ORP URGENT ACTION

Dear Colleagues,

The Optional Retirement Plan bill (S 1173) remains in the Joint Committee on Public Service, awaiting action by the chairs and other committee members. Though there is every indication that the chairs and other members of this committee support this bill, the Committee has not yet met to take the action needed to move this bill forward.

It is imperative that all interested ORP faculty and administrative staff contact their legislators and the chairs of this committee immediately and ask that this bill be moved out of this committee as soon as possible. It is urgent that the Public Service Committee act favorably on S 1173 in the weeks ahead to be sure this ORP legislation will have a chance for enactment in this legislative session.

Urgent Action Request to ORP-enrolled members and union leaders:

Contact your state senator AND your state representative (again) for support on this bill; request that each legislator contact the respective chair of the Joint Committee on Public Service to urge that the bill be pushed forward as soon as possible with a favorable recommendation:

Representatives should contact House Chair Robert Spellane.
Senators need to contact Senate Chair Thomas McGee.

For best results, send an email message and then follow this up with a phone call to see where your legislators stand and if they are willing to contact the Public Service Committee Chairs in support of this bill.
See the attached model letter that can be adapted for this purpose, depending on what you may or may not have already communicated to your legislators.
Make a direct request to the chairs of this committee yourself to urge them to meet and act on this bill as soon as possible.
Let your chapter SAC or union leader know which legislators are behind this bill and who are not, so the Strategic Action Committee will have a record of this information.

Contact Information for Legislators:

To find out who your State Representative and State Senator are, go to: http://www.wheredoivotema.com
To reach your legislator by phone, call the main State House number (617-722-2000) and ask to be connected to your legislator.
To send an email to your representative, go to: http://www.mass.gov/legis/memmenuh.htm
To send an email to your senator, go to: http://www.mass.gov/legis/memmenus.htm
To contact House Chair, Robert Spellane: Email: Rep.RobertSpellane@Hou.State.MA.US mailto:Rep.RobertSpellane@Hou.State.MA.US ; phone: 617-722-2240
To contact Senate Chair Thomas McGee: Email: Thomas.McGee@state.ma.us mailto:Thomas.McGee@state.ma.us ; phone: 617-722-1350

What's next:

I will be contacting key legislators to monitor this process and move this legislation forward.
As soon as S 1173 moves out of this committee, I will let you know and request your support for the next step in this legislative process.
The Public Service Committee is expected to forward this Senate bill to the Senate Ways & Means Committee. At that point, immediate action on the part of all of us will once again be needed to push this bill forward from the Ways & Means Committee to its next destination - the full Senate.

Thanks for your continued support on this legislation. Please contact legislators this week in order to make a difference. Our cumulative and timely responses are needed to move this bill forward. Don't hesitate to contact me if you have questions, concerns, or suggestions.

In solidarity,

Donnie

Diana (Donnie) McGee
Professor of English, Bristol Community College
MCCC Vice President & SAC Chair
email the vice president