WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Department of Labor has finalized new financial reporting requirements for labor unions, expanding disclosure obligations for the largest organizations while easing filing burdens for smaller unions in a move the agency says is intended to improve transparency and oversight of union finances.
The rule, issued by the department’s Office of Labor-Management Standards, updates reporting requirements for Form LM-2, the annual financial disclosure document used by larger labor organizations under the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959.
Federal officials said the changes are designed to reflect the increased size and complexity of union financial operations since reporting requirements were last substantially revised in 2003.
The rule establishes an enhanced Form LM-2 Long Form for the nation’s largest labor organizations and raises filing thresholds for Forms LM-2, LM-3 and LM-4, reducing reporting requirements for smaller unions.
According to the department, the changes are intended to provide union members with greater visibility into how dues and other union funds are spent while maintaining reporting requirements proportionate to an organization’s size.
“Modern unions are financially complex organizations,” Office of Labor-Management Standards Director Elisabeth Messenger said. “The final rule fine tunes reporting requirements for larger labor organizations — many of which report tens of millions of dollars in assets each year — and adjusts thresholds for smaller labor organizations to increase transparency for America’s hardworking union members and ensure reporting requirements keep pace as labor organizations evolve.”
The department said enhanced reporting could help union members better evaluate their organization’s financial condition and operations and strengthen participation in union governance.
Labor officials also argued that more detailed financial disclosures may help deter fraud and embezzlement and improve the detection of financial misconduct.
The Office of Labor-Management Standards oversees enforcement of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act, which governs financial reporting and transparency requirements for private-sector labor unions, union officials, employers and labor relations consultants.
The final rule is available at: https://public-inspection.federalregister.gov/2026-10849.pdf.
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