members’ questions before a vote was to take place in San Antonio in August 2016 at our International Convention. As many of you know, this Bylaw change (full membership to all services) was presented to the general membership and disapproved. This now means the Executive Council and Headquarters will need to “think outside of the box” and find different ways to propel the Association in the years to come.
As you can see from the charts, there was a great deal of work to do in 2016, just not enough time to get it all done. The annual close-out revealed a $1M deficit for 2016, which can be attributed to three areas: the Professional Airmen’s Conference, the expense of maintaining the Airmen Memorial Building and not reaching our annual recruiting goals. There is a silver lining to this story, however—not counting the International Convention, Headquarters projected $1,732,415 in operating expenses for 2016 and came in at $1,592,115; 8 percent under projection.
In 2016, we also recognized only 78 percent of our recruiting goal, resulting in more than $200,000 in unrealized dues revenue, which forced Headquarters to pull from our investments to cover our general operating expenses. Moving forward, the International Executive Council and International Headquarters will work tirelessly to streamline our expenses and strengthen AFSA’s investment portfolio to ensure future sustainability.
The most important benefit AFSA provides to its membership is its advocacy work on Capitol Hill. After all, looking out for enlisted members is the reason this Association was founded in the first place. I’m pleased to report
that 2016 will go down in history as one of this Association’s most successful in recent years.
Your government relations team helped win a 2.1 percent pay raise for active servicemembers versus the 1.6 percent requested by DoD; blocked a Senate proposal BAH cut for those sharing housing, including dual military couples; and won a provision basing former spouse retired pay division on grade/ years of service upon divorce (future divorces only). Additionally, AFSA helped blocked proposals to impose annual Tricare For Life enrollment fee of up to 2 percent of military retired pay and roughly double TRICARE pharmacy copays over 10 years. We also won the elimination of the preauthorization requirement for urgent care, and expanded hours of primary and urgent care at Military Treatment Facilities; defeated proposals for higher TRICARE Standard deductible for non-network providers and a proposed TRICARE enrollment fee on active duty family members. Our efforts helped win recognition for all retired members of the reserve components as Veterans, extended the Special Survivor Indemnity Allowance through May 2018 and made the Survivor Benefit Plan for Reserve Component members who die while on inactive duty for training to equal SBP benefits for those who die on active duty. Last but not least, they convinced Congress to abandon a Senate plan to reduce the housing stipend for military dependents who are using Post-9/11 education benefits.
Our government relations team’s engagement with legislators in Washington, D.C. has never been stronger. While they continue to maintain relationships with existing
coalitions, they are expanding the Association’s sphere of influence in other areas of government by seeking potential partners for future efforts. As always, they need your help to identify the issues of importance and rely on your engagement with your elected officials. Your continued use of the Legislative Action Center (think modern version of a letter-writing campaign), found on our website, to communicate with your elected officials is but one way to augment AFSA’s advocacy efforts in Washington.
From a membership perspective, 2016 closed out under target. We started the year sure that we could achieve the aggressive goal of recruiting and retaining 25,000 members. This goal would help AFSA keep pace with its 100,000-member strength plan and meet our dues income goal for fiscal year 2016. While we tried, we fell below that mark by approximately 5,500 members. At this point, our current processes are not working as we had hoped. The Executive Council and Headquarters must find new ways to grow membership to remain a strong voice on Capitol Hill.
As AFSA looks to the future, we know the future will not be easy, but the Executive Council and the Headquarters’ team has never steered away from a challenge and won’t start now. We will move forward with an understanding of our need to provide a more talented streamlined staff, armed with a sense of commitment that our members are well represented on the Hill, our Chapters and Divisions have the tools necessary to do their jobs and that we will work diligently to improve the financial health of AFSA for future sustainability to ensure that the traditions of 1961 last for decades to come.
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