Manford Act of 1943

Texas House Bill 100, also known as the Manford Act of 1943, is a Texas Statute that placed labor unions under state regulation in Texas.[1] It was named after Thomas Durwood Manford Jr., the author of the Act.[1] The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Thomas v. Collins in 1945 that the law violated the right to freedom of expression.

Background

The Manford Act was the state's first attempt to regulate labor unions.[2] The law required all union organizers to obtain a license and register with the Texas Secretary of State.[2] To qualify for a license, an organizer must have lived in the state for one year. It also prohibited exorbitant initiation fees and required unions to file annual reports with the state for both revenues and expenditures.[2] The Act was introduced by Thomas Durwood Manford Jr. in 1943[3] and became law without the signature of then Governor Coke Stevenson the same year.[4]

Challenges

The first challenge to the law was in 1943. R. J. Thomas, president of the United Auto Workers, violated a temporary restraining order which forbade him from soliciting union members without a license. He was held in content and sentenced to three days in jail.[2] Thomas was let out of jail on a write of habeas corpus,[5] and was later acquitted in November of 1943.[6] The National Labor Relations Board challenged the Act after the acquittal. The case, Thomas v. Collins, was heard before the United States Supreme Court where in 1945 it was found to have violated Thomas's right to freedom of expression.[7]

References

  1. ^ a b Sharp, James Roger; Sharp, Nancy Weatherly (30 June 1999). American Legislative Leaders in the South, 1911-1994. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 9780313032066. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  2. ^ a b c d "TEST FOR TEXAS LABOR LAW; Thomas of the Auto Union Will Argue His Case Before High State Court". The New York Times. 10 October 1943. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  3. ^ Sharp, James Roger; Sharp, Nancy Weatherly (30 June 1999). American Legislative Leaders in the South, 1911-1994. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 9780313032066. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  4. ^ "Texas Legislature - Manford Act". UTA Libraries Collections. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  5. ^ "How to Get Arrested". Time Magazine. 4 October 1943. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  6. ^ "THOMAS CLEARED IN TEXAS; CIO Officials Freed in Union Solicitation Case". The New York Times. 1 December 1943. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
  7. ^ Montez, Antonio (23 March 2017). "Thomas Durwood Manford, Jr.: A Legacy in Texas Politics". Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
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