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FederalDaily - November 6, 2007

Government Contractor Not Protected By Sovereign Immunity, Court Says

In a defeat for the Bush administration’s government outsourcing efforts, a federal appeals court has ruled that a private-sector, for-profit debt collector cannot protect itself from civil lawsuits by claiming it has the same sovereign immunity as a government agency. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit ruled Nov. 1 that a contractor for local Florida prosecutors, American Corrective Counseling Services, Inc. (ACCS), cannot claim sovereign immunity because it is not a government entity. California-based ACCS, which operates a bad check recovery program, was sued by two Florida consumers who said it charged exorbitant fees. The consumers said the company’s threats of prosecution and possible jail time violated their rights under state and federal consumer protection laws. “This decision has broad implications for government-employed contractors of all stripes,” said Deepak Gupta, an attorney for Public Citizen, an advocacy group that argued the appeal on behalf of the two consumers. “The court made clear that private contractors will remain responsible for their actions and can’t hide behind the cloak of sovereign immunity.” To see more, go to: www.publiccitizen.org/pressroom/release.cfm?ID=2538

Bill Would Streamline, Enhance Whistleblower Protections

A new bill introduced in the House would supplement federal whistleblower protection laws, by establishing a uniform, coherent system of legal protections for all private-sector, state and municipal employees who are retaliated against for disclosing threats to public safety or violations of federal law. If passed, the bill, H.R. 4047, would for the first time streamline the 32 disparate federal whistleblower statutes—while also filling arbitrary coverage gaps, according to Government Accountability Project (GAP) Legislative Representative Adam Miles. The bill was introduced by Rep. Lynn Woolsey, D-Calif., chair of the House Education and Labor Subcommittee on Workforce Protections and a group of 13 co-sponsors. HR 4047 applies current “best practices” throughout the private sector as well as for non-federal government employees. For example, whistleblower disclosures about certain violations of Federal law are protected, yet disclosures of slightly different violations are not protected, Woolsey noted. In many cases it is very difficult for an employee to know whether or not they will be protected if they speak up, Woolsey said. “Currently almost everyone is flying blind about whistleblower rights,” Miles said. “Nobody knows what the rules are without a legal specialist.” To see more, go to: www.whistleblower.org

House, Senate Finalize Labor-Veterans Funding Bill

House and Senate conferees don't take long to iron out differences on the Labor-Health & Human Services-Education funding bill for this year, which includes a significant boost in spending for veterans’ health care issues. The measure, H.R. 3042, will fund the three sprawling departments—Labor, Education and Health & Human Services (HHS). It also includes about $64.7 billion for military construction and veterans’ legislation. The House is expected to vote on the package on Nov. 6 or Nov. 7, with Senate action expected soon after. Democrats hope combining the two measures will spur White House acceptance, because the administration likes the military-veterans bill. If signed by President Bush, the bill would provide $43.1 billion—about $3.7 billion over the president’s budget request—for veterans’ medical care, claims processing personnel and facility improvements. It would also provide $124.2 million for 1,800 new claims processors to address the 400,000 Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) benefit claims backlog. The government currently is running via a stopgap measure until Nov. 16. The Democrats haven't sent the White House one appropriations bill for this fiscal year. To see more, go to: http://thomas.loc.gov/home/approp/app08.html