Molly Beck

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

MADISON - Attorney General Josh Kaul won't require Department of Justice staff to sign non-disclosure agreements — a practice his predecessor began ahead of a campaign against Kaul.

Kaul on Tuesday released an email he sent to DOJ employees telling them existing ethical rules and DOJ policies govern the release of confidential information, thus removing the need for a further safeguard that would bar staff from speaking about their work.

“It’s important that we lead by example,” Kaul said in a statement. “With today’s announcement, we are re-affirming the importance of transparency in government.”

Under former Attorney General Brad Schimel, DOJ staffers were sent an email in August instructing them to sign a nondisclosure agreement barring them from revealing any confidential information about their work — not just during their time in office but even after they leave the state.

The email included a spreadsheet with the names of 129 employees who had yet to sign the one-page statement.

"If your name is on the attached list, please print and sign the attached Agreement," the email said.

According to a copy of the agreement, it applied not just to current full-time employees but also "limited term employees, contractors, interns, externs and law enforcement partners."

DOJ spokeswoman Rebecca Ballweg said at the time the decision to require employees sign the agreements was not tied to Schimel's re-election campaign.

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Ballweg said the agreements were needed because DOJ employees deal regularly with sensitive and confidential information.

"There are a number of ethical rules and statutes that bar different employees at DOJ from releasing certain information," she told the Journal Sentinel in September.

For instance, workers at the Justice Department's State Crime Laboratory are barred by law from releasing privileged information. Another law prevents those in the Office of Crime Victim Services from sharing complaints or confidential matters.

Ballweg said in 2017 human resources staffers at the Justice Department realized different bureaus and offices were using different nondisclosure agreements. So a uniform agreement was drafted in May 2017 and all 757 staffers were asked to sign it.

Democrats criticized Schimel over the requirement during the fall campaign, saying it "created a culture of secrecy at his Department of Justice."

DOJ spokeswoman Gillian Drummond said Tuesday the agreements signed under Schimel "are no longer in effect."