In This Issue What's Affecting Feds? Legislative Outreach | FMA Washington Report: June 8, 2020 This report provides an update on issues affecting federal managers. As always, I encourage you to visit www.fedmanagers.org on a regular basis for more information on these and other matters. Also, be sure to look for the FMA Grassroots Update, where we offer links to action letters and FMA-PAC matters we do not address in the Washington Report. The grassroots newsletter is sent exclusively to non-government email addresses to avoid any Hatch Act violations. If you are not receiving it, contact the national office to provide your non-governmental email address. Please feel free to provide feedback any time by emailing Greg Stanford at gstanford@fedmanagers.org, or by calling the National Office at (703) 683-8700. Thank you for your membership in FMA. It�s an honor to represent your interests before Congress and the administration. What's Affecting Feds? Message to FMA from National President Craig Carter On Wednesday, June 3, FMA National President Craig Carter sent a letter to all FMA members about the turmoil and challenges our country is facing. He wrote, “The Federal Managers Association (FMA) is a diverse organization, with members from all races, ethnicities, and genders. We proudly support our members, and all federal workers, as they perform their congressionally-mandated duties each and every day. We are a non-partisan association that works with members of Congress and leaders in the administration, regardless of who holds the majority or White House at any given time. This has been our ongoing strength, and we adamantly remain conversational, not confrontational.” Legislative Outreach FMA-Endorsed Legislation Would Protect Annual Leave for Feds Responding to COVID-19 Last month, Rep. Jennifer Wexton (D-VA) introduced the Federal Frontline Worker Leave Protection Act (H.R. 6733), which would restore annual leave that is lost by federal employees who respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. If passed, the bill would apply retroactively. FMA endorsed the bill in a letter from President Craig Carter to Congresswoman Wexton. “Your legislation offers common-sense protections and assurances to essential federal employees on the frontline who cannot take time off due to the COVID-19 battle,” Carter wrote. “We are grateful for your efforts to modify current law responding to COVID-19 as an allowable exception, and to permit feds to carry over annual leave hours to the following year,” he continued.  FMA Pushes for Hazard Pay, Protection for Leave and other Issues Related to COVID-19 In an early June letter to all Members of Congress, FMA National President Craig Carter expressed support for hazard pay, protecting leave, and including 501(c)(6) associations – such as FMA – in the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). “FMA is grateful for the swift work of Congress and the administration in passing the CARES Act and other stimulus bills during this unprecedented time,” he wrote. The letter addressed: FMA Supports Transparency with the PLUM Act On Thursday, June 4, legislators in both chambers of Congress introduced legislation aimed at increasing transparency of the Executive Branch’s senior leaders. The legislation, the Periodically Listing Updates to Management (PLUM) Act of 2020, was introduced in the House by House Oversight and Reform Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Subcommittee on Government Operations Chairman Gerry Connolly (D-VA), and Rep. John Sarbanes (D-MD). Senator Tom Carper (D-DE) introduced the Senate version. In a press release legislators wrote, “Currently, a comprehensive list of positions appointed by the President is available only once every four years in a publication referred to as the Plum Book. The PLUM Act would modernize the Plum Book by requiring the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to establish and maintain a current, publicly available directory of senior government leaders online.” FMA Urges Thorough Senate Review of FRTIB Nominees In May FMA joined 16 fellow organizations within the Federal-Postal Coalition on a letter urging Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee leadership “conduct adequate review – including holding a committee hearing,” of the recent nominees to the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board (FRTIB). The FRTIB administers the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP). The letter states, “FRTIB has a statutory, fiduciary duty to maximize employee savings, and historically has done so. Federal and postal employees and retirees and military service members invest in the TSP because they are confident that their best financial interests – and no others, including political interests – are at the core of decisions made on their behalf. It is incumbent upon the committee to ensure that the FRTIB nominees will continue to uphold that duty on behalf of the millions of current and former public servants and uniformed service members they would serve.” |
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