A proposed bill that would allow some teenagers to work in the logging industry is drawing opposition from safety advocates.
House Bill 1215 was introduced to a congressional committee last month by Sen. James Risch (R-Idaho). The bill, called the “Future Logging Careers Act,” would allow 16- and 17-year-olds to be exempt from child labor laws if they work in logging or mechanized operations under parental supervision. At present, children of logging families are not allowed to work with equipment and learn the trade until they are 18.