United States 119th Congress Status: Passed House Bipartisan · 1 D · 1 R cosponsors

HR 5578 — Expanding Whistleblower Protections for Contractors Act of 2026

Last action — Received in the Senate. Read twice. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 465.

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. ✓
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed House
  4. 4
    Passed Senate
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill has passed the House. Introduced September 26, 2025. It now moves to the second chamber.

Next likely step: consideration and a floor vote in the Senate.

Odds of enactment

High chance

Based on the sponsor, cosponsors, and committee posture, this bill has a high chance of becoming law.

Upgrade to see the exact probability and what's driving it.

A statistical estimate from our own model of past outcomes — an insight, not a guarantee. Policymaking is volatile.

Prognosis

Advancing 46% · moderate confidence

  • Passed House

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 2 sponsors

    1 primary, 1 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Bipartisan support

    Sponsored across 2 parties (1 D · 1 R) — cross-party backing.

Based on stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes, and cross-state momentum — a description of the observable signals, not a prediction.

In plain language

The bill aims to enhance protections for whistleblowers among government contractors.

This legislation seeks to expand the legal protections available to whistleblowers working for contractors of the federal government. By improving these protections, the bill intends to encourage reporting of misconduct without fear of retaliation.

What this means for you
  • Workers: If you work for a government contractor, this bill may offer you improved protection when reporting misconduct.

Summary

Expanding Whistleblower Protections for Contractors Act of 2025This bill expands whistleblower protections for employees of federal contractors and grant recipients to include the act of refusing to obey an unlawful order and to apply these protections to members of the intelligence community and other governmental employees.Current law protects employees of federal contractors or grant recipients from a reprisal (i.e., discharge, demotion, or discrimination) for disclosing evidence to Congress or another appropriate official of certain misconduct involving federal contracts, grants, or funds. The bill expands these protections to include an employee's refusal to obey an order that would require the employee to violate a law, rule, or regulation related to any contract, subcontract, grant, or subgrant. The bill also specifies that these protections apply to employees of federal contractors or grant recipients who are current or former members of the intelligence community or employees of state, local, or tribal governments. Further, the bill specifies that these protections may not be waived in a predispute arbitration agreement and renders any such agreement unenforceable.The bill specifies that an executive branch official may not request a federal contractor or grant recipient to engage in a reprisal against a protected employee, and it authorizes federal agencies to propose disciplinary action against officials that do so.

Bill Text

What changed in the latest version

9 added · 1 removed

Plain-language change summary

The text shows that HR 5578 has been placed on the Senate calendar, indicating that it is under consideration in the Senate, after being received and read twice. Additionally, the reference to the bill being "Engrossed in House" has been removed. This change matters because it signifies a shift in the legislative process, moving the bill from the House to the Senate for further action.

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Latest
5578 Engrossed in House (EH)] <DOC> 119th CONGRESS 2d Session H.
5578 Placed on Calendar Senate (PCS)] <DOC> Calendar No.
465 119th CONGRESS 2d Session H.
5578 _______________________________________________________________________ AN ACT To ensure that whistleblowers, including contractors, are protected from retaliation when a Federal employee orders a reprisal, and for other purposes.
5578 _______________________________________________________________________ IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES July 21, 2026 Received;
read twice and placed on the calendar _______________________________________________________________________ AN ACT To ensure that whistleblowers, including contractors, are protected from retaliation when a Federal employee orders a reprisal, and for other purposes.
Clerk.
KEVIN F.
119th CONGRESS 2d Session H.
MCCUMBER, Clerk.
Calendar No.
465 119th CONGRESS 2d Session H.
_______________________________________________________________________ July 21, 2026 Received;
read twice and placed on the calendar
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Action History

  1. Introduced in House

  2. Introduced in House

  3. Referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the Committee on Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

  4. Referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the Committee on Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

  5. Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held

  6. Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by the Yeas and Nays: 44 - 0.

  7. Mr. Burlison moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended.

  8. Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H4664-4666)

  9. DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 5578.

  10. Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H4664-4665)

  11. On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H4664-4665)

  12. Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.

  13. Received in the Senate. Read twice. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 465.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 1 co-sponsors · 545 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (1)

Not signed on (545)

545 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 545 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

public-safety civil-rights labor
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does HR 5578 do?
Expanding Whistleblower Protections for Contractors Act of 2025This bill expands whistleblower protections for employees of federal contractors and grant recipients to include the act of refusing to obey an unlawful order and to apply these protections to members of the intelligence community and other governmental employees.Current law protects employees of federal contractors or grant recipients from a reprisal (i.e., discharge, demotion, or discrimination) for disclosing evidence to Congress or another appropriate official of certain misconduct involving federal contracts, grants, or funds. The bill expands these protections to include an employee's refusal to obey an order that would require the employee to violate a law, rule, or regulation related to any contract, subcontract, grant, or subgrant. The bill also specifies that these protections apply to employees of federal contractors or grant recipients who are current or former members of the intelligence community or employees of state, local, or tribal governments. Further, the bill specifies that these protections may not be waived in a predispute arbitration agreement and renders any such agreement unenforceable.The bill specifies that an executive branch official may not request a federal contractor or grant recipient to engage in a reprisal against a protected employee, and it authorizes federal agencies to propose disciplinary action against officials that do so.
Who sponsors HR 5578?
HR 5578 is sponsored by Garcia, Robert (Democratic) and Comer, James (Republican).
What is the current status of HR 5578?
This bill has passed the House. Introduced September 26, 2025. It now moves to the second chamber.
Where can I track HR 5578?
Track HR 5578 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

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