NATIONAL ACTIVE AND RETIRED FEDERAL EMPLOYEES ASSOCIATION

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“Everything we gain, everything we lose, is by act of Congress.”

Every month is NARFE-PAC month,
it is our key to Capital Clout.

Click here -->> NARFE-PAC: Mission and Urgency

 

Updated 6/2/2009 

111th Congress Convened on January 6, 2009



Grass-Roots Advocacy Month

NARFE has designated the month of August 2009 as GRASS-ROOTS ADVOCACY MONTH. Here is how you and your chapter can help.

Everybody talks about the fact that the month of August in the Nation’s Capital is hot and humid. Few talk about how August in Washington means that traffic jams disappear and business suits are exchanged for more casual wear. But both are true, and there’s a reason. Because August is the month that Congress traditionally schedules what it calls “Summer Work Period” and what the rest of us call “Summer Recess”. In short, August is the month when the 535 members of the House and Senate head out of town, and thousands of lobbyists, lawyers and legislative aids also take their leave until after Labor Day. The legislators primarily head for family vacations, followed by home town meetings and stints in their district and state offices.

August is not a prime month to lobby the legislators in Washington; nobody’s in town. However, August is one of the best months for citizen advocates to meet and talk with legislators on their home turf. That’s where our best advocacy can be done before the fall session of Congress gets underway.

We are told that many chapters don’t meet, or are “dark”, during the summer, but that is all the more reason for a delegation of chapter (or federation) officers and interested members to use this time to keep NARFE advocacy momentum going. The first priority for NARFE officers and activists during Grass-Roots Advocacy Month should be to pre-arrange face-to-face meetings with their own Representative and Senators or their staff.  However, if you are unable to schedule an appointment (see checklists for meetings with your lawmaker at the documents link below), public functions that your legislator will attend provide an appropriate opportunity to get some “face time” with him or her.  Toward that end, the Legislative Department will provide federation and chapter officers with dates, times and locations of town hall meetings as we receive them.  Information about town hall meetings is available through the link provided below.  Just a few minutes of face to face time, identifying yourselves as NARFE members, and citing the “fairness” issues of our legislative priorities can make an impact.

Individual NARFE members can support the efforts of federal and chapter officers by writing and calling their own Representative and two Senators during Advocacy Month.  Such communication reminds our elected officials of the significant numbers of federal worker and annuitant activists who live in their districts and states.

The Legislative Department has sent information and talking points for Advocacy Month to federation and chapter presidents and legislative chairs and district officers.

This material is available to all NARFE members and can be accessed by logging in the NARFE website www.narfe.org and going to the Legislative Department. You will find Talking Points and many more helps.

 


 
Federation Members
As of 04/15/2008
Congressional
NARFE
District
Members
1
560
2
506
3
472
4
415
5
470
6
544
7
572
8
437
9
265
4342
Members not in Tennessee
257
NARFE Eligible Annuitants (OPM Estimate) & "Federal Government Worker (Census) ”
(from www.census.gov) as of 6/28/06
By Congressional District
OPM Est.
Census
Sum
   
5,792
5,435
11,227    
4,178
9,497
13,675    
4,618
10,095
14,713    
4,370
7,398
11,768    
4,873
5,950
10,823    
4,410
6,394
10,804    
4,626
9,803
14,429    
4,018
7,597
11,615    
2,916
10,436
13,352    
39,801
72,605
112,406    
         
         

Another set of Information for your use
The Federal Family in Tennessee
Taken from the June 2008 NARFE Magazine
Total
Monthly
Employee
Survivor
Active
Military
Annuitants
Annuities
Annuitants*
Annuitants*
Federal
Retirement
on Roll*
($000s)*
Employees**
System***
42,647
$79,662
31,997
10,650
49,271
49,597
Average Montly Annuity
75.03%
24.97%
$1,868
Total Number of Federal Retired folks affected by Legislation
42,647
49,271
49,597
141,515
If the Acitive Federal and Military Retires have spouses at the same rate as the
Federal Retires have survivors.
Active
Military
Federal
Retirement
Spouses
Spouses
Then we can expect to have the following spouses
12,304
12,386
Total Number of Federal Retired folks affected by Legislation,
including Spouses -->>
166,205
* Fiscal Year 2006, ** Based on workplace, Fiscal Year 2002, *** Fiscal Year 2008

Click Here-->> NARFE'S LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM FOR THE 111th CONGRESS (2009-2010)

Bill Name Number of Cosponsors; Position Rating
 S. 491 - Premium Conversion 

 35

We support this legislation
 H.R. 1203 - Premium Conversion
161
We support this legislation

   
 S. 484 - Repeal of GPO and WEP
28
We support this legislation
H.R. 235 - Repeal of GPO and WEP
283
We support this legislation

Our priority legislative bills in the 111th. Congress:

Current Senate Cosponsors - 35
Neither Senator Alexander or Corker are cosponsors

Current House Cosponsors - 161
TN Representative cosponsors are: Zach Wamp,  Bart Gordon and Lincoln Davis


  • Repeal of the Social Security Government Pension Offset and Windfall Elimination Provision GPO/WEP; New bills have been introduced (H.R. 235 and S. 484, contact will need to be made to get all of the cosponsors in 110th Congress to again cosponsor the new bill in this the 111th Congress.

H.R. 235 - Repeal the Government Pension Offset and Windfall Elimination Provision
Representative Howard Berman (D-CA-28)

NARFE Priority Legislation - The Social Security Fairness Act of 2009 amends the Social Security Act to repeal both the Government Pension Offset and the Windfall Elimination Provision, Offsets that eliminate or significantly reduce a federal retiree's Social Security benefits.
Current House Cosponsors - 283
TN Representative cosponsors are: Phil Roe, John Duncan, Zach Wamp, Lincoln Davis, Bart Gordon, Marsha Blackburn and Steve Cohen. TN Representatives who have not cosponsored are: Jim Cooper and John Tanner.

 

S. 484, To repeal entirely both the Government Pension Offset (GPO) and the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP)
Current Cosponsors - 24
Neither Senator Alexander or Corker are cosponsors

Current Status of Legislation in 111th Congress ->> click here


How each of you can help

If we snooze we lose!

We encourage everyone to frequently (say once a quarter or even once a month) e-mail and/or phone your elected officials. To do this, NARFE headquarters provides a toll free telephone number to the capitol switchboard. To contact the Washington office of your senator or representative call this number 1-866-220-0044 and ask for his or her office by name, or if you do not know who your representative is, tell them your city and state or zip code and they will look it up. Note: postal mail, because of security concerns takes weeks to reach officials in Washington so emails and telephone calls are better.

Each of your legislators maintain offices in Washington DC and in their districts. For a list of all the phone numbers, FAX numbers and the mailing addresses, Click here.

To keep current on the latest legislative information, go to the NARFE national website and sign up to receive the weekly GEMS messages via email. You can also call the toll free Hotline number 1-877-217-8234 to hear the weekly hotline message. Current GEMS message can be found here, ->> Click here

For a map showing the Congressional Districts by Tennessee counties, ->> Click here

Many legislators do not list their email addresses, but you Use this handy box to write an email message to your elected officials. Enter your zip code and click GO!: You will see a list of your elected officials, then click email under their picture. You can choose from selective topics or compose your own message. 


Be a proactive Citizen Lobbyist

Click Here => for PowerPoint Presentation on
"Grassroots Legislative Advocacy"
65 slide, 4.2mb is size

If you don't have PowerPoint on your computer
Click Here => for Powerpoint Viewer software

 

Communicating with Elected Officials ->> Click Here


Information on 111th Congress Members from Tennessee ->> Click Here


Links to Legislative References
United States House of Representatives
U.S. House Committees U.S. Senate Committees
Office of the Clerk of the U.S House U.S. Senate Legislation & Records
U.S. House Press Gallery Congressional Record
CURRENT HOUSE FLOOR PROCEEDINGS How our Laws are made
House Committee on the Budget Senate Committee on Finance
House Committee on Government Reform and Oversight Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs
House Committee on Ways and Means Senate Budget Committee

References for what is happening on Capital Hill
| Fed Week | Federal Times | Mike Causey's Federal Report | Stephen Barr - Federal Diary |


Information below is for reference and legislative history for the 110th

 

Information below is for reference and legislative history for the 109th

H.R. 994, To allow federal civilian and military retirees to pay FEHBP
premiums with pre-tax dollars  (Premium Conversion)

Representative Tom Davis (R-VA) 
Final Cosponsors - 340

S. 484, To allow federal civilian and military retirees to pay FEHBP
premiums with pre-tax dollars (Premium Conversion)

Senator John Warner (R-VA)
Final Cosponsors - 65

H.R. 147, To repeal entirely both the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP)
and the Government Pension Offset (GPO)

Representative Buck McKeon (R-CA-25)
Final Cosponsors - 328

S. 619, To repeal entirely both the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP)
and the Government Pension Offset (GPO)

Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)
Final Cosponsors - 30


Here is how to contact your Tennessee Federation Legislative Chairman.

Jim Glenn
120 Windrift Ct.
McMinnville
, TN 37110-3716
Phone: 931-473-5074

To find your District Legislative Officers -->> Click Here

NARFE Legislative Action Center

Priority Legislation with Cosponsor Counts

Tennessee Federation of Chapters

Last Modified: January 27, 2009