The Department of Labor’s Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS) published on August 10, 2010 a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to revise the Form LM-30 Labor Organization Officer and Employee Report. See: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2010/pdf/2010-19250.pdf. OLMS intends to publish a final rule revising the Form LM-30 in July 2011. See: http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/eAgendaViewRule?pubId=201104&RIN=1245-AA01.
Under section 202 of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA), and subject to certain exceptions, every labor organization officer or employee (other than an exclusively clerical or custodial employee) who has directly or indirectly held any legal or equitable interest in, received any payments from, or engaged in any transactions or arrangements with certain employers or businesses must file a report with OLMS. This report is submitted on a Form LM-30 and is required to make public any actual or potential conflict between the personal financial interests of union officers or employees and their obligations to the union and its members. For more information on the Form LM-30, please visit here.
OLMS most recently revised the Form LM-30 in 2007, attempting to clarify instructions and, in some aspects, expanding reporting requirements for public disclosure. However, the 2007 rule has generated numerous fundamental questions regarding the complexity of the form and its instructions, as well as the scope and extent of the LM-30 reporting obligations. Because of these concerns, OLMS announced on its web site on March 19, 2009, a non-enforcement policy under which it will accept either the old Form LM-30 or the new (2007) one from union officials. OLMS conducted a stakeholder meeting on July 21, 2009, to solicit comments concerning possible revision of the Form LM-30.
OLMS now proposes to revise the Form LM-30 and its instructions, based on an examination of the policy and legal justifications for, and utility of, certain changes implemented in the 2007 Form LM-30 Final Rule. To address fundamental questions concerning the Form LM-30, the NPRM will propose revisions that address the complexity of the form and its instructions, as well as the scope and extent of the LM-30 reporting obligations. Proposals for consideration include: the coverage of shop stewards under the LMRDA section 202 reporting requirement; the requirement to report union-leave/no-docking payments; the requirement to report certain loans, including home mortgages; the requirement to report payments from certain trusts and unions; and the scope of reporting for higher level union officials.
The Form LM-30 revisions proposed by OLMS would simplify the form, narrow the scope of reporting while ensuring that all meaningful conflicts of interest are disclosed, and, consequently, lessen the reporting burden, including associated costs, for union officials.
The comment period closed on October 12, 2010, and OLMS is currently reviewing comments received.
Last Updated: 07-13-11