NARFE Chapter 306 Page 1 NATIONAL ACTIVE AND RETIRED FEDERAL EMPLOYEES Volume 8, Issue 1 Hagerstown MD January 2016 CHAPTER OFFICERS Acting President: Russell Wingerd 1-301-432-5176 russell.wingert@myact.com Vice President: Russell Wingerd, 1-301-432-5176 russell.wingerd@myactv.net Secretary: Danny Laspe dannylaspe@aol.com Treasurer: Jim Dray 1-240-513-6043 jdraysr@myactv..net Service Officer: Thomas Brudenell 1-301-432-4815 lynntom@myactv.net Membership Chair.: Ed Reed 1-301-739-1641 edr3vigil@yahoo.com NARFE/PAC Rep/Chair: Vacant Legislation Chair.: Vacant Alzheimer s Coordinator: Vacant Sunshine Lady: Mary I. Vera 1-301-790-2792 Newsletter Editor: Dorothy Buhrman 1-301-241-3628 dotm16509@gmail.com Treasures Report Dec. 26, 2015 Nov. 23 Balance $647.03 Receipts 94.84 Expenses 577.96 Dec. 26 Balance $89.57, Jim Dray, Treasurer, Ch306 GREETINGS FROM YOUR ACTING PRESIDENT I'm writing this a few days before Christmas and reflecting on all the Blessings our Chapter enjoyed during 2015. First, being a Christian, I thank God for all Blessings, because I believe everything comes through Him. We hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and wishing each of you A Happy New Year / 2016. I would like very much to name everyone who helped make our Chapter successful this year, but find it necessary to keep my message condensed. As your know we did not have a President for 2015, so thanks to our officers and others for stepping up and assuming 2 months each of Acting President. Our Hagerstown Organization is one of the oldest (over 60 years) of more than 30 Chapters in the Maryland State NARFE Federation. Certainly it would be unthinkable for our Chapter with this longevity and the many members who have worked incredibly hard to get us this far to no longer exist. We have a nominating committee diligently working to present a slate of Officers for (June 2016 to June 2018). If you are interested in holding an Officers position or willing to help in anyway to keep our Chapter alive, please contact one of our present Chapter 306 Officers. This past year we lost a few members through death, we extend our condolences to their families and friends. Welcome to our new members and we look forward to seeing them and all our members at our next meeting on Friday Jan.8, 2016, 12 Noon at the Western Sizzlin Restaurant, Hagerstown. Thank You! Russ Wingerd, Acting President for Jan,/Feb.2016
NARFE Chapter 306 Page 2 Secretary s Report NARFE Chapter 306 There was no December 2015 meeting for Chapter 306, in its place we celebrated the Season with our annual Christmas/Holiday Luncheon. One of highlight of the afternoon was recognition of those who had contributed to the successfulness of the Chapter in 2015, Mary Vera, Barbara Ware, Sandy Reeser, Bob Snyder, Shirley Aurand, Jeanne Renner, Joyce Chestnut, Charles Ware and Danny Reeser. Again THANK YOU! It addition to a fabulous meal, Burt and Jean s presence and fun door prizes we enjoyed the music of talented Charlie Rice. D. Buhrman Service Office Report The Office of Personnel Management has announced that it has completed sending notification letters to the majority of victims of the recent data breaches that hit the agency s computers. Here is what this means for current or former federal workers who may be wondering if their personal information was exposed. Read more December 12, 2015 Tags: Data Breach, OPM Categories: Blogs URL: http://blogs.fedsmith.com/2015/12/12/opm-givesgreen-light-to-start-submitting-data-breach-verification-requests/ How do I access the verification center? The Federal Government has set up a verification center to assist individuals who believe they were impacted by the cyber intrusion involving background investigation records. The verification center may be accessed through a link from the Cybersecurity Resource Center. Or, you may call 866-408-4555 Monday through Friday, between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m., Eastern Time, and ask to speak to an agent. If you believe that you were impacted, but have not received a notification letter, we ask that you wait until mid-december before contacting the verification center. The Federal Government anticipates completing the mailing of notification letters by the end of the second week in December. Why does it take 2-4 weeks to receive my notice from the government? The government estimates that each individual submitting a verification request to determine if he/she was impacted by the cyber intrusion involving background investigation records will receive a reply within approximately 2-4 weeks of submitting his/her request. The 2 4 week period is an estimate, which may vary based on the quantity of requests received. The verification center process has been developed to protect an individual s personal information. Once an individual submits his/her information, it will be matched against the information within a government database. The government will print and mail notification letters via the U.S. Postal Service. Why can t the agent on the phone tell me if I am impacted, or the address you have for me? Once you provide your name, address, Social Security Number, and date of birth, your information must be checked against the government s database to determine whether you were impacted by the cyber intrusion involving background investigation records. For security and privacy purposes, the call center agents do not have access to the database. After submitting your information you should receive a response letter in approximately 2 4 weeks through the U.S. Postal Service to the address provided on the website or shared with a call center agent. Tom Brudenell, Service Officer, NARFE Chapter 306 Nominating Committee Report The Nominating Committee is now meeting and is constructing a slate of Officers for Chapter 306 for the next two years. Now is the time for all of you who have been wanting to fill a particular job to step forward and call a member of the Committee and volunteer. I'm sure that many of you have previously filled these or similar jobs in other organizations and have good ideas that we need to use. Members of the current Committee are: Tom Brudenell, Mike Barnhart, Joyce Chestnut, Jim Dray and Russ Wingerd. Hope to hear from you soon. Jim Dray
NARFE Chapter 306 Page 3 NARFE-ALZHEIMER'S-NEWS: At our Hagerstown Chapter 306's recent Christmas/Holiday Luncheon, our Charity Donation ($150.00) was collected! Thank you for your generosity. A check (To: Alzheimer's Research/NARFE) will be presented at The February 2016 Federation Board Meeting to be held in Bowie Maryland to: Barbara Jacobs/Federation's Alzheimer's Coordinator. LEGISLATIVE REPORT Excerpts from: The NARFE Legislative Update for Chapters: Legislative Accomplishments of 2015: *A few of the legislative highlights include: *Preventing a disproportionate increase in 2016 Medicare Part B premiums for 30 percent of beneficiaries, including many federal retirees. *NARFE's grassroots and lobbying efforts stopped Congress from reducing the rate of return in the Thrift Savings Plan G fund as an offset for highway funding legislation. *In the months following the announcement by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) that its security systems had been breached, NARFE has continued to work closel6y with the agency to keep members informed with the latest information and advice. *Thank you all NARFE members whose efforts helped achieve these victories. A full list of NARFE's 2015 legislative accomplishments is available on the NARFE website. **Omnibus Signed into Law: *President Obama signed into law a $1.1 trillion omnibus bill that funds the federal government through October 1, 2016. *Contained in the omnibus are a number of policy riders, including: *A provision delaying implementation of the "Cadillac tax," a tax on expensive, employer-backed health care plans, until 2020. The Cadillac tax initially passed as part of the Affordable Care Act. *Ten years of identity theft protection services for all victims of OPM's two data breaches. The provision also includes an increase in liability protection from $1 million to $5 million. *In a victory for NARFE, a policy rider that would have defunded or delayed finalization of the Department of Labor (DOL) fiduciary rule was not included in the final bill. NARFE supports the DOL rule, which would require all retirement investment advice to be held to a "best interest" standard, including advice regarding rollovers. **Highway Funding: *On December 4, President Obama signed into law the Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, a $305 billion bill that funds highway and infrastructure projects for the next five years. *No cuts to federal employee and retiree pay and benefits were used to fund the FAST Act. *This victory was made possible by all the NARFE members who took action and sent letters to their legislators asking them to keep the federal community out of the highway bill. Thank you for this. **New Webinar Schedule: (Conference Via Computer) *Webinars have been scheduled for January and February. *The January webinar, hosted by Jessica Klement, NARFE's legislative director, and John Hatton, NARFE's deputy legislative director, will take a look at the 2016 legislative calendar and what we can expect from Congress in the New Year. The webinar will be presented Tuesday, January 19, 2016 at 9:30 a.m. EST and Thursday, January 21, 2016 at 1:30 p.m. EST. *The February webinar, "How to Sell NARFE-PAC and Prepare for NARFE-PAC Month," will be hosted by Jason Freeman, NARFE's legislative and political specialist. The webinar will be presented Tuesday, February 16, at 9:30 a.m. EST and Thursday, February 18, at 1:30 p.m. EST. **-Please Note that previously announced topics for these webinars have changed, but the days and times have not. *RSVP links for the January webinar are up on the NARFE website. Please note that we have RSVP links available for only one month at a time.
NARFE Chapter 306 Page 4 LEGISLATIVE REPORT CONTINUED **Congressional Schedule and Grassroots: The House and Senate have both adjourned for the year. The House returns on January 5 and the Senate on January 11. The 2016 House and Senate schedules have been released and are available on the NARFE website. *President Obama delivers his final State of the Union address on January 12, 2016, at 9 p.m. EST before a joint session of Congress. This is when President Obama will announce his 2016 agenda. NARFE leaders should begin out lining their grassroots advocacy plans for 2016. With more congressional recess in a presidential election year, there are more opportunities to engage in grassroots advocacy, so planning now is crucial to begin, know when primary elections are held in your state and have your top activists ready to get involved and take action. If you would like to assistance in planning your grassroots strategy or have questions, please contact the Legislative Department at 703-838-7760, ext. 201, or leg@narfe.org. **OPM Launches New Online Verification Center for Hack Victims: *The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) announced in December the launching of an online verification center to assist individuals whose background information records were stolen in the second OPM data breach, which was announced this summer. *The government-run online verification center is designed to assist individuals who believe their data was stolen but have not received a notification letter, and individuals who received a notification letter but lost the Identification Number (PIN) that was included in the letter. This new system is only for those impacted by the background investigation breach, not the first data breach that involved personnel files.*the online verification center is accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and will be available through December 2018 via OPM's Cyber Security Resource Center. Alternatively, individuals can request the information by calling the verification center at 866-408-4555 Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. ET. *NARFE updated its OPM Data Breach page with this information and will continue to update the page as new information is released. **Excerpts from Paul Schwartz (State/Federation Legislative Committee Chair) - State Legislative Committee (SLC) Report: *Every organization must ask itself: Why do we exist? What is our purpose? How should we proceed? NARFE is no different. Clearly, the purpose of NARFE, our mandate so to speak, is to protect the rights and benefits of federal workers and retirees and, to a great extent, those of seniors as well. *As you may be aware by now, the State Legislative Committee's (SLC) primary focus for 2016 will, indeed, be on reducing taxation on pensions, your pensions! We even have a name for this initiative: O.P.M. No, it is not the Office of Personnel Management. Our O.P.M. stands for "Our Pensions Matter." They matter because as life expectancy increases, so too do health care issues. *Last year, our focus was on tax incentives for long term care insurance. That is still an issue, but only one element of the larger problem of the continual rise of health care costs for seniors. Continually rising health care costs is why you need more money in your pocket; reducing taxation on your pensions is our method of doing just that. *What sets this effort apart from previous initiatives is that this time we have a partner as we proceed with our agenda. That partner is our own Governor Hogan who made a campaign promise to reduce taxes on pensions. We in the SLC intend we can to help him bring that promise to fruition. ** How we intend to do this is by using the power of our numbers; not monetary numbers, but voter numbers. We want to use the power of our Maryland NARFE chapters to raise our voices to our representatives, to reduce our tax burden and prevent the migration of Maryland seniors to other more tax-friendly states. We want our legislators in Annapolis to understand the need to keep the buying power of seniors in Maryland, and to help them offset the rising costs of health care with a tax incentive on their pensions. *What we want is for our NARFE members to MOBILIZE and be participants in a well-organized letter writing campaign. More details on this campaign will be provided over the coming months in future Chapter Newsletters. This would be A Great Starter-Project for A New Chapter 306 State Legislative Chair; Would You Be Interested In Running For This Chapter Position in Our May Elections? V/R-Ed Reed. NARFE-PAC No report.
NARFE Chapter 306 Page 5 MEMBERSHIP REPORT: ** MEMBERSHIP: Excerpts from Jo Anne Groves: (State/Federation-2ND Vice President/Membership Director) - How can we keep NARFE viable and keep a strong presence with our legislators? Right now, we have 31 NARFE chapters in the State of Maryland, a state with many retired and active Federal employees. We are well aware of the need to continuously expand our thinking and offer options other than joining chapters to potential members like joining an e-chapter. However, we must also keep our chapters going. They contain the grassroots ideas of our organization and from them we draw our hardworking volunteers. With several mergers on-going, the MD Federation of Chapters could be down to 28 Maryland chapters. WE MUST HAVE VOLUNTEERS AND KEEP OUR CHAPTERS OPEN. Note: Hagerstown-Chapter 306 Will Have Elections In May, 2016; Would You Volunteer To Run For An Office? ** During our recent Federation Training Session at Bowie, the Membership Breakout session attendees discussed ways to keep our chapters open, to make chapter positions easier to manage ((READ -HERE: Keep Good Leaders)), and to keep members interested. ** Chapter leaders should inspire trust and respect; respond to members' interests; when help is needed from the Federation or HQ; encourage members to take an active role in our legislative agenda; groom new leaders; and most importantly, COMMUNICATE. Note: Our Present Leadership sought Federation Help to Keep Our Chapter Going and We 6 Acting Presidents and Active/Other/Position Holders Have Kept Our Chapter Going for Over A Year; It's Now Time To Elect New: Hagerstown Chapter 306 NARFE Officers in May 2016; PLEASE: Consider Running for Either An Elected Office, or, one of our Needed Other Positions: Federal or State Legislative Chair, NARFE-PAC Chair, or Alzheimer's Representative...We Will Help Train All!! **Indirectly Related: Excerpts from Our Region-II Vice President, Evelyn Kirby from her most-recent "REGION II UPDATE": Initially, she wishes us all the best of holiday seasons and good health and safety to go with that; she is also "Soproud" of us all and the good works we are doing as NARFE members! She then devotes the remainder - to the most pressing business for all in NARFE: helping the Association survive; she shares highlights from the November 2015 meeting of the National Executive Board ( NEB). ** The (12) Board Members responded to the challenges put before them by carefully reviewing and discussing actions that can immediately begin to address NARFE survival issues. Thinking and strategy behind the NEB's decisions will be in a longer document to be issued soon. **Current Situation. NARFE continues to be at a very perilous stage in its evolution. The NEB took action in the spring to put in place the process to create a Strategic Plan for NARFE. Noting, the strategic planning team submitted a draft strategic plan, which all of the NEB members reviewed carefully prior to the meeting. The plan laid out in full detail and confirmed what we had known for years - that the financial situation for NARFE is very weak and demands that actions be taken to preserve the future of the organization. The critical driver of NARFE revenues and thus its financial health is membership. *** The money coming in to NARFE is declining because of decrease in dues. The money going out for necessary expenses is growing. Bottom line: It is very critical that we (NEB) change/update (7) areas: 1. Securing the Future. To grow and improve its financial situation NARFE needs new members to join NARFE. Market researchers and marketers have identified and confirmed a clear behavior profile for Baby Boomers. Features of that profile relevant to NARFE are that boomers are not "joiners," but they will pay for services that they perceive to support their personal interests. NARFE's marketing team has done research and is modifying its offer to appeal to boomers. Once the membership declines are stabilized, NARFE can focus on growing its membership and on accelerating its new and existing programs to build non-dues revenues. 2. Regions. The NEB voted to reverse an earlier NEB decision to move from 10 to five regions and to remain at 10 regions. The role of RVPs has been cited by numerous federation, regional and chapter leaders as critically important in supporting their work in the field among the membership. 3. Non-Mandatory Chapter Membership. After reviewing the current situation for NARFE and fully discussing the organization's options, the NEB voted to prepare a bylaw change to eliminate the necessity for a member of NARFE to belong to a chapter. The impetus for this is that mandatory chapter membership has discouraged boomers from joining NARFE and it has contributed to non-renewals by current members. Lapsed members who have ignored renewal offers are likely to join enarfe when it is offered to them. New members are more likely to join enarfe than a chapter. This move to nonmandatory chapter membership is an important step to support the growth of NARFE membership, which is at the heart of the future of NARFE. All members will always have the option to join a chapter at any time. 4. One Member One Vote. The NEB also voted to prepare resolutions ensuring that each member has a vote (one member one vote) and to prepare a resolution to change laws so that every member can run for national office.
NARFE Chapter 306 Page 6 MEMBERSHIP REORT CONTINUED 5. Executive Director. in looking forward, key to NARFE's growth is consistency in managing the business aspects of the organization. Bringing in an executive director to act as the chief executive of the organization and lead efforts that will bring in new revenues to NARFE can position us to better secure the future. The NEB agreed to support recruiting, hiring and supporting an executive director. This person will have proven successful experience as an association executive; recognize the opportunities for NARFE's growth and positive development in the future; and have an eagerness to take up the challenges of reversing NARFE's current direction. 6. NEB v. BOD. The NEB voted to remain as the National Executive Board and not to change its identification to a Board of Directors. 7. Dues Setting. The NEB will write a resolution that will empower the NEB to set dues but restrict changes in dues to once every two-year period. V/R-Ed Reed. ** 2016 REGION II TRAINING-SYMPOSIUM, York, PA. April 4&5, 2016! Evelyn Kirby (Our Region II, Vice President) and Dan McGrath (Our Maryland Federation President) are encouraging ALL NARFE MD Chapters/Members to Support this: "Only Once Every Two Years" Training Event. The Registration Fee ($80.00) must be made by March 24, 2016; A Special Early JAN 2016 Chapter 306 Mailing will have: Complete Listings of All Training Class Subjects, (To Pick attendee's 3 Choices from), Actual Registration Forms, Dates to be submission by, etc.) ** IMPORTANT: To get "The Special Symposium Hotel Rate (($97.01)) Per Night, Single or Double Occupancy at The Wyndham Garden Hotel, 2000 Loucks Road, York, PA. 17404. Room Registrations Must Be Made No Later Than: 05 March 2016 (Be sure to mention: NARFE CM). The hotel is honoring This Group Rate 3 Days Prior And 3 Days After The Official Symposium Night (04APR2016). Complete Hotel Description/Rooms, etc. NEARBY Attractions AND Symposium/Class Descriptions will be included (w/registration Form) in Our Chapter 306's "Special January, 2016 Mailing (To All); if you have other questions, please call: Ed Reed, (301) 739-1641. V/R-Ed Reed. The Good Of All Chapter-306 Members Business meeting will be MONDAY January 4, 2016, 4 th floor of The Washington County Commission on Aging Bldg. at 10:00 am. All are welcome especially if you will assist us, your leadership, with critically needed coordinators for Legislation, NARFE-PAC and Alzheimer Representative for our Chapter 306. We could really use your help and will train any and all willing to serve. Just come on down to our Business Meeting! We are planning to follow our meeting with lunch at KING S at Falling Waters WV. January 8, 2016 Luncheon Meeting Speaker will be Greg Snook speaking on CHIEF. CHIEF was incorporated in February 1960 by a group of business leaders in Washington County as a private organization. (CHIEF became the unofficial name, shorthand for County Hagerstown Industry Expansion Fund.) At the time, business leaders were rightly concerned about the large number of people employed by only a handful of companies. As a nonprofit organization, CHIEF is governed by 15 directors, including four officers, all of whom are unpaid volunteers. CHIEF has two paid staff, one full time and one part time. NO taxpayer money is used to pay for the staff or fund CHIEF s operations. Chapter Weather Policy THE POLICY OF NARFE CHAPTER 306 is, if; bad road conditions cause The Washington County Public Schools to cancel its classes, NARFE Chapter 306 will not hold its planned meeting. But, if the schools announce a delayed start, Chapter 306 will hold its planned meeting. The Board of Education announces weather related closings and delayed starts on local TV and Radio stations.
NARFE Chapter 306 Page 7 PAID AD PAGE We encourage you to check out our sponsors! KEEP COOL AT NUTTER S ICE CREAM Open Daily 1:00 9:00 PM Serving 32 Flavors 100 E. Main St. Sharpsburg MD 21782 1-301-432-5809 This small space is just for me, to show my support for NARFE Chapter 306! A proud sponsor DOLCE Gourmet Pizza & Eastern European Restaurant 301-745-6300/6301 792 Fredrick St, Hagerstown, MD M-F 11:00am 9:00pm, Sat 2:00-9:00, Sun 5:00-9:00
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