March 20, 1996
VIA UPS OVERNIGHT
Chuck Crawley
March 20, 1996
Page 1
Chuck Crawley
703 Wynd
Pasadena, TX 77503
Members Leadership Slate
c/o Timothy Gonzales
10406 MacKenzie
Houston, TX 77086
Hank Steger
1401 Walenta
Rosenberg, TX 77471
Julius Groves
8630 Easton Commons
Houston, TX 77095
Tom Mitchell
1019 Timlico
Pearland, TX 77584
Charlie Matthews
7518 Jay
Houston, TX 77028
Henry RealyVasquez
90 Uvalde #302
Houston, TX 77015
Clint Anderson
14907 Peach Meadow
Channel View, TX 77530
Chuck Crawley
March 20, 1996
Page 1
Re: Election Office Case No. P-531-LU988-SOU
Gentlemen:
Chuck Crawley, a member of Local Union 988, filed a pre-election protest pursuant to Article XIV, Section 2(b) of the Rules for the 1995-1996 IBT International Union Delegate and Officer Election (“Rules”) against the Members Leadership slate, a slate of candidates for delegate from Local Union 988. The protester alleges that the Members Leadership slate held a barbeque funded by employer contributions in violation of the Rules. The protester alleges that employers provided the facility where the barbeque was held, use of a parking lot, admission tickets, food and beverages.
Chuck Crawley
March 20, 1996
Page 1
Timothy Gonzalez of the Members Leadership slate responded to the protest by producing receipts for the expenditures the slate incurred in conjunction with the barbeque, including the rental of the facility, food, beer and printing.
Regional Coordinator Dolores C. Hall investigated the protest.
The Members Leadership slate held a barbeque to raise funds for the slate on
February 24, 1996 from 12:00 to 5:00 p.m. at Tequila’s Nite Club in Houston, Texas. The slate brought their own barbeque pit, meat, potato salad, beans and beer. Local Union 988 members set up the barbeque, did the barbecuing and served the food.
Article XII, Sections 1(a) and 1(b)(1) of the Rules prohibit an employer from making any campaign contributions to the campaign of a candidate for delegate or International office. The Rules define “campaign contributions” to include “any direct or indirect contribution of money or other thing of value where the purpose, object or foreseeable effect of that contribution is to influence the election of a candidate.” Rules, Definitions, 5. As stated in the Election Officer’s Advisory on Campaign Contributions and Disclosure, such contributions can include any goods, compensated services or any material things of value. The Rules also define campaign contributions to include discounts in the price or cost of goods. Rules, Definitions, 5(c). The term “employer” is defined under the Rules to include “any individual, corporation, trust, organization or other entity that employs another, paying monetary or other compensation in exchange for that individual’s services.” Rules, Definitions, 17.
The purchase of goods or services by a member does not constitute a campaign contribution by the vendor if the terms of the purchase are commercially reasonable. See
In Re: Gilmartin, 95 - Elec. App. - 45 (KC) (December 18, 1995); Carter, P-457-LU550-NYC (March 7, 1996); Gilberg, P-284-IBT, aff’d in pertinent part, 91 - Elec. App. - 194 (SA) (October 2, 1991). In Gilberg, the Election Officer advised:
In situations where there is more than one producer of an item, the commercially reasonable price is set by the market for that item. The determination of whether the terms of sale are commercially reasonable will also depend on whether the vendor offers similar terms to other purchasers of his product.
Chuck Crawley
March 20, 1996
Page 1
The protester argues that the $5 ticket price charged by the slate could not have covered the costs of the barbeque. However, regardless of whether the ticket price was sufficient to cover the costs of the event, the evidence shows that the Members Leadership slate purchased the food, beverages and tickets and rented the facility at similar terms as offered to other purchasers of the item. The manager of the club confirmed that the slate had been charged the same rental as another group who held an event there during the previous week. The Regional Coordinator confirmed with the press which printed the tickets that the slate was charged a rate for printing the tickets that is charged for similar ticket orders. She has reviewed the receipts for the purchases of the meat, beans, beer and potato salad and determined that these were purchased at market rates. Accordingly, the investigation shows that the slate purchased the goods and services for its barbeque at commercially reasonable rates. There is no evidence that any of these goods or services were campaign contributions.
Based on the foregoing, the protest is DENIED.
Any interested party not satisfied with this determination may request a hearing before the Election Appeals Master within one day of receipt of this letter. The parties are reminded that, absent extraordinary circumstances, no party may rely upon evidence that was not presented to the Office of the Election Officer in any such appeal. Requests for a hearing shall be made in writing and shall be served on:
Kenneth Conboy, Esq.
Latham & Watkins
885 Third Avenue, Suite 1000
New York, NY 10022
Fax (212) 751-4864
Copies of the request for hearing must be served on the parties listed above as well as upon the Election Officer, 400 N. Capitol Street, Suite 855, Washington, DC 20001, Facsimile
(202) 624-3525. A copy of the protest must accompany the request for a hearing.
Sincerely,
Barbara Zack Quindel
Election Officer
cc: Kenneth Conboy, Election Appeals Master
Dolores C. Hall, Regional Coordinator