INDEPENDENCE, Ohio, October 3 — Mark Elkins of BLET Division 271 (Russell, Ky.) was elected by acclamation as the new Chairman of the Kentucky State Legislative Board at the Board’s Eighth Quadrennial Meeting on July 20, 2022.
A CSX locomotive engineer, Brother Elkins joined the BLET on April 1, 1998. He hired out with CSX in March 1996, working out of Russell, Ky. He earned promotion to locomotive engineer in September of 1997. He began serving the Kentucky SLB in 2018 when he was elected to the Audit Committee. Brother Elkins also served as President and Vice President of Division 271 earlier in his career. Also, Brother Elkins currently serves the Brotherhood as Local Chairman and Legislative Representative of Division 271.
Also elected by acclamation during the meeting were: 1st Vice Chairman Justin B. Dzan, Division 365 (Louisville, Ky.); 2nd Vice Chairman Patrick M. Rush, Division 165 (Louisville, Ky.); Secretary-Treasurer Daniel K. Maynard, Division 271 (Russell, Ky.); and Alternate Secretary-Treasurer Charles L. Lucas, Division 489 (Covington, Ky.). Elected by acclamation to serve as the Board’s Trustees were Kenneth P. Ganote, Division 489 (Covington, Ky.); Ryan Gregory, Division 463 (Corbin, Ky.); and Jamie Elswick, Division 698 (Ashland, Ky.).
Representing the BLET National Division at the meeting were: National President Dennis R. Pierce; Vice President & National Legislative Representative Vince Verna; and Director of Political Affairs Brendan Sullivan.
“I congratulate and thank Brother Elkins and all officers of the Kentucky State Legislative Board,” President Pierce said. “I am confident they will do an excellent job representing BLET members in the proud commonwealth of Kentucky.”
Additional Brotherhood guests included: Keith Kerley, General Chairman of the CSXT-Western Lines General Committee of Adjustment; and Shane Hubbard, Indiana State Legislative Board Chairman and Chairman of the National Association of State Legislative Board Chairmen (NASLBC). Brother Kerley and Brother Hubbard also addressed the membership.
Other guest speakers included: Bill Londrigen, President of the Kentucky State AFL-CIO; and Jeff Donohue, a member of the Kentucky State House of Representatives (37th District). Donohue is a 41-year member of the United Auto Workers and has sponsored a two-person crew bill in the Kentucky State House each year for the last several years.
The BLET’s Kentucky State Legislative Board represents approximately 750 active members in 111 different BLET Divisions. They work for Norfolk Southern, CSX, and the CN/Illinois Central railroads.