbia (Sec. 1-615.52).

"Prohibited personnel action" includes but is not limited to recommended, threatened or actual termination, demotion, suspension or reprimand; involuntary transfer, reassignment or detail; referral for psychiatric or psychological counseling; failure to promote or hire or take other favorable personnel action; or retaliating in any other manner against an employee because that employee makes a protected disclosure or refuses to comply with an illegal order (Sec. 1-615.52).

"Protected disclosure" means any disclosure of information, not specifically prohibited by statute, by an employee to a supervisor or a public body that the employee reasonably believes evidences (Sec. 1-615.52):

(1) gross mismanagement;

(2) gross misuse or waste of public resources or funds;

(3) abuse of authority in connection with the administration of a public program or the execution of a public contract;

(4) a violation of a federal, state or local law, rule or regulation, or of a term of a contract between the District government and a District government contractor that is not of a merely technical or minimal nature; or

(5) a substantial and specific danger to the public health and safety.

"Whistleblower" means an employee who makes or is perceived to have made a protected disclosure (Sec. 1-615.52).

The following definitions apply to the District contractor and instrumentality whistleblower protection law:

"Employee" means (Sec. 2-223.01):

(1) any person who is a former or current employee of or an applicant for employment by an instrumentality of the District government not covered by the District of Columbia Government Comprehensive Merit Personnel Act of 1978; or

(2) any person who is a former or current employee of any entity that has a contract with the District government to supply goods or services and who is engaged in performing such contract.

"Instrumentality" means a quasi-governmental entity that operates in part with District funds, including, but not limited to, the District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority; the Health and Hospitals Public Benefits Corporation; the Public Service Commission; the Washington Convention Center Authority; the Committee to Promote the District of Columbia; the National Capital Revitalization Corporation; and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (Sec. 2-223.01).

"Prohibited personnel action" includes but is not limited to recommended, threatened or actual termination, demotion, suspension or reprimand; involuntary transfer, reassignment or detail; referral for psychiatric or psychological counseling; failure to promote or hire or take other favorable personnel action; or retaliating in any other manner against an employee because that employee makes a protected disclosure or refuses to comply with an illegal order (Sec. 2-223.01).

"Protected disclosure" means any disclosure of information, not specifically prohibited by statute, by an employee to a supervisor or a public body that the employee reasonably believes evidences (Sec. 2-223.01):

(1) gross mismanagement in connection with the administration of a public program or the execution of a public contract;

(2) gross misuse or waste of public resources or funds;

(3) abuse of authority in connection with the administration of a public program or the execution of a public contract;

(4) a violation of a federal, state or local law, rule or regulation, or of a term of a contract between the District government and a District government contractor that is not of a merely technical or minimal nature; or

(5) a substantial and specific danger to the public health and safety.

"Whistleblower" means an employee who makes or is perceived to have made a protected disclosure (Sec. 2-223.01).

COVERAGE

The District contractor and instrumentality whistleblower protection law will apply to employees of the WMATA when Virginia and Maryland enact similar provisions for WMATA whistleblowers (Sec. 2-223.07).

WHAT THE EMPLOYER MUST DO

District employment. --A supervisor employed by the District government may not threaten to take or take a prohibited personnel action or otherwise retaliate against an employee because of the employee's protected disclosure or because of an employee's refusal to comply with an illegal order (Sec. 1-615.53).

District contractors and instrumentalities. --A supervisor employed by a District instrumentality or District government contractor may not threaten to take or take a prohibited personnel action or otherwise retaliate against an employee because of the employee's protected disclosure or because of an employee's refusal to comply with an illegal order (Sec. 1-1177.2).

District government contractors must inform all employees engaged in performing District government contracts of their rights under the District contractor and instrumentality whistleblower protection law (Sec. 2-223.06).

Fair employment practices. --It is an unlawful practice for any person to require, request, or suggest that a person retaliate against, interfere with, intimidate or discriminate against a person because that person has opposed rights granted under the D.C. Human Rights Acts or because that person has made a charge, testified, assisted, or participated in any manner in an investigation, proceeding, or hearing under such law (Sec. 2-1402.61(b)).

NOTICE

See also POSTING below.

District employment. --The District must include annual notices of employee protections and obligations under the District employee whistleblower protection law with employee tax reporting documents (Sec. 1-615.57).

District contractors and instrumentalities. --District instrumentalities must include annual notices of employee protections and obligations under the District contractor and instrumentality whistleblower protection law with employee tax reporting documents (Sec. 2-223.06).

ENFORCEMENT

District employment. --An employee aggrieved by a violation of the District employee whistleblower protection law may bring a civil action before a court or a jury in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia seeking relief and damages, including but not limited to injunction, reinstatement to the same position held before the prohibited personnel action or to an equivalent position, and reinstatement of the employee's seniority rights, restoration of lost benefits, back pay and interest on back pay, compensatory damages and reasonable costs and attorney fees. A civil action must be filed within one year after a violation occurs or within one year after the employee first becomes aware of the violation (Sec. 1-615.54).

As part of the relief ordered in an administrative, arbitration or judicial proceeding, any supervisor, including any manager, department director or other District official, who is found to have violated the District employee whistleblower protection law will be subject to appropriate disciplinary action, including dismissal (Sec. 1-615.55).

The institution of a civil action as described above precludes an employee from pursuing any administrative remedy for the same cause of action from the Office of Employee Appeals or from an arbitrator pursuant to a negotiated grievance and arbitration procedure or an employment contract (Sec. 1-615.56(a)).

No civil action may be brought if the aggrieved employee has had a final determination on the same cause of action from the Office of Employee Appeals or from an arbitrator pursuant to a negotiated grievance and arbitration procedure or an employment contract (Sec. 1-615.56(b)).

Except as provided above, nothing in the District employee whistleblower protection law diminishes the rights and remedies of an employee pursuant to any other federal or District law (Sec. 1-615.56(c)).

District contractors and instrumentalities. --An employee aggrieved by a violation of the District contractor and instrumentality whistleblower protection law may bring a civil action before a court or a jury in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia seeking relief and damages, including but not limited to injunction, reinstatement to the same position held before the prohibited personnel action or to an equivalent position, and reinstatement of the employee's seniority rights, restoration of lost benefits, back pay and interest on back pay, compensatory damages and reasonable costs and attorney fees. A civil action must be filed within one year after a violation occurs or within one year after the employee first becomes aware of the violation (Sec. 2-223.03).

As part of the relief ordered in an administrative, arbitration or judicial proceeding, any supervisor who is found to have violated the District contractor and instrumentality whistleblower protection law will be subject to appropriate disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal (Sec. 2-223.04).

The institution of a civil action as described above precludes an employee from pursuing any administrative remedy for the same cause of action from an arbitrator pursuant to a negotiated grievance and arbitration procedure or an employment contract (Sec. 2-223.05(a)).

No civil action may be brought if the aggrieved employee has had a final determination on the same cause of action from an arbitrator pursuant to a negotiated grievance and arbitration procedure or an employment contract (Sec. 2-223.05(b)).

Fair employment practices. --The District of Columbia Commission on Human Rights and the Office of Human Rights are entrusted with the enforcement of the fair employment practices provisions.

POSTING

District employment. --The District must conspicuously display notices of employee protections and obligations under the District employee whistleblower protection law in each personnel office and in other public places (Sec. 1-615.57).

District contractors and instrumentalities. --District instrumentalities must conspicuously display notices of employee protections and obligations under the District contractor and instrumentality whistleblower protection law in each personnel office and in other public places (Sec. 2-223.06).

PENALTIES

District employment. --As part of the relief ordered in a judicial proceeding, any supervisor who is found to have violated the District employee whistleblower protection law will be subject to a civil fine not to exceed $1000 (Sec. 1-615.55).

District contractors and instrumentalities. --As part of the relief ordered in a judicial proceeding, any supervisor who is found to have violated the District contractor and instrumentality whistleblower protection law will be subject to a civil fine not to exceed $1000 (Sec. 2-223.04).

This is a summary of Whistleblower Protection Laws in the District of Columbia.