1
Department of Defense
DIRECTIVE
NUMBER 7050.06
April 17, 2015
IG DoD
SUBJECT: Military Whistleblower Protection
References: See Enclosure 1
1. PURPOSE. This directive reissues DoD Directive (DoDD) 7050.06 (Reference (a)) to update
established policies and assigned responsibilities for military whistleblower protection pursuant
to section 1034 of Title 10, United States Code (U.S.C.) (Reference (b)).
2. APPLICABILITY. This directive applies to OSD, the Military Departments, the Office of
the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Joint Staff, the Combatant Commands, the
Defense Agencies, the DoD Field Activities, and all other organizational entities within the DoD
(referred to collectively in this directive as the “DoD Components”) and the Office of the
Inspector General of the Department of Defense (IG DoD).
3. POLICY. It is DoD policy that:
a. Members of the Military Services (referred to in this directive as “Service members”) are
free to make protected communications.
b. No person will restrict a Service member from making lawful communications to a
member of Congress or an inspector general (IG).
c. Service members will be free from reprisal for making or preparing to make or being
perceived as making or preparing to make a protected communication.
d. No person may take or threaten to take an unfavorable personnel action or withhold or
threaten to withhold a favorable personnel action in reprisal against any Service member for
making or preparing to make, or being perceived as making or preparing to make a protected
communication.
e. No investigation is required when a Service member (hereinafter, use of “Service
member” includes both current and former Service members) submits a reprisal complaint more
than 1 year after the date that the member became aware of the personnel action that is the
