Procedures for the Handling of Retaliation Complaints Under the Employee Protection Provisions of Six Federal Environmental Statutes and Section 211 of the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, as Amended

The Department of Labor amends the regulations governing the employee protection ("whistleblower") provisions of Section 211 of the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, as amended ("ERA"), to implement the statutory changes enacted into law on August 8, 2005, as part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005. The regulations also make the procedures for handling retaliation complaints under Section 211 of the ERA and the environmental whistleblower statutes listed in Part 24 as consistent as possible with the more recently promulgated procedures for handling retaliation complaints under other employee protection provisions administered by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration ("OSHA"), see 29 CFR parts 1979-1981.