FederalDaily - January 10, 2007

Bill Would Strip Retirement from Felonious Feds

Rep. Lee Terry, R-Neb., is seeking co-sponsors for a bill which would deny retirement benefits to any federal employee—including elected officials and judges at all levels—convicted of an abuse-of-power crime. The bill, the Public Trust and Accountability Act, H.R. 232, amends an existing statute that now provides for the forfeiture of retirement benefits of government employees convicted of violating national security laws—such as treason. The bill—a reaction to recent congressional lobbying scandals—would extend these penalties to include “white collar” crimes such as embezzlement and bribery, Terry said in a letter to colleagues Jan. 4. “We as elected officials must set the example of leadership, trust and accountability that is expected of all federal government employees,” Terry wrote. The lawmaker called for sponsors after the House Democratic leadership refused to include the pension forfeiture provisions in their package of ethics reforms. To see more, go to: www.house.gov/pence/rsc/doc/CA_010807_terrytrust.doc

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Measure Would Provide Bargaining Rights for TSA Employees

Tucked inside a measure to enact most of the outstanding recommendations of the 9/11 Commission is a provision that would grant employees of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) the same collective bargaining rights as other federal workers. House Democrats on Jan. 9 initiated debate on H.R. 1—a broad package of legislation implementing many recommendations of the 9/11 Commission. It includes language that requires the government to grant to TSA employees the same employment rights, including collective bargaining, as other federal employees, said Colleen Kelley, president of the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU). The legislation would terminate the current personnel system and give the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) secretary the option of moving TSA employees to one of the personnel management systems in place for other federal workers, Kelley said. In the legislation establishing TSA after the 9/11 attacks, the DHS secretary was given wide latitude over granting employees collective bargaining rights. The first head of TSA refused to permit agency employees such rights. To see more, go to: www.nteu.org/PressKits/PressRelease/PressRelease.aspx?ID=1003

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Grand Jury Indicts Former Border Inspector

A federal grand jury last month indicted a former Border Patrol (BP) inspector on charges of alien smuggling and conspiracy to commit smuggling. Adam Bender, of Eastpointe, Mich., a former BP inspector, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Detroit. Indicted along with Bender were Hassan Saad, of Detroit, and Ibrahim Saad and Hani Bazzi, both of Windsor, Mich. The seven-count indictment charges that between May 2004 and March 2005, Bender—along with both Hassan Saad and Ibrahim Saad—conspired to allow illegal aliens entry into the United States. Bazzi is charged in the indictment with illegal entry, said U. S. Attorney Stephen Murphy. “The protection of our borders is the keystone without which the structure of our homeland security would be unsound,” Murphy said. To see more, go to: www.usdoj.gov/usao/mie/press/2006/2006-12-1_hsaad.pdf.

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