Mark Takano: “I include in the Record a letter from the Office of Special Counsel to Representative Kirkpatrick praising her for her…”

“I include in the Record a letter from the Office of Special Counsel to Representative Kirkpatrick praising her for her amendment. I understand the majority also supports the Kirkpatrick amendment, so it is bipartisan support. U.S. Office of Special Counsel, Washington, DC, September 13, 2016. Re Pending Legislation to Protect VA Whistleblowers. Hon. Ann Kirkpatrick, Washington, DC. Dear Representative Kirkpatrick: The Office of Special Counsel (OSC) has received thousands of whistleblower retaliation complaints and disclosures from Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) employees. Based on this experience, we write to express our strong support for your amendment to H.R. 5620, the VA Accountability First and Appeals Modernization Act. Based on our review of the amendment, we believe it will advance the interests of VA whistleblowers. Importantly, the amendment establishes the Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection (OAWP). OSC's ongoing work with VA whistleblowers will benefit from having a high- level point of contact with the statutory authority to identify, correct, and prevent threats to patient care and to discipline those responsible for creating them. The establishment of similar offices at other agencies, including the Federal Aviation Administration, has significantly improved the whistleblower experience at those agencies.…”