Turner: Ruling would have ended heritage of family farming in Ohio

Congressman Mike Turner joined fellow Ohioans in supporting the Department of Labor’s (DoL) repeal of a recently enacted rule which would’ve applied new administrative regulations to family farms.

"This misguided rule would have completely changed what work children could perform on farms owned by family members," the congressman said.

According to the Department of Labor, the rule would prohibit them from working at “country grain elevators, grain bins, silos, feed lots, stockyards, livestock exchanges and livestock auctions.”

“Many of Ohio’s farms have been built on the sweat and hard work of families coming together to make their land successful," Turner said.

"Children working on family farms are an important way for them to gain skills for future employment and learn about what it takes to run a business. This new rule would’ve ended the heritage of family faming in our state.”

In late March, Turner joined several members of Ohio’s Congressional delegation in writing to Labor Secretary Hilda Solis warning against the impact of the new regulation on the state’s family farm industry.

“As written, the most concerning portions of the rule would prevent most young men and women from working on family farms and deny children opportunities to lean the practical skills offered through 4-H, FFA and Supervised Agricultural Experience programs,” wrote the members.

“This is yet another example of a federal department or agency unilaterally enacting new rules or regulations outside the supervision of Congress. Had Ohioans and farming families across the country not spoken out, this could have had a devastating effect on the important role of agriculture to our nation’s economy,” Turner said.