Our Fight Continues: Engaging with Ballot Measures, Promoting Federal Retirement Fairness, and Protecting Our Letter Carriers

What's on the Ballot? Citizen-Initiated Ballot Measures

One way to get engaged this election season is through the ballot initiative process. Ballot initiatives are state level measures that give citizens the power to change laws through a vote. Currently, 26 states and the District of Columbia allow for citizen-initiated and citizen-led ballot measures, which can be in the form of a constitutional amendment, state statute, or veto referendum. Ballot measures can be a key tool to bypass the partisan gridlock in Congress and allow citizens to pass measures at the state level on minimum wage increases, Vote-by- Mail, tax initiatives, reproductive rights, voting rights, and more.

In addition to citizen-led measures, almost every state (except for Delaware) is required to hold a vote on any change to their state constitution. As this edition goes to press, 117 statewide ballot measures in 35 states have received the proper clearance to appear on the ballot.

Please educate yourself on what will appear on your ballot this November. You can visit apwu.org/2024- elections for resources, including your sample ballot, which will include any approved ballot measures.

Federal Retirement Fairness Act (H.R. 5995)

In addition to voting on ballot measures in your state, we want to give you an update on an important bill that could affect our members, other postal union employees, and federal employees: the Federal Retirement Fairness Act (H.R. 5995). If passed, this bill would allow temporary postal and federal employees who are promoted to career positions the option of "buying back" the time that they worked as a noncareer employee to use toward their retirement. Temporary postal employees are noncareer employees, such as Postal Support Employees (PSEs), Transitional Employees, and Casuals who are unable to make contributions to their retirement benefits until they become career Postal Service employees.

Last Congress, the bill received 100 cosponsors in the House of Representatives. Currently, the bill has 107 cosponsors and momentum is growing to introduce the bill in the Senate. Since we have surpassed the number of cosponsors from the last Congress, the time is now to put pressure on our elected officials to support the Federal Retirement Fairness Act!

Protect Our Letter Carriers Act (H.R. 7629, S. 4356)

The APWU has joined the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) to fight against a rise in violence that NALC members are facing. Last year, there were nearly 650 robberies of letter carriers on the job, up significantly from just 64 in 2019. Many of the criminals robbing and assaulting letter carriers are armed, creating a truly unsafe work environment for our fellow postal workers.

We are educating members of Congress about the problems postal workers face and have encouraged the introduction of legislation that would keep letter carriers, and all postal workers, safe. If signed into law, the Protect Our Letter Carriers Act would give the Postal Service $7 billion over the next five years to install high-security collection boxes and secure electronic universal keys. Additionally, the bill requires the U.S. Attorney General to appoint an Assistant U.S. Attorney in all 94 judicial districts to coordinate and prioritize cases involving crimes against letter carriers. For those convicted of these crimes, the bill also strengthens the sentencing guidelines to ensure assaults on postal workers are treated like assaults on federal law enforcement officers.

The APWU strongly supports the passage of both the Federal Retirement Fairness Act and the Protect Our Letter Carriers Act. We urge everyone to call their congressional representatives and spread the word to your family, friends, coworkers, and community organizations! ■

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