The Foreign Service Journal, March 2003

Y E A R I N R E V I E W AFSA Annual Report 2002 2 AFSA NEWS • MARCH 2003 January To avoid damage to credit and ATMcards by U.S. Postal Service irradiation, AFSA persuad- ed the State Department Federal Credit Union to use alternate delivery methods for the cards. Also convinced Blue Cross/Blue Shield to ship prescription drugs by commercial shipper. AFSA President John Naland and AFSA State Vice President Louise Crane met with Secretary of State Colin Powell, at his invita- tion, to discuss Foreign Service personnel issues. Secured a decision from the Foreign Service Grievance Board confirming that the Foreign Commercial Service must abide by open assignments system rules by advertising all vacancies and accepting bids. AFSA and other groups met to devise a legisla- tive strategy to reduce the impact of the Government Pension Offset provision on retirees. The Fund for American Diplomacy (formerly the AFSA Fund) raised $27,000 to support AFSA’s outreach efforts. During 2002, AFSA’s Speakers Programdoubled its volume to 252 Foreign Service speakers reaching audiences in 33 states andWashington, D.C. Met withHouse and Senate staff members on a provision to allow people employed under Part Time, Intermediate, or Temporary (PIT) appointment between 1989 and 1998 to buy back time to count toward their retirement in the same way it did for those before and after that period. Persuaded Blue Cross/Blue Shield to provide up to a year’s supply of certain prescription drugs to overseas members. During 2002, AFSA placed 31 articles advocat- ing increased support for U.S. diplomacy in leading media outlets such as the Washington Post , Wall Street Journal , Los Angeles Times , and Houston Chronicle . AFSA statements were broadcast on CNN, CBS, NBC, ABC, Fox News, BBC, and NPR. Asked Secretary Powell to appeal to the USAA insurance company to open their membership to Foreign Service Specialists. He did and USAA changed its policy. February Successfully convinced State to seek a private zip code from the U.S. Postal Service to alleviate the hardship caused by long delays during the pouch crisis. Sought an exception of the 90-day limit for storage of effects for all new entry DS agents who have to go to the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center for four months. Briefed a delegation from the Foreign Ministry of Bosnia-Herzegovina on how to organize and support overseas diplomats. Won State endorsement of 11 AFSA propos- als to reinvigorate the Foreign Service, includ- ing making leadership and management training a prerequisite for promotion. The AFSA-sponsored Coalition for American Leadership Abroad (COLEAD) hosted a breakfast on Capitol Hill for over 20 House and Senate staffers to discuss the Foreign Service and other international affairs issues. Assistant U.S. Trade Representative Florizelle Liser spoke to AFSA’s International Associates, a group of multinational corpora- tions interested in supporting diplomacy and the Foreign Service. March Presented AFSA-sponsoredMatildaW. Sinclaire Awards to seven Foreign Service members for achievement in the study of hard languages. Three honorable mentions were also awarded. Reviewed State’s proposed new Alcohol and Drug Abuse Program regulations and per- suaded State to emphasize treatment rather than disciplinary action. Convinced State to increase the reimburse- ment of professional liability insurance premi- ums to $125 and to extend eligibility for reim- bursement to information management offi- cers, facilities maintenance officers, and nar- cotics affairs section directors. Established AFSA-PAC to build a stronger con- stituency for the Foreign Service on Capitol Hill. Urged Congress to support Virtual Locality Pay to change the way that retirement annuities are calculated to remove the disincentive to retiring from an overseas post. April AFSA President Naland met with Foreign Service retirees in Houston and Austin, Texas. Persuaded State to stop charging annual leave on local holidays except during R&R or home leave. Successfully sought action from State to ensure that Virginia tax authorities do not charge state income or state sales taxes based on an employee’s mail being sent to the 20189 zip code. Submitted testimony to the House and Senate Commerce, Justice, and State Appropriations Subcommittees highlighting the importance of State’s Diplomatic Readiness Initiative and the need to expand security overseas to include soft targets. Using AFSA’s input, DS issued guidance on dual citizenship reaffirming the policy of weighing the entire situation when making determinations. Reached agreement with State on changes to the Core Precepts for promotion to reflect a greater emphasis on management skills. May AFSA and Secretary Powell added the names of 13 Foreign Service employ- ees who lost their lives in the line of duty to the AFSA Memorial Plaque, bringing the total number to 209. During AFSA’s second annual Day on the Hill event, some 60 AFSAmembers and staff met with 38 different House and Senate offices to discuss issues facing the State Department and the Foreign Service. After being contacted by AFSA, the Senate Foreign Relations committee released the FCS Senior Foreign Service promotion and awards lists that had been lost three times. State agreed to nine AFSA proposals relating to Foreign Service specialists, including several aimed at increasing promotion opportunities for office management specialists. The Foreign Service Journal devoted an entire issue to the concerns of Foreign Service families.