Government Backs Down On Farm Child Labor Regs

Des Moines Register:

The U.S. Department of Labor has withdrawn a controversial proposal that would placed more stringent rules on minors' work on farms.
"The decision to withdraw this rule -- including provisions to define the 'parental exemption' -- was made in response to thousands of comments expressing concerns about the effect of the proposed rules on small family-owned farms," the Labor Department said in a written statement. "To be clear, this regulation will not be pursued for the duration of the Obama administration.”
The proposed rules would have barred children under the age of 16 from operating tractors or heavy farm equipment on non-family farms. They would not have applied to children working on their own family farms.

I'm not sure what is so controversial about limiting the work of non-family child laborers on farms.  Kids can't go get a job operating the slicer at Arby's, I'm not sure what would make operating a tractor any different.  But hey, farmers don't think any laws apply to them.  But here's Charles Grassley:

 “It’s good the Labor Department rethought the ridiculous regulations it was going to stick on farmers and their families," he said. "It would have been devastating to farm families across the country. Much of rural America was built on families helping families, neighbors helping neighbors. To even propose such regulations defies common sense, and shows a real lack of understanding as to how the family farm works. I’m glad the Obama administration came to its senses.”

Yeah, because nobody has ever gotten hurt on a farm, especially some kid. I should admit, I let a kid operate a tractor for me when he was not quite 15, but I was supervising him.  Supervising him as he shoved the forklift forks mounted on the tractor right through the wall of my kitchen.