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H.B. 179
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VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTIONS ACT
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2001 GENERAL SESSION
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STATE OF UTAH
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Sponsor: Chad E. Bennion
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This act modifies labor law and election law to address issues related to labor organizations
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participation in campaigning and elections. This act requires labor organizations to
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establish a separate fund for political purposes and establishes registration and disclosure
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requirements for the fund. This act establishes criminal penalties. This act prohibits public
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employees from authorizing payroll deductions to a labor organization's political fund or
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PAC. This act makes technical changes.
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This act affects sections of Utah Code Annotated 1953 as follows:
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ENACTS:
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20A-11-1401, Utah Code Annotated 1953
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20A-11-1402, Utah Code Annotated 1953
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20A-11-1403, Utah Code Annotated 1953
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20A-11-1404, Utah Code Annotated 1953
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20A-11-1405, Utah Code Annotated 1953
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REPEALS AND REENACTS:
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34-32-1, as last amended by Chapter 86, Laws of Utah 2000
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Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
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Section 1.
Section
20A-11-1401
is enacted to read:
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Part 14. Voluntary Contributions Act
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20A-11-1401. Title.
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This part is known as the "Voluntary Contributions Act."
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Section 2.
Section
20A-11-1402
is enacted to read:
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20A-11-1402. Definitions.
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(1) As used in this part:
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(a) "Ballot proposition" includes initiatives, referenda, proposed constitutional
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amendments, and any other items submitted to the voters for their approval or rejection.
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(b) "Filing entity" means a candidate, officeholder, political action committee, political
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issues committee, political party, and each other entity required to report contributions under Title
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20A, Chapter 11, Campaign and Financial Reporting Requirements.
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(c) "Fund" means the separate segregated fund established by a labor organization for
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political purposes according to the procedures and requirements of this part.
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(d) (i) "Labor organization" means any association or organization of employees, and any
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agency, employee representation committee, or plan in which employees participate that exists,
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in whole or in part, to advocate on behalf of employees about grievances, labor disputes, wages,
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rates of pay, hours of employment, or conditions of employment.
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(ii) Except as provided in Subsection (1)(d)(iii), "labor organization" includes each
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employee association and union for employees of public and private sector employers.
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(iii) "Labor organization" does not include organizations governed by the National Labor
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Relations Act, 29 U.S.C. Sec. 151 et. seq. or the Railroad Labor Act, 45 U.S.C. Sec 151 et seq.
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(e) "Political activities" means lobbying, electoral activities, independent expenditures, or
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expenditures made to any candidate, political party, political action committee, political issues
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committee, voter registration campaign, or any other political or legislative cause, including ballot
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propositions.
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(f) "Union dues" means dues, fees, or other monies required as a condition of membership
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in a labor organization or as a condition of employment.
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(2) Other terms defined in Section
20A-11-101
apply to this part.
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Section 3.
Section
20A-11-1403
is enacted to read:
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20A-11-1403. Limits on labor organization contributions.
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(1) Except as provided in Subsection (2), a labor organization may not expend union dues
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for political activities.
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(2) (a) A labor organization may only make expenditures for political activities if the labor
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organization establishes a separate segregated fund that meets the requirements of this part.
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(b) The labor organization shall ensure that:
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(i) contributions to the fund are solicited independently from solicitation of union dues and
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from any other solicitations by the labor organization;
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(ii) in soliciting contributions for the fund, the solicitor discloses, in clear and
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unambiguous language on the face of the solicitation, that contributions are voluntary and that the
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fund is a political fund and will be expended for political activities;
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(iii) union dues are not used for political activities, transferred to the fund, or intermingled
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in any way with fund monies;
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(iv) the cost of administering the fund is paid from fund contributions and not from union
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dues;
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(v) contributions to the fund are not made from money collected from payroll deductions
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by an employer; and
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(vi) each contribution is voluntary.
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(3) At the time the labor organization is soliciting contributions for the fund from an
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employee, the labor organization shall:
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(a) affirmatively inform the employee, in writing, of the fund's political purpose; and
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(b) affirmatively inform the employee, in writing, of the employee's right to refuse to
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contribute without fear of reprisal or loss of membership in the labor organization.
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(4) The labor organization has the burden of proof to establish that the requirements of
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Subsections (2)(b) and (3) are met.
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(5) Notwithstanding the requirements of Subsection (2)(b)(ii), a labor organization may
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use union dues to communicate directly with its own members about political candidates, ballot
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propositions, and other political issues.
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Section 4.
Section
20A-11-1404
is enacted to read:
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20A-11-1404. Criminal acts -- Penalties.
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(1) (a) It is unlawful for a labor organization to make expenditures for political activities
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by using contributions:
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(i) secured by physical force or threat of force, job discrimination or threat of job
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discrimination, membership discrimination or threat of membership discrimination, or economic
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reprisals or threat of economic reprisals;
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(ii) from union dues except as provided in Subsection
20A-11-1403
(5); or
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(iii) obtained in any commercial transaction.
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(b) When a labor organization is soliciting contributions for a fund from an employee, it
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is unlawful for a labor organization to fail to:
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(i) affirmatively inform the employee in writing of the fund's political purpose; and
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(ii) affirmatively inform the employee in writing of the employee's right to refuse to
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contribute without fear of reprisal or loss of membership in the labor organization.
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(c) It is unlawful for a labor organization to solicit contributions for the fund from any
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person other than its members and their families.
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(d) It is unlawful for a labor organization to pay a member for contributing to the fund by
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providing a bonus, expense account, rebate of union dues, or by any other form of direct or indirect
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compensation.
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(2) Any person or entity violating this section is guilty of a class A misdemeanor.
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Section 5.
Section
20A-11-1405
is enacted to read:
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20A-11-1405. Registration -- Disclosure.
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Each fund established by a labor organization under this part shall:
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(1) register as a political action committee as required by this chapter; and
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(2) file the financial reports for political action committees required by this chapter.
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Section 6.
Section
34-32-1
is repealed and reenacted to read:
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34-32-1. Voluntary contributions act -- Assignments to labor unions -- Effect.
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(1) As used in this section:
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(a) "Employee" means a person employed by any person, partnership, public, private, or
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municipal corporation, school district, the state, or any political subdivision of the state.
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(b) "Employer" means the person or entity employing an employee.
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(c) (i) "Labor organization" means any association or organization of employees, and any
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agency, employee representation committee, or plan in which employees participate that exists,
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in whole or in part, to advocate on behalf of employees about grievances, labor disputes, wages,
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rates of pay, hours of employment, or conditions of employment.
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(ii) Except as provided in Subsection (1)(c)(iii), "labor organization" includes each
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employee association and union for employees of public and private sector employers.
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(iii) "Labor organization" does not include organizations governed by the National Labor
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Relations Act, 29 U.S.C. Sec. 151 et. seq. or the Railroad Labor Act, 45 U.S.C. Sec. 151 et. seq.
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(d) "Public employee" means a person employed by the state, a municipal corporation, a
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county, a municipality, a school district, a special district, or any other political subdivision of the
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state.
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(e) "Union dues" means dues, fees, or other monies required as a condition of membership
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in a labor organization or as a condition of employment.
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(2) Except as prohibited by Subsection (7), an employee, for each calendar year, may elect
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to direct his employer to:
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(a) deduct a specified sum of up to 3% per month from his wages during a specified
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calendar year; and
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(b) pay the amount deducted to a labor organization as assignee.
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(3) If the employee elects to direct the employer to make the deduction authorized by
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Subsection (2), the employee shall, in the year before the beginning of a calendar year, or during
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the calendar year:
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(a) sign a written statement that:
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(i) directs the employer to make the deduction;
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(ii) identifies the amount of the deduction;
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(iii) identifies the person or entity to whom the deduction is to be paid;
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(iv) directs the employer to pay the deduction to that person or entity; and
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(v) identifies, on its face, that the authorization to make the deduction expires on
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December 31 of the calendar year for which it was signed; and
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(b) personally deliver that written statement to the employee's employer.
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(4) An employer who receives a written statement shall:
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(a) keep the statement on file;
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(b) deduct the specified sum from the employee's salary; and
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(c) pay the deducted amount to the labor organization designated by the employee.
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(5) The employer shall continue to make and pay the deduction as directed by the
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employee until:
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(a) the employee revokes or modifies the deduction in writing; or
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(b) the calendar year for which the statement was signed is over.
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(6) An employer may not make and pay the deduction if:
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(a) the written statement was given to the employer by anyone other than the employee
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who signed it; or
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(b) the calendar year to which the statement is applicable is over.
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(7) A public employee may not direct an employer to deduct monies from his wages and
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pay them to:
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(a) a registered political action committee;
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(b) a fund as defined by Section
20A-11-1402
; or
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(c) any intermediary that contributes to a registered political action committee or to a fund
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as defined in Section
20A-11-1402
.
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(8) Nothing in this section prohibits an individual from making personal contributions to
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a registered political action committee or to a fund as defined by Section
20A-11-1402
.
Legislative Review Note
as of 1-18-01 5:44 PM
This legislation raises the following constitutional or statutory concerns:
This bill could be challenged as violating the First Amendment of the United States Constitution
and the comparable provisions of Utah's constitution. At least one court - the United States Court
of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit - upheld portions of an Ohio statute with similar provisions when
it was challenged on First Amendment grounds. See, Toledo Area AFL-CIO Council v. Pizza, 154
F.3d 307 (6th Cir. 1998). Although that case is not binding precedent on Utah's state or federal
courts, it affirmatively demonstrates the possibility that this legislation might be challenged on
constitutional grounds and provides an analytical framework that a Utah court could apply to
determine its constitutionality.