In early November of 2023, LaborLab determined from LM-20s filed in calendar years 2021 and 2022 which employers were required to file Form LM-10 and which consultants were required to file Form LM-21. The filing of just one LM-20 per year triggers the filing of the employer LM-10 and consultant LM-21 which must be filed within ninety days of the end of the organization’s fiscal year (same filing deadline as union LM-2, -3 & -4 forms).
The value of each form cannot be understated. The LM-10 is the only mandatory filing which discloses an employer’s annual spending on reportable persuader activity. Each LM-10 not filed means we know that much less about employer persuader expenditures and arrangements and deprives us of our ability to cross reference persuader annual reports with employer reports.
Each LM-21 not filed means we know less about the clients and receipts of persuader consultants, their clients and who they subcontract with or from.
As of November 1, 2023, there were 43 employers who still hadn’t filed their 2021 LM-10; by February 1, 2024, that number was 42! Over the same period, there were 63 non-filed LM-10s; three months later, the number was down to 50, which is in the right direction but not near enough.
For LM-21s, as of November 1, 2023, there were 58 non-filed for 2021; three months later, there were still 57 not filed. For the same period but for 2022 filings, the numbers were 33 and 31 respectively.
We have supplied these findings including hyperlinks to the triggering LM-20s to OLMS and we earnestly hope that they will make better progress over the next three months after which we will do another follow up. This failure to file represents nearly 40% of the LM-10s and -21s owed. There is no way such a delinquency rate would be tolerated for union filings like Forms LM-2, -3, and -4. And keep in mind that this isn’t a question of filing late, it’s a matter of not filing at all. OLMS has all the information they need to secure filing compliance. The hyperlinked LM-20s LaborLab has provided contain the necessary contact information to reach out to the employer and consultant and tell them to file. The mere existence of the LM-20, a document filed under penalty of perjury is proof that a reportable arrangement existed. All we are asking of OLMS is to enforce the rules.
