House Democrats Move to Block Trump's Federal Worker NDA Plan

House Democrats are moving to block a Trump administration plan that would allow agencies to require federal employees to sign nondisclosure agreements covering a broad range of non-public government information, Newsmax said in a post on X.

Reps. Greg Landsman of Ohio and Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois introduced the No Disrupting Accountability (NDA) Act, which would prohibit federal funding from being used to “develop, finalize, implement, administer or enforce” the administration’s blanket NDA proposal, according to Federal News Network.

House Democrats are moving to block a Trump administration plan that would allow agencies to require federal employees to sign nondisclosure agreements covering a broad range of non-public government information. https://t.co/w5vJ405LvH

— NEWSMAX (@NEWSMAX) November 15, 2026

What the bill would do

Landsman’s office said in a Nov. 12 press release that the measure would prevent federal funds from being used to mandate governmentwide NDAs that violate whistleblower protections. The release said the bill is endorsed by the American Federation of Government Employees, the National Treasury Employees Union, AFSCME and the National Federation of Federal Employees.

“Government employees should never be silenced from exposing waste, fraud, abuse and corruption — and federal funds should never be used to allow it,” Landsman said, according to Federal News Network. “Our bill will make sure taxpayer dollars protect the public interest.”

Krishnamoorthi said in the press release that the legislation “would overturn that rule and make clear that no nondisclosure agreement can override federal whistleblower protections.”

The administration’s case

The Office of Personnel Management proposed regulations in May that would create a standardized NDA for federal employees, with each agency deciding whether to require its employees to sign it, Federal News Network reported. OPM said the agreement would help stop government documents from being leaked to the press or otherwise made public while reinforcing workforce accountability, and administration officials emphasized that it would not restrict or supersede whistleblower protections, according to Federal News Network.

“Americans should be able to trust that their personal data and sensitive government information are being handled responsibly,” OPM Director Scott Kupor said in May, Federal News Network reported. “This proposal reinforces accountability across the federal workforce while helping agencies better protect against unauthorized disclosures.”

The watchdog group Project on Government Oversight warned the proposal could lead to a “widespread crackdown” on whistleblowing and free speech rights, Federal News Network reported.

What happens next

OPM received nearly 32,000 public comments during a 30-day comment period and has not yet issued a final rule, according to Federal News Network. In August, Reps. Eugene Vindman and Suhas Subramanyam of Virginia introduced a separate bill, the Federal Worker Protection Act, that would require the Office of Special Counsel to review NDA templates before agencies distribute them, Federal News Network reported.

Federal News Network reported that neither bill is likely to gain much traction for the rest of the calendar year, but federal employee unions have been urging Congress to challenge the administration’s workforce changes once Democrats take the House majority in January.

Sources

• NEWSMAX on X
• Federal News Network: House Democrats seek to block governmentwide NDA proposal
• Rep. Greg Landsman: Landsman, Krishnamoorthi Introduce Bill to Stop NDAs from Silencing Whistleblowers
• Spectrum News 1: No Disrupting Accountability Act introduced

Reporting by Daily Beltway.