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A group of Senators is urging the Office of Special Counsel to take immediate action to review the presidential transition team’s request for the names Energy Department employees or contractors who worked on climate change projects.
“These requests appear to have violated long-standing federal laws designated to protect civil servants against coercion for partisan purposes,” said the letter from nine senators.
The Office of Special Counsel, headed by Special Counsel Carolyn Lerner, is an independent agency charged with protecting federal employees and whistleblowers from improper personnel actions.
In the letter, the senators urge the Office of Special Counsel to investigate whether the questionnaire circulated by transition officials violates merit system rules established by the Civil Service Reform Act. The letter also asks that the Special Counsel communicate to Congress guidance on when the Office will investigate instances of retaliation or discrimination against federal employees implementing policies of a previous administration.
NTEU, which represents about 1,500 DOE employees, praised the letter. When the questionnaire was first sent to the agency, National President Tony Reardon immediately affirmed NTEU’s commitment to protecting the rights of its members. President Reardon has also been on the forefront of this issue in the media, appearing on CNN and ABC News.
Separately, NTEU leaders have written to Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz thanking him for refusing to provide any lists or names of DOE personnel to the transition team.