2/22/07: A key congressional leader will join with NTEU President Colleen Kelley as opening day speakers next Tuesday as more than 300 NTEU members from around the country gather for the union’s annual three-day legislative conference. Along with President Kelley, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) will address conference participants beginning at 9 a.m. Tuesday at the L’Enfant Plaza Hotel.

The legislative conference will include Capitol Hill lobbying visits by NTEU chapter leaders and members, and will conclude with a luncheon address on Thursday by Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.). Rep. Van Hollen is the new chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

In addition to the congressional speakers and the member lobbying effort, the conference will include NTEU’s annual Candlelight Vigil at the National Law Officers Memorial, located on E Street N.W., between 4th and 5th Streets, in Washington. The Vigil, set for 6 p.m., Tuesday, honors Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Officers who have given their lives in the line of duty. CBP will be represented by DHS Deputy Secretary Michael Jackson and CBP Deputy Commissioner Deborah Spero. They will join President Kelley in a solemn reading of the names of those who sacrificed their lives.

Ed Manion of the SEC's Boston District Office will be attending this event on behalf of Chapter 293. NTEU members will meet with their elected representatives and senators, as well as members of their staffs, to discuss a variety of issues important to federal employees. These include the need for a fair and competitive federal pay raise; issues relating to the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program, including making it more affordable; the detrimental impact of continued privatization of federal jobs; the importance of a return to labor-management partnership efforts; and the need to revise or repeal laws adversely impacting federal retiree pensions.