Backgrounder
Union Transparency and Accountability Act
Bill sponsors: H.R. 1129, sponsored by Rep. Francis Rooney (R-FL)
Summary: The Union Transparency and Accountability Act would amend the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA) to reinstate three financial disclosure requirements for labor organizations. The Department of Labor’s LM-2, T-1, and LM-30 disclosure forms would require labor organizations to provide greater transparency as it relates to union officers’ compensation packages, trust funds, and conflicts of interest, respectively.
Background: The three disclosure requirements were instated during the George W. Bush presidency and subsequently repealed by the Obama administration. The Department of Labor’s Office of Labor-Management Standards proposes to re-establish a Form T-1 to capture financial information pertinent to trusts in which a labor organization is “interested”— information that historically has largely gone unreported.
Bill Status: Rep. Rooney reintroduced the Union Transparency and Accountability Act on February 8, 2019, with one original cosponsor. The bill was referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, which has sole jurisdiction on the issue. No hearing or other action has been announced. The legislation has not received legislative action in the House or Senate.
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