AARO Completes Successful "Overseas Americans Week" in Washington, D.C

WASHINGTON - June 11, 2024 - PRLog -- PARIS, FRANCE: AARO, the Association of Americans Resident Overseas, reports that it has completed a successful visit the week of 3-7 June in Washington D.C. to discuss ongoing problems faced by expatriate Americans. Overseas Americans Week (OAW) is an annual event where representatives from AARO, partnering with FAWCO (Federation of American Women's Clubs Overseas), journey to Washington to meet directly with representatives from Congress, federal agencies and non-governmental organizations.

Scheduling dozens of meetings during the week, AARO covered problems encountered by overseas Americans including:

• Tax reform for overseas Americans and support for the Tax Simplification for Americans Abroad Act
• Consolidation of the FBAR and FATCA reports to ease reporting requirements
• Support for the bill to create a Commission on Americans Living Abroad to ensure that our concerns are taken into account
• Disenfranchised U.S. citizen voters
• The repeal of the Windfall Elimination Provision and the extension of Medicare coverage overseas

Fred Einbinder, Vice-President for Advocacy at AARO, said that in-person meetings like this are especially important because "meeting personally with Congress, Executive Agencies and private organizations during OAW is critical to effective advocacy. It nurtures relationships crucial to advancing legislation. The usefulness of this year's OAW was evidenced by staffers' comments that our efforts were "bearing fruit.'"

Doris Speer, President of AARO, said "AARO gains much from these meetings.  OAW provides AARO with an irreplaceable opportunity to learn about constraints inherent in getting our bills passed and to discuss tactics on policy and strategy. The personal contacts permit us to express ourselves directly, which is useful in overcoming these constraints."

More information about Overseas Americans Week can be found on the AARO website at https://www.aaro.org/advocacy/oaw

About AARO: The Association of Americans Resident Overseas (AARO), founded in 1973 and headquartered in Paris, is a global, non-partisan non-profit association with members in over 40 countries. AARO builds awareness in the U.S. of the issues affecting Americans overseas and the inequities regarding their rights, and seeks fair treatment by the U.S. government for Americans abroad. AARO also informs its members of the issues affecting them and of their rights and responsibilities as American citizens. For more information, please email us at contact@aaro.org