afscmeretirees161.com (version 0320)

The monthly meeting of AFSCME Retirees, Subchapter 161, was held at Ruby Tuesday’s on October 9. The principle business was to prepare for the bi-annual convention in Springfield on October 16 and 17.

Delegates and representatives from the subchapter will provide reports (including pictures) to be reported to the members in future emailings and web postings.

The subchapter agreed that the delegates should support the following:

RESOLUTION NO 1:
Be it resolved that AFSME subchapter 161 supports working with We Are One Illinois Coalition of Unions for a fair and acceptable pension reform legislation. Be it resolved that a fair pension means there is no legislative reduction of any benefits for State employees, active and retired, that are guaranteed in the State contract and the Illinois Constitution.

RESOLUTION NO 2:
Whereas the effects of the sequestration will have an adverse effect on women and their families due to proposed cuts to Human Services, Primary, Secondary and Post-secondary Education. Whereas the ripple effects of these cuts would result in an estimated loss of 750,000 public sector jobs in 2013 alone, in which 63% of these jobs were found to be to be staffed by women. Whereas women’s economic well being is threatened by cuts in retirement security in the public sector. Whereas the loss of retirement security combined with proposals to reduce cost of living adjustments in the Social Security program (Chained CPI ) which systematically underestimates the real cost of living, fundamental changes to the Medicare, Medicaid and SNAP programs will have disproportionate negative effect on women who tend to have lower lifetime incomes and longer life expectancy. Whereas these threats to social safety net not only hurts women but their families. Whereas severe cuts in entitlement and education programs has a negative ripple effect on the entire economy according to  mainstream economists. Be it resolved that AFSCME in cooperation with women’s and other grass root organizations support legislation in the city, county, state and federal level for improvements in those vital programs and organized actions to react to proposed cut to human services and education.

RESOLUTION NO 3:
Be it resolved (1) Illinois Colleges and Universities are exempted from the provisions of the BISS law regarding annuitants for affected annuitants with a SURS pension of $20,000 a year or less. Also college and university employers which involuntarily discontinue or reduce employment of any SURS affected annuitant with a SURS pension of $20,000 a year or less will be subject to penalties of the BISS law regarding affected annuitants as if they were otherwise employing a BISS affected annuitant for each such discontinuation or reduction. (2)  Illinois colleges and Universities which involuntarily reduce any employee’s working hours below the qualifying level for the Affordable Care Act, will be subject to the penalty of the BISS law for their employment as if he/she were an affected annuitant, for each such case.

In other business:
Mary Bennett distributed a Consumer Reports Guide to Health Reform.  A copy can be viewed by clicking here.

David Rolston recommended that members view the blogsite of Fred Klonsky for information about Medicare Advantage (see http://preaprez.wordpress.com/).

Mike Schoenburg noted that Senator Daniel Biss will be hosting a community forum on The Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) and Upcoming Healthcare Transition.  The forum will be at the Levy Center in Evanston (300 Dodge) at 3 PM on Sunday, October 13.  Besides Senator Biss, the forum will include U. S. Representative Jan Schakowsky, State Representatives Robyn Gabel and Laura Fine, and Charles Watkins from the Governor’s Office. Members are encouraged to attend.

Walt Esler noted that a discussion of using the Obamacare exchanges, with practical tips, can be found at: http://northsidegreenparty.org/drupal/node/492

David Rolston noted that the Fall Membership Meeting of the Green Party will be held October 19 at UE Hall, 37 S. Ashland Ave, Chicago (between Madison and Monroe on Ashand), starting at 8:00 AM (see http://www.ilgp.org/)

The next monthly meeting of the subchapter will be November 20 (back on our regular schedule of the third Wednesday of the month).

Our regularly scheduled meeting will be October 9, 2013 at 11:00 at Ruby Tuesdays Restaurant, 5203 Old Orchard Rd., Skokie. Note that contrary to our usual policy, this will be the second Wednesday of the month. The principal business will be to provide instructions, concerns, and strategies for the Subchapter members who will represent us at the state convention in Springfield, October 16 and 17. All members are encouraged to communicate with the convention delegates who will be designated at the lunch meeting.

Members are also encouraged to communicate by letters, emails, and phone calls to their federal and state legislators. Supportive messages are as important as critical ones.  Contact information for specific officials is available by clicking here.

The newly elected officers were sworn into office by Jo Patton, Director of Special Projects for AFSCME Council 31. The officers are:

President: Charlie Hogan
Exec VP: Mary Bennett
Recording Secretary: Ida Velez
Secretary Treasurer: Nancy Kulppi (acting)

Board members:
MacArthur Diggs
Patrick Houlihan
John Metz
Patricia Reed
Jesse Wilson

Trustees:
Herb Bashir
Peter Berlstich
Walt Esler

Ms. Patton also spoke on “Privatization and It’s Effects on Retirees”. The handout from her talk is below.

Bimonthly emailing, September 13, 2013

Our regularly scheduled meeting will be September 18, 2013 at 11:00 at Ruby Tuesdays Restaurant, 5203 Old Orchard Rd., Skokie.  The principal business will be the installation of new officers who were elected at our meeting of August 21.

Newly elected officers:
President: Charlie Hogan
Exec VP: Mary Bennett
Recording Secretary: Ida Velez
Secretary Treasurer: Nancy Kulppi (acting)

Board members:
MacArthur Diggs
Patrick Houlihan
John Metz
Patricia Reed
Jesse Wilson

Trustees:
Herb Bashir
Peter Berlstich
Walt Esler

President Charlie Hogan and Vice-President Mary Bennett have been active in the recent campaign against ALEC.  See the October/November issue of On the Move (which should be mailed to the homes of all members).

The eCommunications Committee is exploring the establishment of Facebook communications among our members.  Anybody with Facebook experience or expertise should contact John Metz at the meeting.

Mary Bennett is encouraging members to attend Spoken Art: Celebrating Women’s Stories, on Saturday, October 5, 2013.

Below is the first page of a handout the State provided. Click here to see the whole document. It offers free health insurance to those who have 20 years as well as to those who purchased additional time.

Here’s a link to Lisa Madigan on the above offer:

http://madisonrecord.com/news/249345-madigan-seeks-dismissal-of-challenge-to-new-retiree-health-insurance-law

23 July 2013

S/C 161 President’s remarks

This July meeting was important. Our guest speaker, Mr. Peter Sterzynski, is the field Director of A Better Illinois. He is organizing a state-wide petition campaign . His goal is to collect 200,000 signatures for a public referendum on election day, November, 2014. It will ask the Legislature to insert a question at the top of the ballot. “Should the Illinois Constitution be amended to have a progressive tax instead of the current flat tax?” (Go to http://www.abetterillinois.org/ for more information and an online petition.)

Some context to consider. We don’t have a “pension crisis”. We have a structural revenue problem in one of the top ten richest states. Illinois doesn’t have to be broke. It does have to fix a revenue problem it’s ignored for 40 years by changing a revenue base tied to a 1930’s economy of smoke stack industries that have disappeared. Ours is a 21^st century high tech & services economy that is lightly taxed compared with our neighbors. 2/3’s of Illinois corporations don’t pay any taxes. Result: Legislators make up the short fall by cutting services, or by raising revenues with sales tax and a regressive flat income tax. Have you noticed that no government pensioner is immune. If the state hasn’t raise your health insurance premiums in front, it has pushed off a cost it once paid onto the local property tax. You have less and less of your fixed income left after August 1^st’ second installment.

For three years, we have been blocking bad law. But as long as the Illinois Legislature fails to act, our pensions will not be secure. We must act.

The answer is to build a consensus for a change. Forget morality. In politics, what matters is mathematics. We need 2/3 majorities in both Chambers to get referendum on the ballot. But every senior’s signature carries a double message. We care and we vote. Starting with family and friends, we’ll change the politically possible. We can do what they can’t.

When you are feeling discouraged; get mad at those blowhards and Gladgrinds that say we are the problem. Chutzpa is a fitting word for their actions. It’s Yiddish for nerve. It’s what a man has who murdered his parents and then asks the judge for clemency because he’s an orphan.

Sincerely,

Charles Hogan, President

**********************************************

23 July 2013

From: S/C 161 President

To: All S/C 161 members

Subject: Nomination & Election of Officers

Notice

On 21 August 2013, there will be nominations for 4 officers and 3 Exec Board members. Each will serve 2 year terms.

President

Exec VP

Recording Secretary

Secretary Treasurer

3 Exec Board members

Additionally, there will be nominations for 3 Trustees. They will serve 3 year terms.

In the case of a contested election for an officer or trustee, there will be an election held on 18 September 2013.

This election will be conducted by an election committee.

Nominations: Election:

Ruby Tuesdays Restaurant Ruby Tuesdays Restaurant

5203 Old Orchard Rd., Skokie            5203 Old Orchard Rd, Skokie

Any S/C 161 member who has paid dues for the past year will be considered “a member in good standing”. You will be eligible for nomination and election to office.  If you are a city resident and not on the S/C 161 roster, I will work with you to get your status corrected.

Sincerely,

Charles Hogan, President

Dear member,

On Sunday, July 14^th, Senator Dan Biss held a Town Hall Forum on the “Pension Crisis”. An estimated 300 people attended. I wish to thank the following AFSCME Retirees:

Leonard Thigpen
Walt & Ginny Esler
Dave Rolston
Mary Bennett
Jessie & Lynn Wilson
Lyon Leifer
Pat Houlihan
Mac Diggs
Pete Belestick

These were the members I was able to recognize in that large crowd. If there were others, thank you as well.

Senator Biss is absolutely right about the need for the state to find monies to balance the budget. He and many of the legislators are wrong in using SB 1 as a way to do it. For the next 16 months, it will be the work of every single AFSCME Retiree 161 member to do 2 things:

1).  Educate yourself, your family, and close friends about the costs to all of us of doing nothing about this Illinois budget crisis.

2).  Work to build a grass roots campaign for a Fair Tax Referendum on the November 2014 ballot.

In the days ahead, we will continue to build our Sub-Chapter’s strength. In the past, we have been able to block bad law. Now we must build voter support for change. We will need to build voter support for the legislators to pass a referendum ballot initiative by 2/3rds of both houses.

To achieve this, we will need new ideas, and more volunteers to carry them out. What we do not need are eloquent spokesmen for all the difficulties we will encounter. The difficulties will speak for themselves. We will be pragmatic. We will apply the lessons of our collective past. We will work together to create, test, and persevere in order to find the answer. This has been our policy and we appear to be learning and growing as we have used it these last three years. Look around you at the next meeting. Be proud of yourself and others. Yes, we are in good company. Yes, we are in a long hard struggle.

But there is no justice without struggle.

Charlie Hogan

PS: The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) will be meeting in Chicago next month.  We expect to  express our opposition to their agenda on behalf of all working people.  See below or at http://www.alecexposed.org/wiki/Worker_Rights_and_Consumer_Rights We will discuss appropriate actions at our meeting at Ruby Tuesday’s on Wednesday July 17.

Highlights of June 19 meeting:

Our speaker was Georgia Gerdes, Healthcare Choices Specialist:
AGEOPTIONS
1048 Lake Street. Suite 300
Oak Park Illinois 60301-1102
phone (800)699-9043, (708)383-0258
www.ageoptions.org

From the brochure for AgeOptions: Over the past 30 years, AgeOptions has established a national reputation for meeting the needs, wants and expectations of older adults in suburban Cook County. We are recognized as a leader in developing and helping to deliver innovative community based resources and options to the evolving, diverse communities we serve.

Ms. Gerdes discussed issues of healthcare  for older adults under Medicare and The Affordable Care Act (Obamacare).  She distributed relevant literature (click here to view one of the brochures she provided) which are also available at the agency website.

President Charlie Hogan  suggested that members show their appreciation for state Senators who successfully opposed SB01 (see list below).

Senate Bill No. 1
May 30, 2013
16 YEAS
42 NAYS

N    Forby
N    Lightford
Y     Radogno
N    Barickman
N    Frerichs
N    Link
N    Raoul
N    Bertino-Tarrant
N    Haine
N    Luechtefeld
Y     Rezin
Y     Biss
Y     Harmon
N    Manar
N    Righter
N    Bivins
N    Harris
N    Martinez
N    Rose
Y     Brady
N    Hastings
N    McCann
N    Sandoval
N    Bush
N    Holmes
N    McCarter
N    Silverstein
N    Clayborne
N    Hunter
N    McConnaughay
Y     Stadelman
N    Collins
N    Hutchinson
N    McGuire
Y     Steans
Y     Connelly
N    Jacobs
N    Morrison
N    Sullivan
N    Cullerton, T.
N    Jones, E.
N    Mulroe
Y     Syverson
N    Cunningham
N    Koehler
N    Mufioz
N    Trotter
N    Delgado
N    Kotowski
Y     Murphy
N    Van Pelt
Y     Dillard
Y     LaHood
N    Noland
Y     Mr. President
NV  Duffy
Y     Landek
Y     Oberweis

Click here for contact information for state legislators (or click on “Contacts” in menu above).

See our “Members Forum” for postings by our members.