(a) Section 502(a) provides that persons who are not covered by bonds as required by that section shall not be permitted to receive, handle, disburse, or otherwise exercise custody or control of the funds or other property of a labor organization or of a trust in which a labor organization is interested. This prohibits personnel who are required to be bonded, as explained in § 453.8 from performing any of these acts without being covered by the required bonds. In addition, this provision makes it unlawful for any person with power to do so to delegate or assign the duties of receiving, handling, disbursing, or otherwise exercising custody or control of such funds or property to any person who is not bonded in accordance with the provisions of section 502(a).

(b) The legislative history of the Act indicates, however, that it was not the intent of Congress to make compliance with the bonding requirements of section 502(a) a condition on the right of banks or other financial institutions to serve as the depository of the funds of labor organizations or trusts. Similarly, it appears that the provisions of that section do not require the bonding of brokers or other independent contractors who have contracted with labor organizations or trusts for the performance of functions which are normally not carried out by such labor organizations' or trusts' own officials or employees, such as the buying of securities, the performance of other investment functions, or the transportation of funds by armored truck. 12

12 See § 453.6(b).