The Foreign Service Journal, January-February 2019

66 JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2019 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL AFSA NEWS AFSA Dues Change for 2019 AFSA has increased dues for 2019 by 2.3 percent for all individual membership cat- egories. In concrete terms, this amounts to an increase of between nine and 37 cents per pay period, depending on an individual’s membership category. In accordance with Article IV of the AFSA bylaws, the Governing Board can choose to increase dues by no more than the cumulative increase in the national Consumer ACCEPT I NG NOMI NAT I ONS FOR S I NCLA I RE LANGUAGE AWARD AFSA is now accepting nominations for the 2018 MatildaW. Sinclaire Language Award. The deadline is Jan. 14, 2019. Thanks to a generous bequest from the late Foreign Service officer MatildaW. Sinclaire, AFSA spotlights members of the U.S. Foreign Service from any of the foreign affairs agencies who have excelled in their study of a Category III or IV lan- guage and its associated culture. Mastery of foreign languages and knowledge of the culture of the host coun- try are critical skills in today’s diplomacy. Candidates may be nominated by their language training supervisors at the Foreign Service Institute, by instructors in field schools or by post language officers. Awardees receive a $1,000 prize and certificate of recognition. For information about the 2018 winners, check out the May edition of The Foreign Service Journal. For further information, please contact AFSAAwards Coordinator Perri Green at green@afsa.org or (202) 719-9700. Read more about the Sinclaire Awards at www.afsa.org/sinclaire. n Foreign Service Grade 2018 Annual 2018 Bi-Weekly 2019 Annual 2019 Bi-Weekly SFS $412.43 $15.86 $421.91 $16.23 FS 1, 2, 3 $318.86 $12.26 $326.20 $12.55 FS 4, 5, 6 $182.58 $7.02 $186.78 $7.18 FS 7, 8, 9 $96.53 $3.71 $98.75 $3.80 Active Duty Retiree Annuity Level 2018 Annual 2018 Bi-Weekly 2019 Annual 2019 Bi-Weekly Annuity under $25K $70.82 $5.90 $72.45 $6.04 Annuity of $25k-50K $111.30 $9.27 $113.86 $9.49 Annuity of $50k-75K $148.65 $12.39 $152.07 $12.67 Annuity over $75K $186.11 $15.51 $190.39 $15.87 Retiree Spouse $55.65 $4.64 $56.93 $4.74 Category 2018 Annual 2019 Annual Associate Membership $114.36 $116.99 Associate Price Index, published by the Department of Labor, since the effective date of the previous dues increase. AFSA last increased its member- ship dues rate in January 2018. This increase will provide the association with a stable and predictable income source, which allows AFSA to continue offering excel- lent member services and advancing member priori- ties. Active-duty and retired members paying dues via payroll and annuity deduc- tion will see a small increase in the amount automati- cally deducted from their paychecks and annuities. Those paying annually will be billed the new rate on their regularly scheduled renewal date. n ANNOUNCEMENT