NTEU elects new president

In a landslide vote, Colleen M. Kelley was elected president of the National Treasury Employees Union Tuesday at the union's national convention.

Kelley, an NTEU member since 1974, was the union's executive vice president under outgoing president Robert M. Tobias. Prior to that she was NTEU's director of membership and benefits programs. She received 93 percent of the votes cast in Tuesday's election.

Tobias, who has been head of the union for 16 years, announced his departure earlier this year. He recently accepted a position at American University, where he will research public policy and teach at the university's School of Public Affairs. Tobias will also become a columnist for Government Executive.

A former IRS agent of 14 years, Kelly now serves on the agency's modernization steering committee, which oversees ongoing IRS reforms. She has also served on the IRS Executive Planning Board and NTEU's bargaining teams in the IRS and the Customs service.

Frank Ferris will assume responsibilities as executive vice president. Ferris most recently served as director of negotiations at the union.

NTEU is the nation's largest independent federal sector union, representing more than 155,000 employees at the IRS and other agencies.