📬 Contacting Congress – Step-by-Step

  • Go to www.congress.gov/members/find-your-member

  • Enter your home ZIP code to find your Representative and Senators.

  • Click Contact or Email Me on their page.

  • Choose “Share Your Opinion” or “Request Assistance.”

  • Copy and paste one of the templates below.

Template 1 – Policy vs. Practice

Subject: Concern Over Improper Sick-Leave Handling During Federal Shutdown

I work at FCC Coleman with the Federal Bureau of Prisons. During the October 2025 lapse in appropriations, local management instructed supervisors to retroactively change properly reported sick leave to AWOL unless employees submitted written “justifications” to the Warden.

The OPM Guidance: Lapse in Appropriations – FAQs (Oct 1 & 17, 2025) did not prohibit sick-leave use. It maintained the statutory process under 5 U.S.C. § 6307, allowing employees to request sick leave and notify supervision as soon as practicable. Nothing authorizes converting those requests to AWOL pending written justification.This directive contradicts policy, intimidates staff into disclosing private medical information, and raises HIPAA-related privacy concerns.

Please contact the Bureau of Prisons or DOJ to ensure this practice stops and that employee rights under 5 U.S.C. § 6307 are protected.

Sincerely,
[Your Name or “Concerned Employee”]
[City, ZIP]

Template 2 – Human Impact

Subject: Request for Oversight — BOP Leave Policy Causing Hardship

I’m a correctional employee at FCC Coleman. During the October 2025 shutdown, staff were told their sick-leave absences would be recoded as AWOL until they provided written “justifications” — even when properly reported.

The OPM guidance did not prohibit sick-leave use and kept the statutory process intact. This forced employees to choose between privacy and pay; some came to work sick. The requirement raised HIPAA privacy concerns by pressuring staff to reveal medical details. Please review and urge BOP to rescind this directive, correct affected payrolls, and reaffirm OPM—not local interpretation—sets federal leave policy.

Respectfully,
[Your Name or “Concerned Officer”]
[City, ZIP]