Top Stories

NTEU Ready to Lobby
2007 Legislative Agenda Set

Federal pay, halting the privatization of federal jobs, and affordable health care lead the list of NTEU’s 2007 legislative agenda.

The agenda was set last week when NTEU legislative leaders from chapters and agencies across the country traveled to Washington, D.C., and met with NTEU President Colleen M. Kelley. The group had a day-long discussion on NTEU’s legislative program and made its recommendations on the legislative agenda to President Kelley. The recommendations were accepted.

At the end of the day, the committee identified six issues as priority legislative issues for NTEU this year. They are:

• Federal Pay;
• Stopping the Privatization of Federal Jobs including Privatized Tax Collection;
• Federal Employee Health Benefits Plan Affordability;
• Department of Homeland Security Issues including LEO status, Personnel Rules and One Face at the Border;
• Labor Management Partnerships; and
• Retiree Pension Offsets.

Send a Letter Today To Halt Private Tax Collection Momentum continues to build against the IRS’s private debt collection program. Last week the Taxpayer Advocate called for Congress to rescind the agency’s authority to hire private collection companies. You can help to build public support to stop the program by sending a letter to the editor of your local paper that speaks out against an administration initiative that costs taxpayers more money and puts their private financial information at risk. NTEU has posted two sample letters to the editor on our consumer web site www.nteuIRSwatch.org. You can use NTEU’s legislative website, CapWiz, to send your letters to the editor (in the Guide to the Media section). Click here to access NTEU’s legislative web site or visit <http://capwiz.com/ nteu/home/>.

NTEU Pressures GSA on Mileage Rate

NTEU called on the General Services Administration (GSA) to end internal delays and approve an increase in the reimbursement rates for federal employees who use private vehicles for official government business.

In a follow-up letter to GAO Administrator Lurita Doan, President Kelley reminded the administrator of her written assurance late last year that the matter was under review and that GSA would publish its decision in the Federal Register no later than Jan. 1, 2007. That assurance came in response to an earlier letter from President Kelley seeking GSA action in increasing the mileage reimbursement rate.

Such a decision, Kelley said, would be consistent with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) action in raising the standard mileage rates used to calculate deductibility for taxpayers who use cars for business to 48.5 cents per mile, effective Jan. 1, 2007.

For the complete story, click here or visit <www.nteu.org/
PressKits/PressRelease/PressRelease.aspx?ID=1008>.

Agency Action Violates Employee’s Hatch Act Rights
NTEU Seeks To Stop Illegal CBP Action

NTEU last week filed a federal court suit on behalf of a Bureau of Customs and Border Protection Officer (CBPO) faced with the potential loss of his job because of his willingness to serve as a nonpartisan member of the city council in Presidio, Texas—an unpaid, elected position he first won in 2004, after CBP expressly approved his candidacy.

The suit seeks a permanent injunction requiring CBP to rescind two letters sent to Jaime Ramirez over the past three weeks, ordering him to resign his city council seat or his CBP position by Jan. 21. Since the lawsuit was filed, CBP agreed to extend the deadline to Feb. 8.

“Federal employees have the clear right to hold nonpartisan elected offices under the federal Hatch Act and its implementing regulations,” said President Kelley.

Nonetheless, Ramirez was ordered to resign either his seat on the council or his CBP position. The cited reason was an alleged appearance of a conflict of interest.

For the complete story, click here or visit <www.nteu.org/PressKits/PressRelease/
PressRelease.aspx?ID=1009>.

Olson Calls for IRS Funding Changes

NTEU welcomed recognition by the National Taxpayer Advocate of the unique status of the IRS as the revenue-generator for the federal government, and called for implementation of her recommendations that would result in additional resources for the agency.

The recommendations—involving not only changes in government budgeting processes but in the mind-set that the IRS is a classic government spending program—were made as part of last week’s annual report to Congress by Taxpayer Advocate Nina Olson.

President Kelley earlier this month said additional IRS staffing is key to cutting the multi-billion-dollar gap between taxes owed and taxes paid. “Underfunding the IRS leaves billions of dollars on the table and gives rise to bad policy decisions like privatizing the tax collection work of the IRS,” she said. The administration should immediately move to ask Congress for additional funds for the IRS for Fiscal Year 2007 and 2008 budgets.

Taxpayer Advocate Olson said the IRS occupies the position of the federal government’s accounts receivable department, and as such should be funded in accordance with a focus on its ability to produce what she called “a substantially positive return” on the funding it receives.

For the complete story, click here or visit <www.nteu.org/PressKits/PressRelease/
PressRelease.aspx?ID=1006>.

NTEU Spotlight—Listen to This Week’s Report

This week on the NTEU Spotlight, President Kelley announces NTEU’s lawsuit on behalf of a federal employee whose Hatch Act rights are about to be violated by his agency—the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The agency is ordering the employee to resign his nonpartisan city council seat or risk losing his position as a CBP Officer. This comes despite the clear protections provided by the Hatch Act for federal employees to participate in civic life and to be able to run for, and serve in, nonpartisan positions.

In the Washington, D.C., area you can hear President Kelley’s NTEU Spotlight on Federal News Radio (1050 AM). For those outside the D.C. area, you can listen online at www.federalnewsradio.com.

To preview this week’s report, click here.


Headlines

GSA Says Announcement on Mileage Rate Imminent
GovExec, January 12, 2007

The General Services Administration is under pressure to explain why a 4 cent increase in the mileage reimbursement rate has not been implemented as promised.

The National Treasury Employees Union, one of the largest federal labor unions, called on GSA this week to "end internal delays and approve an increase."

In a Nov. 20, 2006, letter to NTEU President Colleen Kelley, GSA Administrator Lurita Doan said the agency was still working to determine the 2007 reimbursement rate for federal employees driving personally owned automobiles on government business. She stated that a rule would be published in the Federal Register "no later than Jan. 1, 2007."

To read the complete story, click here or visit <www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0107/011206p
1.htm>.


New on NTEU.org

President Kelley Argues Against Tax Debt Program in TV Appearance
NTEU President Colleen M. Kelley appeared on Washington, D.C.’s News Channel 8 last week speaking out against the IRS’s private debt collection program. President Kelley not only supported the Taxpayer Advocate’s call for Congress to rescind the agency’s authority to use private collection companies, she told News Channel 8 viewers why: that the program costs taxpayers money and puts their privacy at risk.

To view President Kelley’s TV interview, click here. click here or visit <www.nteu.org/
Members/IRS/Colleen-irs.wmv>.