Urgent URPBPA Legislative Alert: July 23, 2005 The letter writing campaign to the Senate Finance Committee is going well, if you have not written your 20 letters please do so today. This Committee will send a bill to the Senate floor next week! Do this first. The AFA Legislative Chairperson is currently in Washington, DC with the AFA MEC President, Vice President and a Committee Chairman actively lobbying the offices of Senators, especially those on the Finance Committee. She advises that letters and especially phone calls are very important, and that it is much easier for her team when they enter an office that has received a lot of phone calls and faxes. They will be lobbying in Washington through next Friday, July 29. She said that “Glenn Tilton and his team of lobbyists are actively on the Hill lobbying to protect United’s position.” It is very important that EACH of us do our best to undo Tilton’s lobbying efforts. There is another Senate Committee that we need to address before the Congressional Summer Recess - the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee (H.E.L.P.). This is the committee that is responsible for the labor and pension issues that are affecting our pensions. They set the policy. They are meeting currently and expect to have legislation ready soon after the Summer Recess. We basically need to take our letters we have composed for the Senate Finance Committee, appropriately change them and send them to the H.E.L.P. Committee. We can not emphasize enough the importance of these letters and phone calls to our pensions’ survival. Please fax your letter and call each of these offices stating that any Pension Reform Legislation should include provisions to stop the terminations of the Defined Benefit Pensions at United Airlines. Points to include in your letters: * Legislation must include: a 6 month moratorium on pension terminations in bankruptcy court as spelled out in S. 1158 which includes United Airlines; OR a permanent solution to the United Airline pension crisis. * 6 month moratorium would grant United’s employees and retirees a fair opportunity to save their pensions. * There are alternatives to termination that will benefit the employees and retirees but will not harm United Airlines, i.e. Freezes and Split/Freezes. * Employees and retirees have been treated unfairly in bankruptcy court. * Termination of United’s pensions will create a competitive imbalance among the legacy carriers; United, Delta, Northwest and American. * If the pension crisis is not stopped with United it will result in strategic bankruptcies by Delta, Northwest and American just to terminate their Defined Benefit Pension Plans. * If this crisis is not corrected it will spread to other industries such as the Automobile Industry. * This landslide of pension terminations will affect the National Economy, the taxes people pay and the way people vote. Remember United’s CEO Glen Tilton and his lobbyists are lobbying these offices this week, we must work together to undo their work! We can do undo Tilton’s work by flooding their offices with faxes and phone calls. This means that EACH of us will have to send another 21 letters. There are 10 Republicans, 9 Democrats plus the Majority Staff and Minority Staff offices. Please follow up your letters with phone calls to each of these Senator’s offices. Do this as though your pension relies on it, because it does! Print this list out and use it as a check list: Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Contact Information Majority (Republicans) Minority (Democrats) Committee Office: Dirksen Senate Office Building 428 Dirksen Senate Office Building 646 Committee Phone: 202-224-5375 202-224-5465 Committee FAX: 202-224-6510 202-224-5128 Committee Membership Majority Members (Republicans) Member Name DC Phone DC FAX Michael Enzi (R-WY) [Chairman] 202-224-3424 202-228-0359 Judd Gregg (R-NH) 202-224-3324 202-224-4952 William H. Frist (R-TN) 202-224-3344 202-228-1264 Richard Burr (R-NC) 202-224-3154 202-228-2981 Johnny Isakson (R-GA) 202-224-3643 202-228-0724 Mike DeWine (R-OH) 202-224-2315 202-224-6519 John Ensign (R-NV) 202-224-6244 202-228-2193 Orrin G. Hatch (R-UT) 202-224-5251 202-224-6331 Jeff Sessions (R-AL) 202-224-4124 202-224-3149 Pat Roberts (R-KS) 202-224-4774 202-224-3514 Minority Members (Democrats) Member Name DC Phone DC FAX Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA) [Ranking Member] 202-224-4543 202-224-2417 Christopher J. Dodd (D-CT) 202-224-2823 202-224-1083 Tom Harkin (D-IA) 202-224-3254 202-224-9369 Barbara A. Mikulski (D-MD) 202-224-4654 202-224-8858 James M. Jeffords (I-VT) 202-224-5141 202-228-0776 Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) 202-224-5521 202-224-2852 Patty Murray (D-WA) 202-224-2621 202-224-0238 Jack Reed (D-RI) 202-224-4642 202-224-4680 Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) 202-224-4451 202-228-0282 Sample Letter – Please write your letter in your own words. Letters that appear to be “form” letters are not given much weight. July 23, 2005 Senator Mike Enzi, Chairman Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, DC Fax: 202-228-0359 Re: Pension Reform Legislation Dear Senator Enzi, It is imperative that any legislation considered by your committee must include provisions to save the pensions at United Airlines. Please include in your legislation the provisions of S. 1158 calling for a 6 month moratorium of pension terminations in bankruptcy court OR a permanent solution to the pension crisis at United Airlines. Grant to the employees and retirees of United Airlines a fair opportunity to save their pensions. If United is allowed to terminate their pensions in bankruptcy court you will create a competitive imbalance among the legacy carriers, United, Delta, Northwest and American. They will be forced to resort to strategic bankruptcies in order to stay competitive by also shedding their Defined Benefit Pension Plans. There are alternatives to plan terminations that will not harm United Airlines and yet will benefit United’s employees and retirees. Minor changes in the law would allow freezing of these viable pension plans. Stop these pension takeovers by the PBGC and allow Congress TIME to find a workable solution to this crisis. Time is all we ask for now; TIME will not be a cost to the government but not taking action will cost the government dearly. The PBGC can not absorb these liabilities without asking for a taxpayer bailout. Taxpayers and voters, many who are your constituents, are watching you and relying on you to protect their pensions. Respectfully, ( Your Signature ) Name Address Phone Please Forward to Every Airline Employee You Know, and to Willing Friends and Relatives! Please Note: URPBPA would like to thank Jim Hosking for his work in the production of this alert.