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Page UpDated May 12, 2003 "AFSA On the Scene Report" The "AFSA On the Scene Report" is distributed to top enlisted leaders by the Air Force Sergeants Association as a means of keeping the enlisted force informed on information affecting their profession and lives. This information is meant to supplement information provided in SERGEANTS magazine. Command Chief Master Sergeant recipients of this electronic product are asked to provide this "AFSA On the Scene Report" to each of the First Sergeants, Chiefs, and other enlisted leaders assigned to your location. Air Guard State Command Chiefs are asked to pass the information down to wing CCMs. All recipients of "On the Scene" are encouraged to further disseminate its information to Air Force leaders and fellow enlisted members. Direct any questions concerning "On the Scene" information to the Military and Government Relations Directorate via staff@afsahq.org or by calling 301.899.3500 or 800.638.0594. ******************************************************** 1. TDY LETTER/EXHIBIT SPACE. In our May 2 report, we included the memorandum from the office of the Chief of Staff that addressed authorized TDY to the AFSA convention and exhibits. Several CCMs contacted us and stated they could not open the attachment, which was the memo, but others responded requesting space. So, we will try it again (the TDY/Exhibit letter is attached in PDF format). ******************************************************** 2. SENATE VERSION OF FY 2004 DEFENSE BILL: In up-to-the minute news, the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) has just completed its mark-up (production of a bill) of the FY 2004 National Defense Authorization Act. The text of the Senate bill has not yet been published, and this mark-up must still be blessed by the full Senate, but the items below will most likely be those that the Senate will bring into the House-Senate Conference. The Senate bill would provide January 2004 military pay raises ranging from 2.0 to 6.25 percent (4.15 percent overall), with weighting toward senior NCOs. It would also authorize an increase in the rate of family separation allowance to $250 per month and of imminent danger pay to $225 per month (both were temporarily increased under earlier supplemental funding). The SASC would also mandate a $100 per month assignment incentive pay for all military members stationed in Korea. It would also direct that all military pay raises after 2006 be at least equal to the annual increase in the employment cost index (ECI). The SASC would also authorize DoD to contract with household goods carriers to reimburse service members for the full replacement value of personal property damaged during moves. It would also mandate TRICARE beneficiary counseling assistance coordinators to assist reserve component beneficiaries using the TRICARE program with reserve-unique health benefit issues. Also, the SASC mark-up directed SECDEF to ensure the continued viability and adequacy of the TRICARE standard benefit. The SASC bill would also authorize a "high deployment allowance" of up to $1,000 per month, designed to compensate those service members who are repeatedly called away from their home bases, to include reservists.
Although the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) has not reported out its version of the FY 2004 Defense Bill, indications are that the House will support the Administration's targeted pay increase for January 2004, with pay raises ranging from 2.0 to 6.25, with targeting weighted toward senior NCOs. It would, of course, include further increases in the basic allowance for housing to continue the plan to eliminate average out-of-pocket housing expenses within the next three years. AFSA sources have also indicated that the House will also move to make permanent the recent "wartime" increases in the Family Separation Allowance and Imminent Danger Pay. The House will probably provide a modest increase in end strengths for each of the services. Indications are that the Guard and Reserve gains will include unlimited commissary access for Guard and Reserve members and their families, expanded entitlement to hazardous duty pays to match active duty eligibility, and a new special pay for members of the Weapons of Mass Destruction Civil Support teams. We also understand that the House will propose outreach and assistance to help locate participating health care providers for the TRICARE Standard health care system. These are just a few of the items we expect the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) to include in its "mark-up;" i.e., its version of the Defense Bill.
Once the HASC and SASC publish their versions of the Defense Bill, and the full chambers bless those bills, the House and Senate Committees will go into conference to come up with a common defense bill. We will report full details on the process and items included in the mark-ups to our members in the various AFSA media. Some other items that might end up in the final Defense Bill are reflected by the numerous bills that have been introduced this year. Many of these bills were introduced directly as a result of requests from AFSA lobbyists and their coalition partners. ******************************************************** 3. BILLS ON THE TABLE: Below are just a few of the thousands of bills that have been introduced in the first four months of the 108th Congress. The following are quality-of-life type bills that apply to servicemembers and their families. They may end up in the Defense Bill or in Veterans' Affairs legislation. We continue to urge the support of those who are making the final decisions on the FY 2004 laws.
Education-Related Bills: - H.R. 879, Rep. Dave Camp, R-MI, would provide a Montgomery G.I. Bill (MGIB) enrollment opportunity for those who turned down the Veterans Educational Assistance Program (VEAP). - H.R 1328, Rep. Walter B. Jones, R-NC, would allow a 24-month payroll deduction period for the MGIB, and would allow MGIB enrollment up to 90 days before the end of a member's first enlistment. - H.R. 1212, Rep. Chris Smith, R-NJ, would raise the monthly value of the MGIB to $1,200 and eliminate the $1,200 MGIB enrollment fee. - S. 55, S. 177, and H.R. 1713, would have the MGIB pay the full cost of tuition, books, and fees at a college or university, and provide a stipend to students participating in a full-time program. - S. 730, Sen. John Warner, R-VA, would allow transferability of one-fourth of a member's MGIB entitlement to family members after 6 years of service and a commitment for 4 more. - S.447, S. 863, H.R 1412, H.R. 1503, and H.R. 1724: Each of these bills would address protecting the financial and academic status of military members called to active duty. - H.R. 1924, Rep. Bob Filner, D-CA, would extend from 10 to 14 years the MGIB use period after separation from military service - H.R. 1991, Rep. David Scott, D-GA, would require a State to charge in-State tuition rates to active-duty members of the Armed Forces domiciled or stationed on active duty in that State and to the dependents of such members.
Pay and Compensation-related. - H.R. 1885. Rep. Susan Davis, D-CA, and S. 945, Sen. John McCain, R-AZ, would ensure that future military pay raises be no lower than private sector wage growth. - H.R. 1687, Rep. John Culberson, R-TX, would exempt all military pay from federal taxation. - H.R. 995, Rep. Walter B. Jones, R-NC, would provide dislocation allowance for a member's final move when retiring from a military service. - H.R. 1518, Rep. John Hostettler, R-IN, would exempt all military bonuses from federal taxation. - H.R. 1581, Rep. Joe Knollenberg, R-MI, would exempt military pay for service on the Korean Peninsula from federal taxation. - H.R. 1664, Armed Forces Tax Fairness Act, currently being reconciled between the House and Senate would enable military members to take advantage of a major capital gains tax break, make the entire $6,000 death gratuity tax free, exclude from taxes the amount received under the Homeowners Assistance Program, expand combat zone tax breaks to those serving in contingency operations, and provide an above-the-line deduction for overnight travel expenses for National Guard and Reserve members. - S. 394, Sen. George Allen, R-VA, would provide the combat tax exclusion to the period of transit to a combat/contingency area.
Guard/Reserve-related Bills: - H.R. 331, Rep. Joe Wilson, R-SC, would allow immediate retirement upon satisfaction of retirement criteria without consideration of the member's age. - H.R. 742, Rep. Jim Saxton, R-NJ, and S. 1035, Sen. Jon Corzine, D-NJ, would lower the earliest Guard/Reserve retirement age from 60 to 55. - S. 445, Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-LA, would allow full retirement at age 55 with 30 years of service, age 56 with 28 years, age 57 with 26 years, age 58 with 24 years, age 59 with 22 years, and age 60 with 20 years of service. - H.R. 349, 350, H.R. 454, H.R. 1504,and S. 202, would provide Employer Tax Credits for various reasons. - H.R. 1345, Rep. Tom Lantos, D-CA, and S. 442,Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-LA, would pay Guard and Reserve members the difference between their civilian pay and their military pay when called up to active duty. - H.R. 217, Rep. Bob Wexler, D-FL, and S. 593, Sen. Richard Durbin, D-IL, would pay Guard and Reserve members who are federal employees the difference between their federal civilian pay and their military pay when called up to active duty.
Other Bills of Interest: S. 687, Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-CA, would prohibit concurrent deployment to combat zones of both military spouses of military families with minor children. S.704, Sen. Susan Collins, R-ME, would increase the death gratuity to $12,000 (tax free). S. 718, Sen. John McCain, R-AZ, would provide up to $40 in telephone calling privileges to each military member (to call home) supporting operations in Afghanistan or Iraq. H.R. 1111, Rep. Cass Ballenger, R-NC, would limit a former-spouses claim to a portion of a member's military retirement pay to the same duration as the terminated marriage. H.R. 1638, Rep. Gene Taylor, D-MS, would repeal the 2005 BRAC round. H.R. 303, Rep. Mike Bilirakis, R-FL, and S. 392, Sen. Harry Reid, D-NV, would all full receipt of military retired pay and VA disability compensation.
Note: To look a the full text of bills, who is co-sponsoring them, etc., go to http://thomas.loc.gov on the Internet. ******************************************************** 4. CURRENT STATUS OF AFSA EFFORT TO LOWER THE EARLILEST GUARD AND RESERVE RETIREMENT AGE: On May 9, Senator Jon Corzine, D-NJ, introduced, S. 1035, the Senate companion bill to Rep. Jim Saxton's, R-NJ, H.R. 742. Both bills would lower the earliest Guard and Reserve retirement age from 60 to 55. This effort continues to progress, additional associations are beginning to show interest in joining our work on the issue, and government officials are beginning to take the issue seriously. For example, according to the Air Force Link, during a May 7 hearing before the Senate Appropriations Committee Defense Subcommittee, Air Force Reserve Chief Lt. Gen. James E. Sherrard III urged the senators to examine a change to legislation allowing retirement benefits to be paid before age 60. Such a statement from this great military leader and long-time friend of this association is especially gratifying. In attempts to achieve a breakthrough on the effort, AFSA representatives have continued to meet with members of Congress on the issue and to put additional creative alternatives on the table such as paying full retirement pay at age 55, but deferring TRICARE health care benefits until age 60. This option would counter the DoD argument that the program just costs too much to implement, claiming that two-thirds of the cost will be for early access to TRICARE. With the help of guardsmen and reservists in the field who take the time to instruct their senators and representatives how to act on this issue, we are confident we will get this job done! H.R. 742, by Rep. Jim Saxton, R-NJ, the bill to lower the earliest Guard and Reserve retirement age to 55 now has 94 co-sponsors. That's an increase of 8 co-sponsors since the May 1st AFSA On the Scene Report. Success on this bill will depend on continuing to convince individual members of the House of Representatives to sign on as a co-sponsor. As we indicated in an earlier report, with AFSA's leadership on the issue and your help, 160 members of the House signed on as co-sponsors of the effort during the previous Congress. One strength of Saxton's and Corzine's bills is that these bills have no impact whatsoever on point calculations or in the retirement formula. Each bill simply reads as "A bill to amend title 10, United States Code, to reduce the age for receipt of military retired pay for non-regular service from 60 to 55." It would take effect on "the first day of the first month beginning on or after the date of the enactment of this Act and shall apply to retired pay payable for that month and subsequent months."
Senator Corzine's bill, S. 1035, just introduced, included three original co-sponsors: Senators Patrick J. Leahy, D-VT; Thad Cochran, R-MS; and Blanche Lambert Lincoln, D-AR.
As of today, here is a state-by-state breakdown of the sponsor and 94 co-sponsors from among the 435 members of the House of Representatives who are co-sponsors of H.R. 742 (to lower the earliest Guard and Reserve retirement age from 60 to 55). Names are listed in district order within each state.
ALABAMA: Sponsors: None. Non-Cosponsors: Bonner, Everett, Rogers, Aderholt, Cramer, Bachus, Arthur Davis.
ALASKA: Sponsors: None. Non-Cosponsor: Don Young.
ARIZONA: Sponsor: Ed Pastor. Non-Cosponsors: Renzi, Trent Franks, Shadegg, Hayworth, Flake, Grijalva, Kolbe.
ARKANSAS: Sponsor: John Boozman. Non-Cosponsors: Berry, Snyder, Ross.
CALIFORNIA: Sponsors: Lois Capps, Bob Filner, Dennis A. Cardoza. Non-Cosponsors: Thompson, Herger, Ose, Doolittle, Matsui, Woolsey, George Miller, Pelosi, Lee, Tauscher, Pombo, Lantos, Stark, Eshoo, Honda, Lofgren, Farr, Radanovich, Dooley, Nunes, Bill Thomas, Gallegly, McKeon, Dreier, Sherman, Berman, Schiff, Waxman, Becerra, Solis, Watson, Roybal-Allard, Waters, Harman, Millender-McDonald, Napolitano, Linda Sanchez, Royce, Lewis, Gary Miller, Baca, Calvert, Bono, Rohrabacher, Loretta Sanchez, Cox, Issa, Cunningham, Hunter, Susan Davis.
COLORADO: Sponsor: Joel Hefley. Non-Cosponsors: DeGette, Mark Udall, McInnis, Musgrave, Tancredo, Beauprez.
CONNECTICUT: Sponsors: Rob Simmons, Nancy L. Johnson, John B. Larson. Non-Cosponsors: DeLauro, Shays.
DELAWARE: Sponsors: None. Non-Cosponsor: Michael N. Castle.
FLORIDA: Sponsors: Jeff Miller, Allen Boyd, Corrine Brown, Ander Crenshaw, John L. Mica, Mike Bilirakis, Mark Foley, Robert Wexler, Peter Deutsch, Alcee Hastings. Non-Cosponsors: Brown-Waite, Stearns, Keller, Young, Jim Davis, Putnam, Harris, Goss, Weldon, Meek, Ros-Lehtinen, Lincoln Diaz-Balart, Shaw, Feeney, Mario Diaz-Balart.
GEORGIA: Sponsors: None. Non-Cosponsors: Kingston, Bishop, Marshall, Majette, Lewis, Isakson, Linder, Collins, Norwood, Deal, Gingrey, Burns, Scott.
HAWAII: Sponsors: None. Non-Cosponsors: Abercrombie, Case.
IDAHO: Sponsor: Mike Simpson. Non-Cosponsor: C.L. Butch Otter.
ILLINOIS: Sponsors: Jerry F. Costello, Donald A. Manzullo, Ray LaHood, John M. Shimkus, Janice Schakowsky. Non-Cosponsors: Rush, Jackson, Lipinski, Gutierrez, Emanuel, Hyde, Danny Davis, Crane, Kirk,Weller, Biggert, Hastert, Timothy Johnson, Evans. INDIANA: Sponsors: None. Non-Cosponsors: Visclosky, Chocola, Souder, Buyer, Burton, Pence, Carson, Hostettler, Hill.
IOWA: Sponsors: None. Non-Cosponsors: Nussle, Leach, Boswell, Latham, King.
KANSAS: Sponsor: Jerry Moran. Non-Cosponsors: Ryun, Moore, Tiahrt.
KENTUCKY: Sponsor: Ernie Fletcher. Non-Cosponsors: Whitfield, Lewis, Northup, Lucas, Rogers.
LOUISIANA: Sponsors: William J. Jefferson, Rodney Alexander, Chris John. Non-Cosponsors: Vitter, Tauzin, McCrery, Baker.
MAINE: Sponsors: None. Non-Cosponsors: Allen, Michaud.
MARYLAND: Sponsor: Elijah Cummings. Non-Cosponsors: Gilchrest, Ruppersberger, Cardin, Wynn, Hoyer, Bartlett, Van Hollen.
MASSACHUSETTS: Sponsors: John Olver, James McGovern, Barney Frank. Non-Cosponsors. Neal, Meehan, Tierney, Markey, Capuano, Lynch, Delahunt.
MICHIGAN: Sponsors: Dale Kildee, Fred Upton, John Conyers Jr. Non-Cosponsors: Stupak, Hoekstra, Ehlers, Camp, Nick Smith, Rogers, Knollenberg, Candice Miller, McCotter, Levin, Kilpatrick, Dingell.
MINNESOTA: Sponsors: Betty McCollum, Collin Peterson. Non-Cosponsors: Gutknecht, Kline, Ramstad, Sabo, Mark Kennedy, Oberstar.
MISSISSIPPI: Sponsor: Chip Pickering. Non-Cosponsors: Wicker, Thompson, Taylor.
MISSOURI: Sponsor: William Lacy Clay. Non-Cosponsors: Akin, Gephardt, Skelton, McCarthy, Graves, Blunt, Emerson, Hulshof.
MONTANA: Sponsors: None. Non-Consponsor: Dennis Rehberg.
NEBRASKA: Sponsors: Lee Terry, Tom Osborne. Non-Cosponsor: Doug Bereuter.
NEVADA: Sponsor: Jon Christopher Porter, Sr. Non-Cosponsors: Berkley, Gibbons.
NEW HAMPSHIRE: Sponsors: None. Non-Cosponsors: Bradley, Bass.
NEW JERSEY: Sponsors: Robert Andrews, Frank LoBiondo, Jim Saxton, Chris Smith, Frank Pallone, William Pascrell, Steven Rothman, Rush Holt, Robert Menendez, Rod Frelinghuysen, Donald M. Payne, Mike Ferguson. Non-Cosponsor: Scott Garrett.
NEW MEXICO: Sponsor: Tom Udall. Non-Cosponsors: Wilson, Pearce.
NEW YORK: Sponsors: Timothy Bishop, Steve Israel, Michael McNulty, Jack Quinn. Non-Cosponsors: King, McCarthy, Ackerman, Meeks, Crowley, Nadler, Weiner, Towns, Owens, Velazquez, Fossella, Maloney, Rangel, Serrano, Engel, Lowey, Kelly, Sweeney, Hinchey, McHugh, Bolehlert, Walsh, Reynolds, Slaughter, Houghton.
NORTH CAROLINA: Sponsors: Bob Etheridge, Richard Burr, Mike McIntyre, Robin Hayes. Non-Cosponsors: Ballance, Jones, Price, Coble, Myrick, Ballenger, Taylor, Watt, Miller.
NORTH DAKOTA: Sponsors: None. Non-Cosponsor: Earl Pomeroy.
OHIO: Sponsors: Timothy J. Ryan. Non-Cosponsors: Chabot, Portman, Turner, Oxley, Gillmor, Strickland, Hobson, Boehner, Kaptur, Kucinich, Jones, Tiberi, Sherrod Brown, LaTourette, Pryce, Regula, Ryan, Ney.
OKLAHOMA: Sponsor: Brad Carson. Non-Cosponsors: Sullivan, Lucas, Cole, Istook.
OREGON: Sponsor: Peter A. DeFazio. Non-Cosponsors: Wu, Walden, Blumenauer, Hooley.
PENNSYLVANIA: Sponsors: Robert A. Brady, Jim Greenwood, Joseph M. Hoeffel, Tim Holden, Timothy F. Murphy, Todd Platts. Non-Cosponsors: Fattah, English, Hart, Peterson, Gerlach, Weldon, Shuster, Sherwood, Kanjorski, Murtha, Doyle, Toomey, Pitts.
RHODE ISLAND: Sponsor: Patrick Kennedy. Non-Cosponsor: Jim Langevin.
SOUTH CAROLINA: Sponsors: None. Non-Cosponsors: Brown, Wilson, Barrett, DeMint, Spratt, Clyburn.
SOUTH DAKOTA: Sponsors: None. Non-Cosponsor: William Janklow.
TENNESSEE: Sponsors: William L. "Bill" Jenkins, Bart Gordon. Non-Cosponsors: Duncan, Wamp, Davis, Cooper, Blackburn, Tanner, Ford.
TEXAS: Sponsors: Jim Turner, Nick Lampson, Chet Edwards, Ron Paul, Martin Frost, Ciro D. Rodriguez. Non-Cosponsors: Sandlin, Sam Johnson, Ralph Hall, Hensarling, Barton, Culberson, Brady, Doggett, Granger, Thornberry, Hinojosa, Reyes, Stenholm, Lee, Combest, Gonzalez, Lamar Smith, DeLay, Bonilla, Bell, Burgess, Ortiz, Green, Eddie Bernice Johnson, Carter, Sessions.
UTAH: Sponsors: Rob Bishop, Jim Matheson. Non-Cosponsor: Chris Cannon.
VERMONT: Sponsors: None. Non-Cosponsor: Bernard Sanders.
VIRGINIA: Sponsors: Jo Ann S. Davis, Virgil H. Goode Jr., Bob Goodlatte, James P. Moran, Rick Boucher, Tom Davis. Non-Cosponsors: Schrock, Scott, Forbes, Cantor, Wolf.
WASHINGTON: Sponsors: Rick Larsen, Adam Smith. Non-Cosponsors: Inslee, Baird, Hastings, Nethercutt, Dicks, McDermott, Dunn.
WEST VIRGINIA: Sponsors: None. Non-Cosponsors: Mollohan, Capito, Rahall.
WISCONSIN: Sponsors: None. Non-Cosponsors: Ryan, Baldwin, Kind, Kleczka, Sensenbrenner, Petri, Obey, Green.
WYOMING: Sponsors: None. Non-Cosponsor: Barbara Cubin.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: Sponsors: None. Non-Cosponsor: Eleanor Holmes Norton.
AMERICAN SAMOA: Sponsor: Eni F.H. Faleomavega. Non-Cosponsors: None.
GUAM: Sponsors: None. Non-Cosponsor: Madeleine Z. Bordallo.
PUERTO RICO: Sponsor: Anibal Acevedo-Vila. Non-Cosponsors: None.
VIRGIN ISLANDS: Sponsors: None. Non-Cosponsor: Donna M. Christensen. ******************************************************** 5. SAMPLE LETTER AND HOW TO IDENTIFY YOUR DISTRICT REPRESENTATIVES AND UNITED STATES SENATORS: Your representative in the House of Representatives and your U.S. Senators work for you. As such, one duty of citizenship is to communicate with your elected representatives and give them their "marching orders." If you want to see the earliest Guard and Reserve retirement age reduced from 60 to 55, here is how to help us get the job done: Urge your congressional representative (each reader has one district representative) to sign on as a co-sponsor of H.R. 742. Also, call your two senators and ask them to support S. 1035, Senator Corzine's bill. You may do so by calling the local (in-state) district office of your representative and senators and tell them you want their co-sponsorship of H.R. 742 (House members) and S. 1035 (senators); also get as many colleagues as possible to do the same. These local phone calls are a powerful tool, since (as long as you are a registered voter) this brings the issue into the area where these officials will seek re-election. Then follow up your phone calls with letters and e-mails to their congressional offices on Capitol Hill. A sample letter for your use follows; tailor it to your needs with your own message on the subject:
(date)
The Honorable (Name) U.S. House of Representatives (or United States Senate) Washington, D.C. 20515 (or 20510 for Senators)
Dear Representative (or Senator) (Name),
As one of your constituents, I urge you to co-sponsor H.R. 742 (or S. 1035 for a senator) which would lower (from 60 to 55) the earliest age at which a member of the Guard or Reserve could retire with full annuity. There are many important reasons to do this, and I've listed a few of them in this letter.
These servicemembers deserve parity with other federal retirees; reserve component members are the only federal retirees who must wait until age 60 to collect retired pay. It is bad enough that Guard and Reserve (G&R) members cannot begin retirement once they have satisfied the requisite number of "good years." What is worse is that they must wait until age 60, oftentimes well over a decade after military service before they can collect retirement. It is important to keep in mind that G&R retirement is based on points accumulated from duty and training and is a fraction of that paid to active duty members.
I believe that government claims that this initiative costs too much are unfounded. Many will not retire immediately at age 55. Additionally, the government claim that all eligibles will immediately and fully use the military health care system ignores the fact that over 80 percent of these members already have civilian employer-provided health care (ref: GAO-02-0829, September 2002). It is illogical to assume that these members will either immediately quit their civilian jobs or forgo their employer-provided health care insurance. In fact, their employer-funded health care would become first payer before TRICARE; thereby greatly reducing actual government health care costs for these individuals.
Additionally, the current system stagnates the force by stifling career advancement. Because the reserve component primarily promotes by vacancy, those who are over 55 but not yet 60 occupy slots that could otherwise provide upward mobility for others. Additionally, some reservists continue serving past age 55 only to accumulate a few more points to factor into their retirement pay equation (which is significantly lower than active duty military retired pay). Many do this strictly because they are not permitted to collect retired pay prior to age 60.
I urge you to co-sponsor H.R 742 (or S. 1035 for a letter to a senator), the effort to lower the earliest Guard/Reserve retirement age from 60 to 55. These members are now integrated seamlessly into this nation's Armed Forces, and they deserve your consideration. I anxiously await your response hoping that you will sign on as a co-sponsor of this important legislation to provide equity for these servicemembers.
(signed)
Your name and contact information
Note: You may get the phone number for the local (in-state) office of your member of Congress and your two Senators in your local phone book. Additionally, to identify your congressional representative in the House of Representatives or your two senators and to get their addresses (snail mail and e-mail) and phone numbers, you may either call AFSA's Directorate of Military and Government Relations at (800) 638-0594 or (301) 899-3500, or go to one of the following internet addresses:
For House and Senator members: http://www.visi.com/juan/congress/ Alternate for House: http://www.house.gov/house/MemberWWW_by_State.htm Alternative for the Senate: http://www.senate.gov/senators/senator_by_state.cfm ******************************************************** 6. MENTOR YOUR SUBORDINATES ON ASSOCIATION SUPPORT. We urge enlisted leaders to explain to their subordinates the impact that private military associations have on the quality of their lives. It is important to be a part of such associations to ensure that enlisted concerns are voiced at the national level, to stay informed, to fully understand how their benefits are formed, and to keep these associations healthy. With the passing of the World War II veterans at a rate of 1,300 to 1,600 per day, many who have traditionally supported associations are passing. Because today's airmen, NCOs, and senior NCOs are directly affected today (pay, allowances, quality-of-life benefits), and they will be impacted throughout the rest of their lives by what the associations are able to accomplish, it is important that they accept the torch to join and nurture the private military associations on their bases and wings. The vast majority of quality-of-life changes for active duty members (airman to chief) originate with associations like AFSA, and virtually the only advocate military retirees can rely upon are representative of these associations. Once a retiree dies, it is the private associations who lobby for and achieve protections and benefits for military survivors. We urge all enlisted members to contact the local chapter of their private military association of choice and see what they can do to help. ******************************************************** 7. QUESTIONS? If you have any questions about this On the Scene Report, you may contact AFSA's Directorate of Military and Government Relations at this e-mail address or at 800-638-0594 or 301-899-3500. If you want to join AFSA's 136,000 current and past Air Force (active duty, Guard, and Reserve) enlisted members in our advocacy efforts and receive publications which provide in-depth updates on this and other important quality-of-life issues, you may do so by calling the numbers above or via the AFSA Home Page at www.afsahq.org, or by contacting your local AFSA chapter. There is strength in numbers in Washington, and we would welcome your assistance. We thank you for your support and for disseminating this information to those interested in the important issue featured in this AFSA On the Scene Report. Don't forget your colleagues in the other military services who may be affected.
JAMES D. STATON Executive Director Air Force Sergeants Association
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