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Standard Summary
Comprehensive overview in 1-2 paragraphs
The Protect Local Farms Act would amend the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) to restrict the ability of states to impose shorter maximum weekly work limits on agricultural workers. Specifically, the bill adds a new subsection to Section 18 of the FLSA stating that any state law setting a maximum workweek for agricultural employees of less than 60 hours would be preempted by the federal law. In other words, if a state has a weekly cap below 60 hours for farm workers, that state cap would be overridden, bringing those workers under the federal framework (as modified by the bill) rather than the state rule. The short title and purpose suggest the aim is to shield local farms from stricter state overtime limits in this area.
Key Points
- 1Short title: The act is called the “Protect Local Farms Act.”
- 2Purpose: To preempt certain State overtime or workweek laws for agricultural employees by changing how Section 18 of the FLSA is applied.
- 3Specific preemption standard: The bill adds a new subsection (c) that preempts any State law that provides for a maximum workweek for agricultural employees of less than 60 hours.
- 4Mechanism: The amendment modifies Section 18(a) by inserting an exception: “Except as provided in subsection (c)…” and codifies the new preemption rule in subsection (c).
- 5Scope and limitation: The preemption applies only to state laws that cap agricultural workers’ maximum workweek below 60 hours. States with a 60-hour cap or higher would not be swept in by this subsection (though existing federal overtime rules could still apply depending on other law and exemptions).
Impact Areas
Primary group/area affected: Agricultural employees (farm labor) and agricultural employers (farm operators) who operate under state overtime or hour-cap rules.Secondary group/area affected: State labor agencies and wage-hour enforcement bodies, which administer and enforce state overtime and work-hour laws; employers with farms in states that currently have lower-than-60-hour caps.Additional impacts:- Potential changes in wage/hours compliance dynamics across states, reducing the effectiveness of stricter state limits on farm workweeks.- Possible changes in cost structures for farmers if state protections would have required earlier overtime or work-hour restrictions.- A shift toward uniform federal standards in this area, which may align or diverge from other state approaches depending on subsequent federal rules and exemptions for agricultural workers.
Generated by gpt-5-nano on Nov 18, 2025