The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s annual report to Congress on the Dodd-Frank whistleblower program was released this week, and it touted the nine whistleblower awards doled out in the 2014 fiscal year—more than in the previous two years combined. It included the largest payout to date—a $30 million award to an unnamed foreign individual. The number of tips made to the SEC increased by 10 percent from FY2013, and the SEC is continuing efforts to increase public awareness about the program. Separately, in recent speeches, the U.S. Department of Justice leadership is highlighting whistleblower reporting as a significant law enforcement tool and strongly encouraging tipsters to come forward. DOJ also has publicly encouraged companies to cooperate in investigations of corporate wrongdoing and has warned them against retaliation. Other federal agencies also are joining the call: paying rewards, increasing incentives and strengthening antiretaliation prohibitions.
But what really incentivizes employees to become government whistleblowers? Is it the lure of a payout? Is it an instinct for self-protection? Is it anger that no one hears and acknowledges their concerns?
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