Committee Approves Local Lawmaker's Bill to Protect Legislative Whistleblowers

By City News Service:

An Inland Empire lawmaker’s bill seeking to establish protections for legislative staffers who report ethics or other breaches by their bosses is headed to the Assembly floor for a vote.

AB 289, the “Legislative Employee Whistleblower Protection Act,” received unanimous support in the Assembly Committee on Rules Thursday.

The bill’s sponsor, Assemblywoman Melissa Melendez, R-Lake Elsinore, said AB 289 exemplifies good government.

“Lawmakers are not above the law and have the responsibility to ensure there is integrity in government by creating an atmosphere of transparency and accountability,” Melendez said. “I will continue to push for policies to hold lawmakers to the highest standard of accountability in order to preserve the public’s trust. In the end, this is the people’s government and shall remain the people’s government.”

AB 289 would entitle legislators’ staff members to the same protections extended to employees in state agencies and the courts under the Whistleblower Protection Act of 1999. Staffers would be free to file ethics complaints or other official allegations of wrongdoing by lawmakers without fear of retaliation.

Melendez wants provisions of existing law to be universally applied, so that any member of the Legislature or his or her agent would be subject to penalties for using “official authority or influence for the purpose of intimidating, threatening, coercing or commanding” a whistleblower who might be dissuaded from exposing misdeeds.

AB 289 would potentially open up a lawmaker or other alleged violator of the Legislative Employee Whistleblower Protection Act to fines of up to $10,000, a misdemeanor criminal conviction, civil suits and other consequences.

Melendez introduced a similar measure in the 2013-14 legislative session, but the bill died in the Senate Appropriations Committee.

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