Suspension

[Jurassic Referee]

You're an independant contractor for tax purposes, but you still have to follow the rules/by-laws of any body(association) that you wish to join. Most associations set up their own rules and by-laws, in my experience. They also have general control of all officials under their umbrella. Iow, the answer is yes, that association does have the right to set their own rules and also the right to enforce them.

The association that I belong to has a similar rule btw. All officials must notify and get permission from their assignor first before accepting games from another assignor. The idea is that if you want the benefit of being assigned games by our association, then our association should have first call on your services. It can also be an insurance matter, depending on how your liability insurance is set-up. If you're receiving insurance coverage through your assigning body, then that coverage may not extend to games assigned by a different body.