MSPB

The Merit Systems Protection Board (“Board”) has jurisdiction over individual right of action (“IRA”) appeals only when a petitioner makes “non-frivolous allegations.” See Yunus v. Dep’t of Veterans Affairs, 242 F.3d 1367, 1371 (Fed. Cir. 2001). Thomas Daniels, an employee of the Social Security Administration (“SSA”), petitions for review of a Board order dismissing his IRA appeal for lack of jurisdiction. Daniels has not made a non-frivolous allegation under the Whistleblower Protection Act (“WPA”). Accordingly, we deny Daniels’s petition for review.

I.

Under the WPA, a federal employer (such as the SSA) is prohibited from taking a “personnel action with respect to any employee ... because of any disclosure of information by an employee” if the employee “reasonably believes [the disclosed information] evidences (i) any violation of any law, rule, or regulation, or (ii) gross mismanagement, a gross waste of funds, an abuse of authority, or a substantial and specific danger to public health or safety.” 5 U.S.C. § 2302 (b)(8)(A).

An aggrieved employee (such as Daniels) may “seek corrective action from the [Board]” by filing an IRA. 5 U.S.C. § 1221 (a). For the Board to…