NOTICE TO COAD MEMBERSHIP

I began looking into this Select Market Variable problem last week at Wilbur's request. I kept being referred to one OMB-HR person who was out last week. I reached her finally on Tuesday morning and asked what was happening. She told me the schedule she had for getting data and it was not geared to a January 1 addition, so I called the person in the Controller General's Office that I talked to last year. She said the language is still in the Epilogue of the Budget for this year about a January 1 SMV addition, so it should be in the works. They both depend on the figures the Department is using. I asked the second one to call the first and see if she can get to the bottom of this apparent oversight because the DOC is still seriously understaffed. That something so important could be overlooked is not impossible. I am waiting to hear from the second one again. Meanwhile I have asked the COAD office to send me the latest employment figures the DOC forwards to it. Last year they played games with those figures, so we need to see what they are reporting and run our own calculations. That will be done. I do not know who the person sending out the other email talked to. If he has spoken with Commissioner Taylor, then we have a fight on our hands. Your President is attempting to verify the information through that office. Obviously, Danberg will need to be brought up to speed on this subject and I would expect your President, who knows him, is planning just such a meeting. I have no contract to lobby for the Union this session. You have a Legislative Committee. I believe David Knight and Kevin Roth are still on it. If I do not get a positive response to this notice that a SMV increase is expected, however, everyone should just call their legislators at Legislative Hall until the phones fall off the walls. But do not use the State email to do that. I will let everyone know the official word as soon as one of us gets an answer. Christine Whitehead