Trump Administration Proposes US Government Employees Start Signing NDAs

Key Takeaways

• The Trump administration is proposing that all US Government employees should begin signing Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) .
• The rule will be officially published Wednesday, setting off a 30-day public comment period
• Per a draft of the agreement, employees who breach the terms could face potential disciplinary action, as well as civil and criminal penalties

The Trump administration is proposing that all US Government employees should begin signing Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) to prevent leaks to the media. Employees who breach the terms could face potential disciplinary action, as well as civil and criminal penalties. The details were revealed to a draft agreement uncovered Tuesday night.

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Trump Admin Efforts to Limit News Leaks Now Includes US Government Employees Signing NDAs

The new proposal gives each agency the ability to determine whether to adopt the agreement. Per the draft document, the agencies would require federal workers not to disclose “nonpublic, confidential or proprietary” information and to notify the agency of any theft or loss of such information.

“In the course of Employee’s employment, for the purpose of performing official duties associated with the Employee’s position, the Agency may grant the Employee access to non-public, confidential, or proprietary information, whether or not marked as such, which may include, but not be limited to, information relating to internal agency operations, personnel matters, personally identifiable information (PII), personal health information (PHI), procurement processes, or any sensitive, pre-decisional or deliberative material that is not currently publicly available and should not be disclosed under applicable law, Federal regulation, or government-wide policy (collectively “Confidential Government Information”).”

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According to lawyers who represent public workers, the requirement could be vulnerable to legal challenges on First Amendment grounds. These lawyers noted that a government employee’s speech is protected if the person is speaking as a private citizen. However, the Trump administration is looking to crack down on leaks of sensitive news and information to news outlets, something that has spurred political controversy for decades. Further, the nondisclosure agreement “is designed to provide agencies with a standardized mechanism for employees to acknowledge and agree to comply with obligations that already exist under law and regulation,” the US Office of Personnel Management wrote.

The rule will be officially published Wednesday, setting off a 30-day public comment period. The notice says individual “agencies would have discretion whether to use the NDA.” It is already a crime for federal employees to improperly share classified information. However, that hasn’t stopped several whistleblowers revealing confidential information to the media while acting as a private citizen. Federal employees are already also bound by the Privacy Act. That bill prohibits the disclosure of personal information held by the government, such as Social Security numbers or medical records.

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