Westbank Louisiana News

U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA), ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, criticized the Department of Labor (DOL) for withholding $800 million in federal funding from Florida. The action follows Florida's recent legislation aimed at protecting workers from union coercion and abuse.

In May 2023, Florida passed a law prohibiting automatic paycheck deductions for union dues and allowing public sector employees to revoke their union membership if desired. In response, the DOL stated that this new law jeopardizes Florida’s eligibility for Federal Transit Administration (FTA) funding and directed the FTA to withhold $800 million in grants based on the Urban Mass Transportation Act of 1964.

The Act allows the Secretary of Labor to withhold federal transit funding if a collective bargaining agreement between a state transit agency requesting government funding and a union representing its employees is not "fair and equitable." However, Cassidy argues that the new Florida law does not alter existing collective bargaining agreements, making DOL’s actions a violation of federal law.

“This is part of a troubling pattern of the Biden administration weaponizing the federal government to promote policies that target workers’ freedoms to court the political backing of large labor unions,” said Cassidy. “The Department of Labor is threatening Florida and other states that may seek to empower workers and increase union transparency, in violation of federal law. This is completely unacceptable.”

Cassidy has requested detailed information from Acting Secretary Su regarding the decision-making process behind withholding the funds. He asked for any legal analysis justifying DOL's actions, criteria used to determine fairness in agreements between applicants for federal assistance and employee representatives, justification for why a temporary waiver was insufficient, and communication with transportation unions in Florida regarding this decision.