AP Features, August 20th, 2007
Employees of one of the National Institutes of Health are being asked to report all contacts with Congress _ a request that one lawmaker suspects is an attempt to flush out would-be whistle-blowers.
Managers distributed "record of congressional inquiry" forms to employees of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, one of the 27 institutes and centers that make up the NIH. At least one of those workers reported being made "nervous" by the form _ and forwarded it to congressional investigators probing allegations of conflicts of interest, excessive spending and other management issues at the institute.
Separately, the NIH is beginning its own review of the management and leadership of the institute, NIH director Dr. Elias Zerhouni announced Monday. The embattled director of the institute, Dr. David Schwartz, is stepping aside for the duration of the review.
The form asks for details of each telephone call from the offices of members of the House or Senate, including on the information sought. Logging and reporting such calls is standard procedure in the congressional affairs offices of federal departments and agencies. But the forms don't appear to be something given out to "regular" employees, said Sen. Charles Grassley. Their distribution came in the midst of multiple and ongoing investigations by Congress, including by the Iowa Republican's staff. Nor do the forms appear to have been distributed elsewhere within NIH.
"Hopefully, the intent of this form was not to discourage or intimidate NIEHS employees from talking to Congress; but I must admit, the timing is curious," Grassley wrote Zerhouni in a letter, sent late Monday, seeking details of the circumstances of the form's distribution. It is illegal to deny or interfere with a federal employee's right to provide information to Congress.
The NIH encourages staff to "fully cooperate" with congressional inquiries and is committed to upholding federal whistle-blower protection, spokesman Don Ralbovsky said.
"Nonetheless, we take these questions seriously and are reviewing the matter," Ralbovsky said.
The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences focuses on how pollution and other toxins in the environment contribute to disease. It is located in Research Triangle Park, N.C.
The letter and NIH review are the latest salvos in an ongoing series of investigations of the institute. Grassley and other lawmakers have relied on federal whistle-blowers in conducting oversight of the institute.
Previously, those whistle-blowers have told Grassley's staff of employee discussions with institute management "that left them with the impression that there would be retaliation if it was discovered that they had provided information to among others, congressional investigators," the lawmaker wrote Zerhouni in a July 11 letter.
Schwartz is stepping aside to ensure the NIH review is "independent and unbiased," according to an NIH news release.
"My hope is that this intensive review will not only help clarify the issues that have recently surfaced, but it is also an opportunity to do a self assessment that will strengthen the institute and its programs," Zerhouni said.
A man who gave his name as "Tom" answered Schwartz's line Monday, took a message but then hung up when asked how he was connected to the institute director.
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On the Net:
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences: http://www.niehs.nih.gov/
Sen. Charles Grassley: http://grassley.senate.gov/public/
