We have 29 more days to make our views known in regard to the executive wishing all federal workers to sign a very broad NDA. This will crush transparency and notice of abuse, and there will likely be no more whistleblowing.

Anyway, here it is, along with the link so we can make our comments (of course it is not hyperlinked on the page, we need to copy it and paste it into our browser. WP has made it a live link in this post, but it doesn’t work.) It’s our duty and a right we still have; if we do not use it, we will most certainly use it. I found out about this yesterday on MPS’s post; it just took me a bit to get to this.

You can find this here. (This hyperlink is good; I made it myself and it works.) It is a .pdf. The NDA notice begins in the lower right-hand column.

From within the public notice, here is the info for submitting our comments:

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments
using the Federal eRulemaking Portal at
https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for sending comments.
The general policy for comments and
other submissions from members of the
public is to make these submissions
available for public viewing at https://
http://www.regulations.gov without change,
and including any personal identifiers
or contact information. Before finalizing
the NDA, OPM will consider all
comments received on or before the
closing date for comments. OPM may
make changes to the NDA after
considering the comments received.

And a little more:

Request for Comment
OPM welcomes public comments on
all aspects of the draft NDA, including
whether the Privacy Act statement’s
description of the authority, principal
purposes, routine uses, and effects
provide sufficient notice to employees.
The draft NDA is available in the docket
for this notice on regulations.gov. See
https://www.regulations.gov/document/
OPM-2026-0100-0003. OPM specifically
requests comment on the following
issues.

1. What scope of information should
   be covered by the NDA? Should it cover
   only unclassified information? How do
   you understand the terms confidential
   and confidentiality in the context of this
   NDA? What customization of the NDA,
   if any, may be necessary for agencies to
   ensure it covers the appropriate
   information?
2. Does the NDA clearly communicate
   the types of information that would be
   subject to non-disclosure requirements?
   If not, how could OPM better describe
   what information can or cannot be
   disclosed to ensure employees have
   appropriate notice of their
   responsibilities?
3. Are there other statutes to which
   OPM should cite in Appendix A of the
   NDA when describing the nondisclosure
   requirements applicable to individuals
   working for or on behalf of the Federal
   government?
4. Do you have suggestions regarding
   the layout or formatting of the NDA?
5. Does the Privacy Act statement in
   the NDA provide sufficient notice to
   employees of the authorities, principal purposes, routine uses, and effects of
6. the form?
7. Does the OPM/GOVT–1 system of
   records notice provide sufficient notice
   that the government-wide system of
   records would maintain records related
   to the signing of, or failure to sign, the
   NDA?
8. What are the appropriate actions, if
   any, for agencies to consider taking if
   existing employees choose not to sign
   the NDA?
9. What are the appropriate actions, if
   any, for agencies to consider taking if
   new employees choose not to sign the
   NDA?
10. Does the NDA clearly communicate
    the potential consequences of refusal to
    sign the form for both existing and new
    employees, along with whether signing
    the form is voluntary or mandatory?
11. What else should OPM consider
    with regard to the NDA??
    OPM will consider comments
    received before finalizing the NDA.

There are several other things there, if you have some time and want to see what the exec is doing besides trying to hide all they do and finally/fully cut off our representation, even as we are taxed for government work. I don’t believe we can let this slide, but maybe that’s only me. Anyway, if you also don’t like this, please go, read the bit, and write what your conscience tells you. I’m certain you will not be alone in doing so. The thing is, our government, for which we all pay, is not a business. The only parts that should not be public are those that actually shield the actual security of the country, things such as when we go after Osama Bin Laden, and locations of items that other countries might like to drone. There should be no covering of regular day-to-day government business-that is our business and we have the right to know.