The Foreign Service Journal, March 2010

52 F OR E I GN S E R V I C E J OU R N A L / MA R CH 2 0 1 0 AFSA Annual Report 2009 Y E A R I N R E V I E W T heyearbeganonanupbeatnote. The State Department andUSAIDbud- gets called for a significant increase inbothpersonnel and funding. AFSAwas able toachieve, for all branches thatwe rep- resent,many of our long-sought legislative goals, including comparability pay, fund- ingandequality formembersof theForeign Service. Overseas Comparability Pay AFSA’s long-term fight to end the Foreign Service overseas pay gap took a major step forward with inclusion of key language in the Fiscal Year 2009 Supple- mental Appropriations bill, signed into law in June (P.L. 111-32). Additional language wasincludedthatendedthegapforFY2010, inaprovision signed into lawas part of the FY2010OmnibusAppropriationsbill (P.L. 111-117) in December. AFSA made spe- cial efforts to be certain that these fixes applied to all FS agencies. We thank our members, key supporters on Capitol Hill, and many colleagues at the State Depart- ment and other agencies who helped make this long-termgoal possible. Wewill continue to advocate a permanent fix. Funding The ForeignService agencies all sawan increase in funding this year,whichwill help bring our diplomatic corps to full capaci- ty, aftermanyyearsof insufficient resources. Only the Agriculture Appropriations Bill (P.L. 111-80) was passed and signed into law on its own; all other funding increas- eswerepart of theFY2010omnibus appro- priations bill. Thediplomatic andconsular programs for State received funding tohiremore than 700newForeignServicepersonnel. USAID receivedfundingforoperatingexpenses and to hire 300 additional Foreign Service employees. The Foreign Commercial Service, the ForeignAgricultural Service and the Inter- national Broadcasting Bureau received additional funding, as well, to support increases of American and locally-engaged staff and FS comparability costs. Unused Sick Leave OnOct.28,PresidentObamasignedthe National Defense Authorization Act (P.L. 111-84). This containedprovisions thatwill benefitfederalemployeesinseveralways,two of which are particularly important for the Foreign Service. First, the bill permits employees in the Federal EmployeeRetire- ment System and Foreign Service Pension System to count unused sick leave toward yearsofservicewhencalculatingtheirannu- ities. Second,employeeswhohadpreviously retired under FERS and FSPS, and had waived retirement credit for their years of federal service, can now, upon re-employ- mentwiththefederalgovernment,redeposit the annuity contributions they had with- drawn, plus interest. First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit AFSA worked with Congress to help bring about another victory, ensuring that the Foreign Service community is treated fairly and equally under the law. OnNov. 6, the president signed into law the Un- employment Compensation Extension Act of 2009 (P.L. 111-92), allowingmem- bers of the Foreign Service to take advan- tageof the $8,000 first-timehomebuyer tax credit. Domestic Partners Following a June 17 announcement by President BarackObama extending certain federal benefits to same-sex domestic partners, Sec. Clinton announced anaddi- tional list of benefits thatwouldbe extend- ed to the same-sexpartners ofmembers of the Foreign Service. These include diplo- matic passports, inclusion on employee travel orders, use of medical facilities and other benefits. Although this did not require a change in federal law, several members of Congress were key in forging discussionswith the Secretaryon this long- overdue change. AFSA on Capitol Hill AFSA continued to have a strong presenceonCapitolHill during2009,meet- ing with key members and congressional staff to brief them on issues critical to the Foreign Service. AFSAwas also invited to testify at several congressional hearings. Former President John Naland appeared before theHouseAppropriations Sub- committee on State/Foreign Operations to speak about resources needed to build the work force, as well as FY 2010 funding. Current President Susan Johnson testified sever- al times before congressional subcommittees on diplomatic readiness and security. — Casey Frary, Legislative Director AFSA President Susan R. Johnson (right) and Amb. Ron Neumann prepare to testify before the Senate on Sept. 24. Legislative Affairs: A Rewarding Year AUSTIN TRACY