NATCA Bookshelf

NOWIRDec212016

A publication of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association

Issue link: http://natca.uberflip.com/i/766656

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 0 of 14

NATCA NATIONAL OFFICE DEPARTMENTAL WEEK IN REVIEW December 10-16, 2016 LABOR RELATIONS DEPARTMENT TRANSERVE BENEFIT DEBIT CARD FOR REGIONAL AND FIELD OFFICES On Dec. 8, 2016, NATCA was briefed on the FAA Transit Benefit Program. By March 31, 2017, the FAA will implement a new transit subsidy program called the TranServe Benefits Debit Card for Regional and Field Offices. This benefit affords employees a non-taxable transportation subsidy which is designed to encourage employees to use mass transit for commute to and from work. To implement this program, the Agency will do away with paper fare media and reimbursement vouchering, and replace it with electronic fare media. The program will be managed by TRANServe, a DOT organization that manages Transit Benefit Services to the Federal Government. Participating employees will register for the benefit using the TRANServe Website. Employees will be issued a VISA branded debit card within five business days of the application registration with the required amount needed for the monthly commute. The current maximum monthly allocation, established by Congress, is $255. The allocated amount will be loaded on the card automatically by the 10th of each month; the unused portion will be swept by the 9th of each month prior to the auto reload. The debit card will be distributed to the field point of contacts charged with overseeing the program for the FAA for their respective locations. The debit card will reflect the employee's name; purchases will be limited to transit vendors; and any unused amount will be returned to the government. J.P. Morgan is the card issuer and it will handle replacement of the card in the event the card is lost or stolen. Employee briefings are scheduled for early February 2017 with implementation completed by the end of March. The TRANServe program only applies to the FAA Regional and Field offices. FAA Headquarters will continue with the Metro SmarTrip program. POCs: NATCA Region X Regional Vice President Michael MacDonald, ABA National Representative Gwendolyn Kimbrough, and Labor Relations Representative Melinda Kim. SURVEILLANCE INTERFACE MODERNIZATION (SIM) PROGRAM On Dec. 15, 2016, NATCA received a briefing from the Agency regarding changes to the Surveillance Interface Modernization (SIM) program. The purpose of the SIM program is to convert surveillance radar and ATC automation systems for terminal, en route, and oceanic air traffic control operations from a legacy serial point-to-point interface (also referred to as Time Division Multiplexing or TDM) to Internet Protocol (IP). SIM comprises seven percent of the TDM services at the Agency that are being converted to IP. The Agency intends to consolidate all of its TDM-to-IP programs into a

Articles in this issue

view archives of NATCA Bookshelf - NOWIRDec212016