PRIA, Government Policy, Made Personal

§7515 Discipline of Supervisors Based on Retaliation Against Whistleblowers

Title 5 › PART III — EMPLOYEES › Subpart F — Labor-Management and Employee Relations › CHAPTER 75 — ADVERSE ACTIONS › SUBCHAPTER II — REMOVAL, SUSPENSION FOR MORE THAN 14 DAYS, REDUCTION IN GRADE OR PAY, OR FURLOUGH FOR 30 DAYS OR LESS › § 7515

Last updated Sep 22, 2026|Official source

Summary

Requires agency leaders to start discipline when a supervisor is found to have committed certain forbidden personnel actions. Key terms: agency — a federal agency as defined in law, not including parts of the intelligence community; prohibited personnel action — doing or failing to do something that breaks paragraphs (8), (9), or (14) of 5 U.S.C. 2302(b); supervisor — an employee who counts as a supervisor under the usual federal definition. If allowed by section 1214(f), and if the agency head, an administrative law judge, the Merit Systems Protection Board, the Special Counsel, a U.S. judge, or the agency Inspector General finds a supervisor guilty of such an action, the agency head must propose discipline. For a first offense the head must propose at least a 3-day suspension and may also propose pay or grade reduction; for a second offense the head must propose removal. The supervisor must get written notice of the reasons and the evidence and has 14 days to answer and submit evidence. If no evidence or the evidence is judged insufficient, the agency must carry out the proposed action. These actions follow the same rules and appeal procedures as actions under sections 7503, 7513, or 7543, except for certain listed paragraphs of those sections. The agency head cannot delegate the decision about whether the supervisor committed the prohibited action.

Title 5, §7515

Government Organization and Employees, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Definitions.—

In this section

(1)

(2)the term “prohibited personnel action” means taking or failing to take an action in violation of paragraph (8), (9), or (14) of section 2302(b) against an employee of an agency; and

(3)the term “supervisor” means an employee who would be a supervisor, as defined in section 7103(a), if the entity employing the employee was an agency.

(b)Proposed Disciplinary Actions.—

(1)In general.—

Subject to section 1214(f), if the head of the agency in which a supervisor is employed, an administrative law judge, the Merit Systems Protection Board, the Special Counsel, a judge of the United States, or the Inspector General of the agency in which a supervisor is employed has determined that the supervisor committed a prohibited personnel action, the head of the agency in which the supervisor is employed, consistent with the procedures required under paragraph (2)—

(A)for the first prohibited personnel action committed by the supervisor—

(i)shall propose suspending the supervisor for a period that is not less than 3 days; and

(ii)may propose an additional action determined appropriate by the head of the agency, including a reduction in grade or pay; and

(B)for the second prohibited personnel action committed by the supervisor, shall propose removing the supervisor.

(2)Procedures.—

(A)Notice.—

A supervisor against whom an action is proposed to be taken under paragraph (1) is entitled to written notice that—

(i)states the specific reasons for the proposed action; and

(ii)informs the supervisor about the right of the supervisor to review the material that is relied on to support the reasons given in the notice for the proposed action.

(B)Answer and evidence.—

(i)In general.—

A supervisor who receives notice under subparagraph (A) may, not later than 14 days after the date on which the supervisor receives the notice, submit an answer and furnish evidence in support of that answer.

(ii)No evidence furnished; insufficient evidence furnished.—

If, after the end of the 14-day period described in clause (i), a supervisor does not furnish any evidence as described in that clause, or if the head of the agency in which the supervisor is employed determines that the evidence furnished by the supervisor is insufficient, the head of the agency shall carry out the action proposed under subparagraph (A) or (B) of paragraph (1), as applicable.

(C)Scope of procedures.—

An action carried out under this section— (i)

(ii)shall not be subject to—

(I)paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 7503(b);

(II)paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (b) and subsection (c) of section 7513; and

(III)paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (b) and subsection (c) of section 7543.

(3)Non-delegation.—

If the head of an agency is responsible for determining whether a supervisor has committed a prohibited personnel action for purposes of paragraph (1), the head of the agency may not delegate that responsibility.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Prior Provisions

A prior section 7515, Pub. L. 115–73, title I, § 104(a), Oct. 26, 2017, 131 Stat. 1236, related to discipline of supervisors based on retaliation against whistleblowers, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 115–91, div. A, title X, § 1097(e)(1)(A), Dec. 12, 2017, 131 Stat. 1621.