The House of Representatives voted unanimously to pass the Whistleblower Protection Act last week, ensuring all of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) contracts include whistleblower protections.
The bipartisan bill, championed by Representative Monica De La Cruz (R-TX), seeks to mandate that whistleblower protections apply to all HUD-funded contracts, regardless of when they were signed.
“Whistleblower protections are one of the most effective tools we have to combat waste, fraud and abuse throughout our government,” Rep. De La Cruz said, highlighting an effort the Republican Party has continued to push for months.
In 2013, Congress passed whistleblower protections known as Section 4712. Rep. De La Cruz said that, although they were intended to apply to contracts awarded before 2013 and contracts that were later modified, those that predated 2013 have not been modified.
According to Rep. De La Cruz, many HUD programs have contracts that are “decades long,” making this issue more significant by leaving thousands of HUD contractors with uncertainty.
“This legislation fixes that by providing much-needed clarity to HUD and ensuring whistleblower protections apply to every HUD contractor, regardless of when a contract was signed,” she said.
Although the bill focuses on a federal agency in Washington, D.C., Rep. De La Cruz said this issue directly affects the average American – including her own constituents.
“Texas families are stretching every dollar right now, while scammers are cashing in on taxpayer-funded programs,” Rep. De La Cruz said. “And while Texas families play by the rules, scammers and corrupt leaders shouldn’t get rewarded.”
Rep. De La Cruz said the legislation would protect those who report government waste, fraud and abuse from retaliation.
“We must never allow retaliation against people who are simply trying to act in the taxpayers’ best interest,” she said. “And I will never stop rooting out corruption and cutting government waste, fraud, and abuse of your taxpayer dollars.”
