REAM’s Legislative priorities for the current session:
REAM works to protect the pension, health insurance and other benefit rights of its members and future retirees. REAM’s priorities for this legislative session will be to protect current benefits that are under attack as well as continue to advocate on behalf of meaningful COLA adjustments, minimum pension benefits, service credit options and purchasing power. Our legislative team offers testimony, both oral and written, at many bill hearings as well as seeks to engage our members with direct contact to legislators through phone call, office visits and emails.
Other important links to information:
Legislative update on any retirement issue affecting both active and retired teachers of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts can be found here.
Reach any Senator or Representative on Beacon Hill. Complete listing of all state senators and representatives as well as complete information on them, and access to their e-mail address.
If you do not know the names of your Senators or Congressmen from your state you will find them at this site. Simply click on the state in which you are interested. Then click on the name of the Congressmen or Senator you wish to contact. Most Congressmen only accept e-mails from their constituents. At this site you will find complete information on how to contact each member.
Tips on writing effective letters to elected officials can be found here. If you scroll down on this site you will find how to locate writing addresses for U.S. Senators, Representatives and Supreme Court Justices. Also there are the “always” and “nevers” in writing to them as well as how to identify legislation when writing to them.
Legislative issues involving seniors nationally.
Information on the Windfall Elimination Provision and the Government Pension Offset and how each affects what you will collect from Social Security because of your MA public pension. Two important bills filed on behalf of retired public employees HR235, calls for the complete repeal of the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO) and S484, which also calls for the complete repeal of the Windfall Elimination Provision(WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO). Please call both your US Senators and your US Congressman to ask that he/she co-sponsor this legislation and support this unfair practice.
AARP is asking for public comment on its position – register your thoughts with AARP.