The Trump administration has proposed a government-wide non-disclosure agreement that would require all current and future federal employees to sign a sweeping gag order — one that carries criminal penalties, financial clawbacks, and restrictions that follow workers even after they leave government service. The Office of Personnel Management, which serves as the human resources office for the US government, said it wants to create an NDA form for federal agencies to use for both new and existing employees, with the stated goal of preventing them from sharing confidential information with journalists.
The draft notice was posted to the Federal Register on Tuesday and will be open for a 30-day public comment period. It uses an expansive definition of privileged information that goes beyond typical classified and unclassified designations. Civil liberties groups and legal experts have since raised alarms over the proposal's breadth and its implications for press freedom.
