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New Members Join Americans Abroad Caucus in US House of Representatives American Citizens Abroad is pleased to announce that three new members of Congress have joined the Americans Abroad Caucus, which focuses on issues of interest to US citizens living overseas. These issues include transmission of citizenship to children, voting from overseas, lack of representation in Congress, double taxation and many others. Geneva, Switzerland (PRWEB) November 11, 2007 -- American Citizens Abroad (ACA) is pleased to announce that three new members of Congress have recently joined the Americans Abroad Caucus in the US House of Representatives. The three new members are Michael Capuano (D-MA), Susan Davis (D-CA) and Tom Davis (R-VA).
"We are excited to work with the Americans Abroad Caucus," said Andy Sundberg, founder and member of the Board of ACA. "We will maintain close communications with these members of Congress, who have showed that they are sensitive to the particular needs of their many constituents living outside of the United States."
Jackie Bugnion, Director of ACA, added, "We look forward to working closely with the members of the Caucus on the many issues that concern US citizens living abroad, and we hope that many other members of the House will realize that they can best serve their constituents overseas by joining the Caucus and working with ACA and other groups of Americans abroad."
The Americans Abroad Caucus was founded by Reps. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Joe Wilson (R-SC) to respond to the concerns of their constituents who live outside of the United States. Americans living abroad include members of the armed services, US government employees, and ordinary citizens. Their number is estimated to be over 6 million people, a group larger than many states of the USA. The issues of most concern to Americans living abroad include limitations on transmitting US citizenship to their children born abroad, difficulties in voting in US elections from overseas, double-taxation, complications in receiving Social Security payments, lack of representation in Congress, the absence of Medicare coverage overseas and many others.
"I see expats as very good citizens and ambassadors from the United States," Rep. Wilson said, and in a letter from Representatives Maloney and Wilson to their House colleagues, they noted that "the role of Americans overseas in strengthening the US economy, creating jobs in the US, and extending American influence around the globe is vital to the well-being of our nation."
Other members of the caucus are (in alphabetical order): John Boozman (R-AZ), Julia Carson (D-IN), Donna Christensen (D-VI), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Kay Granger (R-TX), Alcee Hastings (D-FL), Michael Honda (D-CA), Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Henry Waxman (D-CA), Frank Wolf (R-VA).
In addition to ACA, groups of Americans overseas who were instrumental in the creation of the caucus include FAWCO (Federation of American Women's Club Overseas) and AARO (Association of Americans Resident Overseas) in Paris.
ACA urges all US citizens living abroad to check this list of members of the Caucus. If your member of the House is not on the list, please write to encourage him or her to join the Caucus in order for the concerns of US citizens overseas to be heard. Remember: your current representative in Congress is from the state district where you last resided before living abroad. A model letter is available on the ACA website (www.aca.ch).
American Citizens Abroad (www.aca.ch) is a non-profit, non-partisan, nongovernmental association, based in Geneva, Switzerland, dedicated to serving and defending the interests of individual US citizens living worldwide.
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