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Danny James Confirmed as
A.S.E.A.'s New Executive Director
 In an announcement
made Saturday, August 14, at the Arkansas State Employees Association’s
42nd annual convention, association president Judy Beatty informed
those attending that Danny James, former A.S.E.A. field representative
and operations administrator, had been confirmed by A.S.E.A.’s
executive committee as the association’s new permanent executive
director. James had been serving as A.S.E.A.’s interim executive
director since the retirement of former director Kay Durnett earlier in
the year.
Forestry Commission's James
Brigance Named A.S.E.A.'s
2010 Outstanding State Employee
 James R. Brigance
of Fayetteville was the
recipient of the 2010 Outstanding State Employee Award, given by the
Arkansas State Employees Association at a banquet held during its
annual convention on the evening of August 13 at the DoubleTree Hotel
in Little Rock. He received a plaque, a traveling trophy, and a check
for $1,000.00.
Brigance is the Staff Development Coordinator
with the Forestry Commission. During the awards ceremony, the presenter
cited such other previous recognitions as the National Rural Community
Assistance Leadership Award and the Forestry Commission’s District
Forester of the Year Award, as well as praising such community efforts
as Brigance’s work with his local church’s school faculty, disaster
relief program, and Sunday School. The presenter quoted Brigance’s
nominator for the award, describing the award recipient as “displaying
the highest moral values, integrity, and selflessness.”
This year, 32 state employees were nominated for
the award, based on distinguished or outstanding service to the state
and community during the period of their state employment; personal
qualities; on-the-job experience and accomplishments; integrity and
devotion to the welfare of Arkansas residents; other awards and
recognitions; and outstanding contributions to fellow state employees
or to a state employer.
Jackson County Named
A.S.E.A.'s 2010 Outstanding State Chapter
 The
Jackson County
chapter of the Arkansas State Employees Association (A.S.E.A.) was
named the association’s Outstanding Chapter of 2010 at a luncheon held
Saturday, August 14, at the DoubleTree Hotel in Little Rock as part of
A.S.E.A.’s 42nd annual convention.
The chapter was honored for its
tireless community efforts, which have included participating in the
Adopt-a-Highway program; collecting and delivering school supplies to
local schools; donating dog food to the Jackson County Humane Society,
household items to the White River Battered Women’s Shelter, clothes to
a local nursing home, stuffed animals to the Harris Hospital Emergency
Room, and cash to the March of Dimes and the American Cancer Society;
and adopting two foster children through the Department of Human
Services to donate Christmas gifts.
Jackson County chapter president Tonya Gates, an
employee with the Riverside Vocational Technical School, accepted the
award from the association’s president, Judy Beatty, along with her
fellow chapter members in attendance. Those also present included Sonya
Douglas, Michael Harmon, Victoria Harmon, Dwight Pipes, Barbara
Tiefenback, and Tammy Wilson. Douglas, Michael Harmon, and Wilson are
employees of the Department of Correction; the others are also
employees with the Riverside Vocational Technical School.
A.S.E.A./SEBCO Announces
Individual Staff Email Addresses
A.S.E.A./SEBCO will soon be retiring its group e-mail
address, aseaar@aseaar.org, in order to introduce a full roster
of individual staff e-mail accounts in the hope of making it easier and
more efficient for our members to reach us. Check out the staff listing
below for who best to contact with your particular questions.
A.S.E.A. STAFF
Danny James • executive director
djames@aseaar.org
• legislative
issues; general association inquiries
John Bridges • field representative
jbridges@aseaar.org
• chapter issues; chapter meeting
scheduling
April Jukes • administrative assistant
ajukes@aseaar.org
• board of directors correspondence; association deposit issues
Judy McLeod • special events coordinator
jmcleod@aseaar.org
• association functions; annual convention questions
John Moran • media coordinator
jmoran@aseaar.org
• newsletter questions; website issues; association press releases
Natosha Smallwood • bookkeeper
nsmallwood@aseaar.org
• office finances and accounting
Tomika Tate • senior membership clerk
ttate@aseaar.org
• membership issues; address changes; Benevolent Fund questions
Marc Watts • field representative / senior
legislative analyst
mwatts@aseaar.org
• chapter issues; meeting scheduling; legislative issues
SEBCO STAFF
Mark Chambers • manager
mchambers@sebco.org
• licensed agent: life, health, property,
casualty
Carol-Ann Blow • billing specialist
cblow@sebco.org
• billing inquiries
Erica Boyett • document examiner
eboyett@sebco.org
• insurance information requests; payroll deduction card questions
Debbie Hedden • insurance representative
dhedden@sebco.org
• licensed agent: automobile, homeowners, renters
Sandra Holland • insurance representative
sholland@sebco.org
• licensed agent: life, health
Paul Holland • VanPool mechanic
pholland@sebco.org
• VanPool driver concerns
Jim Soule • insurance representative
jsoule@sebco.org
• licensed agent: property, casualty
Ruth Turner • document examiner
rturner@sebco.org
• payroll deduction card questions
Kelly Welcher • insurance representative /
VanPool coordinator
kwelcher@sebco.org
• licensed agent: life, health, property, casualty; VanPool rider
inquiries
Some Differentials to be
Suspended as of July 1
In a June 9 memo, Department of Finance and
Administration director Richard Weiss announced the suspension of
certain differentials as of July 1, 2010. A copy of the memo can be
accessed here.
Career Service
Recognition
Payments Will Not be Given Fiscal Year 2011
In a May 26 memo, Department of Finance and
Administration Director
Richard Weiss announced that:
• the 2.3% cost of living adjustment (COLA)
will not be applied to employees' June 30, 2010, salaries;
• classified and unclassified employee merit increases
will be suspended
for the 2011 fiscal year; and
• annual career service
recognition payments will be suspended for the 2011 fiscal year.
Please note that the cover story of the May 2010 A.S.E.A.
News ("Career
Service Recognition Payments to Continue") is no longer accurate.
As of press time for that issue, the most recent information the
Arkansas State
Employees Association had received indicated no plans to change the
schedule of Career Service Recognition payments, despite the suspension
of COLAs and merit pay. Economic developments
since A.S.E.A. received that original information from the Department
of
Finance and Administration have made this additional suspension
necessary.
The News regrets any confusion.
A complete copy of the memo can be accessed here.
EBD Responds to Insurance
Reform Questions
The Employee Benefits Division has released the
following FAQ in response to inquiries about the impact of health
insurance reform on participants in the state and public employee
insurance program:
Question: What does the new Health Insurance Reform Law
mean to me?
Answer: EBD has extensively reviewed the “Patient
Protection and Affordable Care Act”, which was signed into law by
President Obama on March 23, 2010.
We are proud of the fact that many of the provisions
required by the law have been incorporated into the ARBenefits Health
Plan for some time, especially those that will go into effect the
earliest.
Those provisions include:
• No pre-existing conditions
• Dependent age limit up to age 26 without regard to
student status
• Short waiting period of 30 days
• No cancellation of coverage because of illness
• No lifetime cap on coverage
There are other provisions that could affect the Plan
over the next several years. EBD will continue to study the law and its
requirements, and will design the plan accordingly.
Governor Will Recommend
Suspension of 2010 COLA, Says Weiss
Department of Finance and Administration director
Richard Weiss, testifying today, Tuesday, January 12, before the Joint
Budget Committee, announced that Governor Mike Beebe would be
recommending to the committee that the 2.3% July 1, 2010,
cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for state agency employees be
suspended.
Elsewhere, Governor Beebe has said that he nevertheless
does not anticipate any layoffs as a result of the additional $106
million budget cut that was announced Monday, January 11.
Some Eligible to
Attend Retirement Seminars without Annual Leave Use
In a development that dovetails with one of the items
from the 2007/2008 agenda set at A.S.E.A.’s August annual business
meeting, employee attendance at Public Employee and Teacher Retirement
System retirement seminars will now be treated as any other type of
employee benefit presentation, provided that certain criteria are met
and that those attending have at least five years of credited service
in a state-sponsored retirement system.
In an October 9 memo from State Personnel
Administrator Kay Barnhill Terry, the Office of Personnel Management
announced that attendance at retirement systems will now be as follows:
* Employees are allowed to attend a retirement
seminar once every five years without the use of accrued leave.
* Employees within five years of retirement are
allowed to attend a retirement seminar once a year without the use of
accrued leave.
* Employees within one year of retirement or DROP
(the Deferred Retirement Option Plan) are not required to use accrued
leave to attend retirement seminars or scheduled sessions with
retirement counselors.
Among the items approved by the attendees of
A.S.E.A.’s 2007 business meeting, held during the association’s August
annual convention, was a resolution “that A.S.E.A. work with the
administration to develop a uniform policy in state government for
state employees who are vested to attend their retirement systems’
retirement seminars.” That resolution was originally submitted by the
association’s Grant County chapter.
The memo clarifies that employees must schedule the
attendance so that their absence will not hinder the work of their
agency and that appointments will require prior approval from
employees’ supervisors.
Birthdate to be Excluded
from FOIA-eligible Information
In response to a recent Freedom of Information Act
(FOIA) request from a New York Associated Press reporter regarding
state employees, Attorney General Dustin McDaniel has ruled that an
employee’s year of birth be redacted from the record prior to the
record’s release.
Information that will be released includes an
employee’s agency number, agency name, first, middle and last name, job
title, latest hire date, current salary, pay basis (hourly or annual),
work address, work city, and work phone. Also eligible for release is
the amount of an employee’s Career Ladder Incentive Program (CLIP)
bonus.
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