Senators Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) have reintroduced legislation designed to strengthen whistleblower protections at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”).  The bill, known as the SEC Whistleblower Reform Act, would make the following changes to the SEC whistleblower program: (1) protect whistleblowers from retaliation if they report violations to a direct superior (currently, whistleblowers are only protected against retaliation if they report directly to the SEC or certain select officials); (2) ensure claims and awards are processed in a more timely manner; and (3) clarify that whistleblowers cannot waive their rights through a pre-dispute arbitration agreement.  The legislation is co-sponsored by Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine), Senator Raphael Warnock (D-Ga), and Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev). 

Established in 2010, the SEC whistleblower program has collected more than $6.3 billion in fines since its inception, and received a record number of whistleblower tips in Fiscal Year 2002.  Click here to read more about G&G’s whistleblower practice.