Washington, D.C. – A coalition of pro-democracy organizations are uniting to declare their strong opposition to a recent U.S. Office of Personnel Management’s (OPM) proposal to institute a standardized nondisclosure agreement (NDA) that federal agencies could require their workers to sign as a condition of employment. In a letter sent today to OPM Director Scott Kupor as part of the public commenting process, 62 organizations, led by Democracy Forward’s Civil Service Strong and Protect Democracy, outlined a series of reasons why the OPM proposal is unconstitutional, contrary to federal law, and bad policy.
“Requiring that federal employees sign unlawful nondisclosure agreements will not just prevent dedicated and talented civil servants from delivering the services people rely on in communities across the nation, but it will allow administration officials to act with impunity as oversight efforts are stifled by legal threats,” said Skye Perryman, President and CEO of Democracy Forward. “We are honored to work with our partners in this effort to demonstrate a broad and united front of people, communities, and civic institutions committed to defeating this insidious and unlawful proposal.”
“The American government belongs to its people, and how it works should not be shrouded in secrecy,” said Jules Torti, Counsel at Protect Democracy. “ The First Amendment rights of civil servants to speak out on matters of public concern protect us all, and the Trump Administration’s illegal NDA proposal would trample those rights while hiding the important work of government from public view.”
On May 27, 2026, OPM published a notice of a proposal, which would institute a standardized NDA that, if implemented, would violate the First Amendment rights of public employees and the public itself. The proposed NDA would unlawfully force civil servants to self-censor rather than risk serious consequences, which is not only a clear violation of the employee’s First Amendment rights, but also a dangerous threat to efforts to hold the government accountable to the people. The proposed NDA would also reduce the effectiveness of congressional oversight, undermine whistleblowing, impede inspector general investigations, and deprive the public of information about government operations, keeping the American people in the dark about corruption, lawlessness, abuses of power, gross mismanagement and public safety threats as well as the normal operations of their government.
“If finalized, [the OPM proposal] would chill lawful speech, undermine whistleblowing and oversight, confuse employees about their rights and obligations, and worsen the federal government’s recruitment and retention challenges,” reads the letter. “The First Amendment, federal whistleblower laws, and basic principles of sound public administration all counsel against finalizing the proposed NDA.”
Read the comment letter submitted today here.
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Democracy Forward Foundation is a national legal organization that advances democracy and social progress through litigation, policy, public education, and regulatory engagement. For more information, please visit www.democracyforward.org.
Protect Democracy is a nonpartisan, nonprofit group working to prevent American democracy from declining into a more authoritarian form of government.
