1. Status of these Rules. These rules are issued by the Executive Council of the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations pursuant to the provisions of Article XV of the AFL-CIO Constitution. These rules may be amended at any time by the Executive Council of the AFL-CIO. In case of conflict between these rules and the AFL-CIO Constitution, the latter shall control. 2. Issuance of Certificates of Affiliation. In accordance with the provisions of Article XV of the AFL-CIO Constitution and such further criteria as the Executive Council may establish, the President is authorized to issue certificates of affiliation to labor organizations wishing to become affiliated with the Federation as a Direct Local Affiliate (DLA) of the AFL-CIO. Direct Local Affiliates shall be governed by these rules. Existing Directly Affiliated Local Unions (DALUs) shall be governed by the separate Rules Governing Directly Affiliated Local Unions previously issued by the Executive Council. 3. Constitutions and Bylaws. DLAs shall adopt or retain their own constitutions and/or bylaws, and shall provide a copy of same to the President prior to the issuance of a certificate of affiliation as a DLA, and within 30 days of any amendment thereto. 4. Affiliation with State, Area, and Local Central Bodies. Each DLA shall join appropriate AFL-CIO state, area, and local central labor bodies. Any question that may arise with respect to the proper state, area, or local labor body(ies) to which a DLA should affiliate or the extent of such affiliation shall be determined by the President of the AFL-CIO. Per capita tax payments to state, area, and local central labor bodies shall be paid to the appropriate body on behalf of the DLA by the national AFL-CIO out of the unified per capita tax collected by the national AFL-CIO from the DLA, as specified below. DLAs shall have the same rights and obligations as other local union affiliates of the state, area, and local central labor bodies. 5. Rights and Obligations in National AFL-CIO. Each DLA shall be entitled to one delegate to the national AFL-CIO convention, and shall have such other rights applicable to directly affiliated local unions as set forth in the AFL-CIO Constitution. The provisions of Articles XX and XXI of the AFL-CIO Constitution shall apply to each DLA, and each DLA shall be solely responsible for handling its own proceedings and ensuring its compliance with determinations and decisions rendered thereunder. 6. Per Capita Tax. Each DLA shall pay to the AFL-CIO on or before the fifteenth day of each month, for the preceding month, a unified per capita tax of $3.50 per member, based on the DLA’s full paid-up membership. The AFL-CIO will make the appropriate per capita tax payments to state, area, and local central labor bodies on behalf of the DLA out of the DLA’s unified per capita tax payments to the National AFL-CIO. A portion of the unified per capita tax will be placed in a special DLA fund to support these unions. Pursuant to Article XVI, Section 8, the Executive Council hereby exonerates the difference between this per capita tax rate and the per capita tax rate specified in Article XVI, Section 4. The Executive Council may exonerate any DLA from the payment of per capita tax due for any month upon a proper showing that, in the opinion of the Executive Council, good cause exists. Where warranted and appropriate, the President may enter into an agreement with a DLA to phase-in the per capita payment obligations of a new DLA for a period not to exceed three years. 7. Reports and Lists. Each DLA shall forward to the Secretary-Treasurer of the AFL-CIO, at the same time as the monthly per capita tax payment, a monthly report, on a form to be supplied by the Secretary-Treasurer, giving the number of members paid for and such other information as may be required by the Secretary-Treasurer relating to membership. Each DLA shall provide membership lists to the AFL-CIO upon request for purposes of per capita tax verification and member mobilization. Each DLA shall annually forward to the Secretary-Treasurer of the AFL-CIO copies of the DLA’s annual filings with the U.S. Department of Labor and U.S. Internal Revenue Service. The Secretary-Treasurer may audit the records of a DLA to verify that per capita tax is being remitted on behalf of the union’s full paid-up membership as required by the AFL-CIO Constitution and these rules. Refusal of a DLA to comply with the Secretary-Treasurer’s request shall be grounds for immediate suspension or revocation of the DLA’s certificate of affiliation. 8. Compliance with these Rules and the Constitution. Each DLA shall comply with these rules and with the AFL-CIO Constitution. The President may suspend or revoke the certificate of affiliation of any DLA found to have violated or failed to comply with these rules or the AFL-CIO Constitution. The President may also suspend or revoke the certificate of affiliation of any DLA that engages in financial malpractice or corruption, or embezzlement or misappropriation of union funds, or in any activity or course of conduct which is contrary or detrimental to the welfare or the best interests of the AFL-CIO. 9. Notice and Hearing. Except in case of emergency as hereafter provided, the DLA shall, before a certificate of affiliation is suspended or revoked, be given written notice of the charges, a reasonable time to prepare a defense, and be afforded a full and fair hearing, either by the President of the AFL-CIO or by a person or persons designated by him to act for him as a hearing officer or officers. In the latter event, such hearing officer(s) shall, as soon as practicable after the close of the hearing, make a report and recommendations in writing to the President. In all cases the President of the AFL-CIO shall make the decision, and take such action as he finds to be appropriate. In case of emergency, where in the opinion of the President the interests of the AFL-CIO so require, the President is empowered to suspend the certificate of affiliation of a DLA prior to the notice and hearing provided for in this rule. In such cases, notice shall be given and a hearing shall be conducted as soon as practicable after the emergency action, but in no event later than 40 days following such action, unless a postponement of such hearing is granted by the President upon request. 10. Appeals. The decision of the President shall be subject to appeal to the Appeals Committee of the AFL-CIO Executive Council, and then to the full Executive Council, but shall remain in full force and effect unless or until reversed or modified. Notice of any such appeal shall be filed in writing with the Secretary-Treasurer of the AFL-CIO within 30 days after transmittal of the President’s decision. Appellants shall have the right to appear before the Appeals Committee and the Executive Council. The Appeals Committee and the Executive Council may affirm, reverse, or modify the decision of the President. 11. Governance of DLAs. DLAs shall be responsible for meeting the requirements of federal, state, and local law, and the AFL-CIO shall have no responsibility in this regard. The AFL-CIO’s claim on the assets of a DLA shall be limited to a DLA’s financial obligations under these rules or the AFL-CIO Constitution. |
