Column by Charles L. Little
Al Gore for president
This November, the choice for president is very clear. As we are now in the final stages of negotiating our first national contract of the 21st Century, we cannot afford to take the risk of a George W. Bush White House imposing a PEB on us and then letting a Republican-controlled Congress drive the nails in the coffin. -- Full text.

Column by James M. Brunkenhoefer
From UP's Omaha office to the Oval Office
Union Pacific brought more than 30 private rail cars to Republican Convention in Philadelphia. Don't be surprised if the hot line in a Bush/Cheney oval office is connected to Omaha instead of Moscow. Will Omaha pick all the future Presidential Emergency Boards, the federal railroad administrator, and future Supreme Court justices who will decide if FELA is still necessary? -- Full text.

Don't play politics with retirement bill
Everything was set in mid-July for the U.S. House to pass the Railroad Retirement and Survivors Act of 2000, known as H.R. 4844. Then what we can only describe as strange Congressional politics put the brakes on.

After H.R. 4844 overwhelmingly passed the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee by a 62-1 vote, a Republican Congressman from Missouri, Kenny Hulshof, offered an amendment that would have repealed a tax on diesel fuel levied on trains and river barges.

House Ways and Means Chairman Bill Archer (R-Texas) accepted the amendment, which resulted in the bill being stalled until after Labor Day.

Now, politics is nothing new when it comes to Congressional legislation. Neither is finger pointing.

But we believe that this Railroad Retirement bill is too important to our members -- and the members of our labor coalition of 11 organizations representing three million workers -- for us to get caught up in partisan politics.

We'd like to take the Speaker of the House, J. Dennis Hastert, at his word. The Republican leader said he is "committed to the expeditious consideration and passage" of H.R. 4844 in September.

For that to happen, it means the fuel tax repeal, which has nothing to do with Railroad Retirement legislation, must be removed from the bill.

The fuel tax repeal is a favorite among many in Congress -- and is wanted by the railroads and barge industry, which would save tens of millions of dollars annually -- but if it remains it would likely spell the end for the best improvements to Railroad Retirement in a generation.

The railroads are saying they don't want this tax cut attached to the Railroad Retirement bill, and that is welcome news.

So, we will take Speaker Hastert at his word. Because if the House doesn't pass a "clean" H.R. 4844 in September and send it to the Senate for ratification, then three million union members and their families will know who to blame in the November elections.

UTU praised for protecting retirees
The following letter was received recently at UTU International headquarters in Cleveland, Ohio:

Dear Sirs:

This is to notify you that my father, William T. Werton, retiree of the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway, passed to eternal life on August 3, 2000, at the age of 96.

My father really enjoyed the UTU News, and looked forward to its delivery. After he read it, he would pass it on to my husband, who retired from CSX as director, signals and communications operations. After they both read it, they would discuss many of its topics, always with positive comments.

My father was a member of Local 1760, Detroit, Mich. During his career as conductor and assistant trainmaster, he resolved many disputes for his union brothers, and always in a protective way for their safety and continuous employment.

Our entire family wishes to offer our sincere thanks for all the positive things the UTU did for their retirees, and especially for the continuous mailings of the UTU News. After the retirement of railroad workers, the UTU was the only railroad-associated entity that kept in touch with its members, and always looked out for their welfare.

Thanks again for all you have done.

Sincerely yours,
Nardine Werton Koester

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