FLRA NEWS
FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS AUTHORITY – WASHINGTON, DC 20424
Contact: Eric Prag FLRA.gov FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 771-444-5859 March 6, 2026
FLRA Withdraws Proposed Rule which would have Limited Federal Employees Ability
to Cancel their Dues Assignments to Federal Unions
The Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA) today announces the withdrawal of a proposal
that was originally published in the Federal Register on December 21, 2022. The December
2022 proposal concerned the intervals at which federal employees may revoke their written
authorizations of payroll deductions for the payment of union dues. If adopted, that proposal
would have:
(1) restricted federal employees’ ability to cancel their payroll deductions for union dues
by limiting cancellations to yearly intervals; and
(2) rescinded the Authority’s general statement of policy or guidance in Office of
Personnel Management, 71 FLRA 571 (2020), which explained why “it would assure
employees the fullest freedom in the exercise of their rights” under the Federal Service
Labor-Management Relations Statute if, after one year, “an employee had the right to
initiate the revocation of a previously authorized dues assignment at any time that the
employee chooses.”
Besides rescinding the general statement of policy or guidance, the withdrawn proposal sought to
alter § 2429.19 of the FLRA’s Regulations, which currently allows federal employees, after an
initial one-year period of irrevocability, to initiate cancellation of their dues assignment at any
time.
The Federal Register notice details the withdrawal of the proposed rule.
This withdrawal action protects federal employees’ rights to manage their union dues deductions
with greater individual choice, consistent with the FLRA’s statutory framework.
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The FLRA administers the labor-management relations program for federal employees (excluding
postal employees) worldwide. It is charged with providing leadership in establishing policies and
guidance related to federal sector labor-management relations and with resolving disputes under,
and ensuring compliance with, the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute.