King Secures Confirmation that Whistleblowers Protections Remain Intact at the VA

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Angus King (I-ME), a senior member of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee (SVAC), is pressing the Department of Veterans' Affairs (VA) for confirmation that whistleblowers will remain protected from retribution. In a committee hearing, King secured agreement from Michael Tierney, Nominee to be Assistant Secretary of Veterans Affairs for the Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection (OAWP), that whistleblower protections will be left intact at the VA under his leadership.

The commitment comes on the heels of reports that federal employees will soon be forced to sign non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) in an attempt to quell free speech and silence critics of the administration.

"Mr. Tierney, I'm worried about sort of counter currents going on here. One is whistleblower protection, which you've talked about, and, investigating claims and protecting whistleblowers. And, you know, at the same time, last year, it was reported that the VA was requiring their employees to sign a non-disclosure agreement that did not include the legally required exclusion language for whistleblowers. Are you aware of that situation," said Senator King.

"Thank you. Senator, I have read reports about that," replied Mr. Tierney.

"Well,[…] OPM, just in the last week or so, has talked about […]new, non-disclosure agreements throughout the federal government. Have you reviewed the language that's being proposed?" asked Senator King.

"I have not Senator King, but I will 100% say that NDAs and whistleblower activity have no role together. […]Employees must feel 100% comfortable that they are not going to be restricted in reporting on bad conduct,"said Mr. Tierney.

"I would hope as the legal counsel in this situation that you would inform whoever's setting up these NDAs that that language must be in there, that says this does not include whistleblower complaints and the protections are left intact. Will you commit to me that you'll do that?"asked Senator King.

"Yes, Senator, and it's also on OAWP's website. It's very clear that any whistleblower statute overrides any type of NDA language. And I agree with that. There's no role for NDA's and whistleblowers," confirmed Mr. Tierney.

Representing one of the states with the highest rates of military families and veterans per capita, Senator King is a staunch advocate for America's servicemembers and veterans. Additionally, King has repeatedly advocated for the Department of Veterans Affairs workforce. Earlier this year, he introduced bipartisan legislation that would require the VA to develop a long-term workforce strategy to improve outcomes at the VA. During a SVAC hearing in January, King pressed VA Secretary Doug Collins to release the VA contracts that he canceled, including those canceled in Maine, so that veterans are aware of potential impacts on patient care and benefits. Last year, he sent a letter to Secretary Doug Collins raising concerns about a leaked report that highlighted plans called for by Elon Musk's DOGE to cut 83,000 VA employees.

Earlier this year, he was honored by The American Legion with its 2026 Distinguished Public Service Award. Last year, Senator King was honored by the Disabled American Veterans as its 2025 Legislator of the Year. He was also recognized by the Wounded Warrior Project as the 2024 Legislator of the Year for his "outstanding legislative effort and achievement to improve the lives of the wounded, ill, and injured veterans."

###