From 1989 to 1998, Foreign Service spouses working under PIT (Part-time, Intermittent and Temporary) appointments were unable to receive credit toward retirement benefits. The Family Liaison Office sought to remedy this, but realized that change would require a legislative solution. Since the FLO cannot lobby, AAFSW (as well as AFSA) became involved. AAFSW lobbied on the Hill, held coordinating meetings at State, and collected the names of spouses eligible for retirement credits denied them during the “gap” years. This “buy-back,” totaling several million dollars including interest, finally became a reality in 2008, and some 500 spouses were able to increase both their time-in-service credit and their monthly retirement annuity.