Support the Union Accountability Act, H.R. 814

On behalf of FreedomWorks’ activist community, I urge you to contact your representative and urge him or her to cosponsor the Union Accountability Act, H.R. 814. Introduced by Rep. Kevin Hern (R-Okla.), the Union Accountability Act would roll back executive orders signed by President Joe Biden that would bolster federal worker unions, which work against taxpayers.

In January, President Biden signed Executive Order 14003, which rescinded three executive orders signed during the previous administration to limit collective bargaining and protect taxpayers. Additionally, congressional Democrats are planning to bring the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, H.R. 842, to the floor in the coming weeks. This bill is one of the most dangerous and consequential pieces of legislation that Democrats plan to move this Congress.

Federal worker unions are notorious for using misusing taxpayer resources, such as using official time to perform union business. A May 2018 report from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) found that federal employees spent 3.6 million official hours in FY 2016 performing official business at a cost of $177.2 million. That was an increase from 3.4 million hours and $162.5 million in FY 2014.

Although the number of hours used by federal employees spent less time performing union business in FY 2019, 2.6 million hours at a cost of $134.9 million, one can expect that this number will rise under the Biden administration’s very pro-union stance.

The Union Accountability Act would simply nullify Executive Order 14003, ensuring that it will have no force or effect.

President Biden’s far-left pro-union stances will ultimately have an adverse impact on taxpayers, as well as American workers and businesses. Democrats seem determined — through a proposed minimum wage increase, pro-union legislation, more regulatory burdens, and other destructive policies — to bring the recovery from COVID-19 to a grinding halt. Blocking these policies through the legislative process should be a top priority for congressional Republicans and grassroots activists alike.

For these reasons, urge you to contact your representative and urge him or her to cosponsor the Union Accountability Act, H.R. 814.

Sincerely,

Adam Brandon, President, FreedomWorks