Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to join you at today's nomination hearing for Scott Bloch to be the Special Counsel at the Office of Special Counsel (OSC). I welcome Mr. Bloch and his family and friends to our Committee this afternoon.

The Office of Special Counsel was created under the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978. It is an independent federal investigative and prosecutorial agency whose primary mission is to safeguard the merit system by protecting federal employees and applicants from prohibited personnel practices, especially reprisals for whistleblowing.

Unfortunately, for many years, OSC was seen as more of an adversary than as an ally to whistleblowers. During congressional hearings in the 1980s, this Committee was urged to abolish the OSC. Instead, we chose to strengthen the agency and gave it a new charter "to protect employees, especially whistleblowers, from prohibited personnel practices" and to "act in the interests of employees" who seek its assistance.

Our Committee affirmed that the OSC should not act contrary to those interests. This requires the Special Counsel to be a strong and independent advocate for whistleblowers.

The Special Counsel must also be an educator who will ensure that federal employees understand their rights and protections when disclosing waste, fraud, and abuse within the government. All too often, workers find out too late that they are not covered by the Whistleblower Protection Act or are unaware of their rights and protections. If confirmed, I urge you to make it a priority to inform federal employees of their rights and protections or lack thereof.

Employees should not risk losing their jobs or being subject to possible civil or criminal penalties because their agencies failed to educate its workforce of their rights and protections under the law. Federal civil servants should be encouraged to come forward with information vital to ensuring government accountability and a secure nation.

Mr. Bloch, I want to thank you for being with us today.