George Nee, secretary/treasurer of the Rhode Island AFL-CIO, center; James Parisi with the Rhode Island Federation of Teachers and Health Professionals, left; and James Cenerini, Council 94, AFSCME, confer at the State House last month. The Providence Journal / Connie Grosch

Rhode Island’s labor unions are losing members faster than they can add them.

But organized labor continues to have a powerful voice in state politics, due in part to a web of creative alliances that include the state Democratic Party, environmental groups such as the Sierra Club and progressive social organizations such as Marriage Equality Rhode Island.

The alliances expand labor’s forces as membership dips to its lowest point in more than a half-century. They help improve the image of unions among an increasingly critical public.

But there is also a practical effect on elections.

More than 100,000 potential Ocean State voters have direct or indirect connections to labor unions, according to federal statistics and the membership numbers from organized labor’s allies. That’s the same number of people who voted for Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton in Rhode Island’s record-setting presidential primary in March.

“They have made some very smart tactical moves to broaden their base to include not only rank-and-file union members, but a whole new class of constituents,” said Maureen Moakley, a political science professor at the University of Rhode Island.

Thanks to traditional campaign finance laws that don’t limit political communication with its members, Rhode Island labor has a more direct influence on local elections than any other interest group.

Lawmakers speak openly of the political fallout that can result from bucking labor. And union leaders aren’t shy about holding their Election Day power over lawmakers’ heads.

“I plan to communicate all commitments, or lack thereof, to our members,” Marcia B. Reback, longtime president of the Rhode Island Federation of Teachers and Health Professionals, said in a letter to all General Assembly members late last month requesting a commitment to oppose any legislation that would cut public employees’ pension benefits.

Unions are empowered, despite membership declines, because they have sharpened get-out-the-vote tactics that help turn out more members than ever before.

“I think there was an old feeling that all a union leader had to say was, ‘Hey, vote for these guys,’ and people would follow automatically. I think that was always a myth,” said George Nee, the secretary-treasurer of the AFL-CIO of Rhode Island, a federation of several local unions. “We are much more aggressive, targeted and sophisticated.”

Labor unions have political action committees flush with cash to donate to like-minded candidates in races where a few thousand dollars and a few hundred votes can go a long way.

But there is little doubt that organized labor’s strongest political asset is its manpower.

Unions and their allies are regularly able to rally hundreds of volunteers for local races. “We have our membership broken down by House district and Senate district. We know where people live. We can knock on doors. We can do house meetings, mailings,” Nee said. “That’s the work that makes the difference.”

One doesn’t have to look hard to find an example of labor’s ability to influence elections.

FRANK FERRI wasn’t supposed to win the District 22 special House election.

Ferri had never run for office. If he was known on Smith Hill at all, it was only because of his work as a gay-rights activist.

The state Democratic Party and House Speaker William J. Murphy had endorsed his primary opponent, Edgar Ladouceur. But Ferri, an openly gay bowling alley owner, sailed to victory in the primary and general elections.

That’s largely because organized labor and its allies backed him, believing that his progressive positions would be more favorable to their agenda.

While the endorsement may have raised some eyebrows among working class union members, Ferri’s selection was not surprising.

He previously led the group Marriage Equality Rhode Island, which shared office space with the organization known as Ocean State Action, and had a seat on the latter organization’s board.

Ocean State Action, a collection of labor unions and social advocacy groups, receives about one quarter of its annual operating budget from organized labor, according to tax records.

The organization is housed in the Cranston building owned by the state’s second-largest labor union, National Education Association Rhode Island. And NEARI’s executive director, Robert A. Walsh, is the secretary-treasurer, or chief financial officer, of Ocean State Action.

Labor and its allies through Ocean State Action played an active role in Ferri’s campaign.

Ocean State Action’s political action committee, the Progressive Leadership Fund, gave him $800 –– more than half of all his campaign expenditures prior to the October election, according to campaign finance reports

But more important, Nee said that labor poured “at least a couple hundred” volunteers into the Warwick district to help Ferri defeat the endorsed candidate in the primary. They knocked on doors of union members, made phone calls and stuffed envelopes.

Aside from union members, volunteers from the environmental group and labor ally Rhode Island Clean Water Action played a key role.

“Clean Water Action endorses candidates, so working with Ocean State Action’s PAC, we coordinate our efforts,” said Clean Water Action’s executive director, Sheila Dormody, who is also vice president of Ocean State Action’s board of directors. “We can send our resources to other places to make sure the progressive candidates have the support they need.”

Clean Water Action already had a year-round team of paid canvassers devoted to promoting environmental issues. For the Ferri election, the organization simply diverted canvassers to Ferri’s campaign.

Much the same scenario played out in Rhode Island’s 2006 U.S. Senate race between Lincoln D. Chafee and Sheldon Whitehouse. Nee says that labor coordinated “literally thousands” of volunteers to contact its members for Democrat Whitehouse, who narrowly defeated the incumbent Republican.

Nee says winning elections is simple.

The single most effective way to influence a vote, he said, is for one union member to talk to another about a candidate.

“There’s no magic,” Nee said. “You just have to get someone to do it.”

LABOR UNIONS and their allies walk a fine line when it comes to influencing elections. State and federal campaign finance laws have strict limits on what is, and isn’t, permissible.

That may be why Ocean State Action is actually made up of three distinct organizations — the Ocean State Action Fund, Ocean State Action and the Progressive Leadership Fund — although their boards have common members and the organizations have the same staff.

The Ocean State Action Fund is registered as a 501(c)3 –– a “public charity” federal tax designation, which allows donors to make tax-deductible contributions. The Ocean State Action Fund has an annual operating budget that is three times the size that of Ocean State Action, and it finances the entire payroll for those who work in Ocean State Action’s office, according to the most recent tax records publicly available.

501(c)3 entities are generally not supposed to engage in any political activities, although some voter registration activities are permitted, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

Federal law gives Ocean State Action –– a 501(c)4, or a “civic league and social welfare organization” –– some flexibility to engage in political activities, as long as that is not the organization’s primary purpose, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

But neither 501 organization is allowed to campaign for specific candidates, according to Richard Thornton, director of campaign finance for the state Board of Elections. “They can basically advocate for or against an issue, but not candidate-related advocacy,” he said. “Any entity can advocate on issues, not candidates.”

The Ocean State Action Fund, for example, notes on its most recent IRS filing that it spent $29,241 in tax year 2006 on lobbying activity, which included mailings, rallies and direct contact with lawmakers.

Legally, only the organization’s political action committee, the Progressive Leadership Fund, is allowed to donate to or campaign for candidates, according to Thornton. Rhode Island PACs can give up to $1,000 to a candidate per calendar year (capped at $25,000).

Meanwhile, labor unions also have limits on their participation in elections.

Most have PACs that are legally able to donate to candidates. Campaign finance reports show that most of them have healthy bank accounts.

National Education Association Rhode Island’s political action committee, for example, had $133,857 on hand at the beginning of the year. The United Food and Commercial Workers had $13,020 on hand; followed by Council 94’s PAC with $9,664; and the United Nurses and Allied Professionals: $9,018.

While the political action committees regularly donate to Democratic candidates (the NEA’s PAC distributed $45,575 to candidates over the past two years, according to the Board of Elections), Nee said that labor unions have a huge advantage over other interest groups.

“Every PAC, whether you’re from huge corporation or a small union, everybody’s limited to $25,000 in aggregate contributions for the year and $1,000 to individuals. There’s a level playing field,” he said. “That’s not where you win or lose.”

Federal law does not limit labor’s ability to communicate with its own members.

Labor has detailed lists of the names, addresses and contact information for the estimated 75,000 union members in Rhode Island. Union canvassers can visit the households as many times as they want, send unlimited mailing or make unlimited phone calls.

“We can spend unlimited dollars on communicating with our own members,” Nee said.

In the 2006 race for the U.S. Senate, for example, Nee said that labor had “literally thousands” of people staffing phone banks, knocking on doors and sending out fliers.

“To us, that’s what democracy is.”

TOMORROW: Some are looking to change the state Ethics Code, which allows lawmakers who work for unions to vote on labor bills.

speoples@projo.com