S. 5662: Children’s Act for Responsible Employment and Farm Safety Act of 2026

This bill would change federal child labor rules for agricultural work and create new reporting, enforcement, and penalty requirements focused on children working on farms.

Main changes to child labor rules in agriculture

• It would tighten the federal definition of oppressive child labor, which is the term used in the Fair Labor Standards Act for prohibited child employment.
• It would rewrite the agricultural child labor exemptions so that children working in agriculture would generally be subject to the same federal child labor protections as other industries, with only limited exceptions.
• It would keep a narrow exemption for children under 18 who work in agriculture outside school hours on a farm owned by a parent or a person standing in the place of a parent.
• It would remove a waiver provision that currently allows certain exceptions for agricultural child labor rules.

Higher penalties for violations

• The bill would raise civil penalties for child labor violations.
• For each affected child worker, penalties would range from $500 to $15,000.
• If a violation causes a serious injury, serious illness, or death of a worker under 18, the penalty would range from $15,000 to $60,115 per violation.
• Those higher penalties could be doubled if the violation was repeated or willful.
• It would also define serious illness for these purposes as a significant abnormal condition or disorder caused by a workplace event or exposure, with illnesses caused by events or exposures on the employer’s premises presumed to be work-related.

Criminal penalties for severe violations

• The bill would add a criminal penalty for people who repeatedly or willfully violate child labor rules when the violation results in the death, serious injury, or serious illness of a worker under 18.
• In those cases, the person could face up to 5 years in prison, a fine, or both.

New federal reporting and data collection

• The Department of Labor would be required to analyze data on children under 18 who work in agriculture and on related injuries, illnesses, and deaths.
• The department would have to use data from federal agencies, state agencies, and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.
• The Secretary of Labor would have to submit an annual report to Congress with:
  • a summary of the data collected,
  • an evaluation of child labor and workplace safety risks, and
  • information suggesting possible child labor violations.
• Those reports would also have to be published in the Federal Register and posted on the Department of Labor website.

Employer reporting after serious incidents

• Farm employers would have to report certain incidents to the Department of Labor within 5 days.
• Reportable events would include a serious injury, discovery of a serious illness, or death of a worker under 18 in agricultural work.
• The report would need to include the employer’s identity and address, the employee’s identity, address, and age, and details about the incident, including possible chemical or pesticide exposure and use of machinery or tools.
• Employers who fail to report could face civil penalties of $500 to $7,000 per violation.

Pesticide handler restrictions

• The bill would require the Labor Department to revise its rules so that children under 18 could not perform tasks covered by the federal definition of a pesticide “handler.”
• This would apply to pesticide-handling duties defined in existing Environmental Protection Agency regulations.

Rulemaking and timing

• The Secretary of Labor could issue rules to carry out the bill’s changes within 6 months after enactment.
• Some provisions would take effect when those rules take effect, and employer reporting requirements would begin no later than 6 months after enactment, or earlier if the Secretary issues the required rule first.
• The bill says it would not override state laws that give workers greater protections or remedies.

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