House Passes Public Union Dues Bill
TALLAHASSEE (CBS4) -- What critics are calling a union-busting bill has passed the vote in the Florida House.
The bill (HB 1021) passed on a largely party line 73-40 vote with most Republicans for and Democrats against.
The Republican-sponsored bill (HB 1021) will prohibit the automatic payroll deduction of union dues from public employees' pay checks.
The bill also requires unions to get written permission from members before their dues could be used for political contributions.
Rep. Chris Dorworth, R-Lake Mary and sponsor of the proposal, said the measure removes the state from any role in unions' more controversial activities.
"There is a clear public interest in avoiding the appearance of government being involved in partisan politics," Dorworth said before the vote. But Democrats said the measure is instead an attempt at "union-busting" that could get tangled up in the courts.
"This is really like the No Lawyer Left Behind Act," quipped Rep. Scott Randolph, D-Orlando prior to the bill's passing.
Democrats questioned why unions were the only target of the legislation.
"It seems as though the bill's a little narrow in its scope," said Rep. Dwight Bullard, D-Miami. Dorworth countered that the union dues were collected by the state, while most other dues were not.
Union officials say the real purpose is to eliminate public employee unions.
The measure now will move on to the Senate.
The News Service of Florida contributed to this report.
(©2011 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
