A state Senate committee heard bills about child labor and public assistance today, and both Republican sponsored bills got more pushback than expected.

Our Clayton Dalton has this report.

Two bills both sponsored by House Republicans, met fierce criticism and opposition in a Senate committee.

One of those measures, House Bill 255, would loosen child labor laws for 16 and 17 year olds, allowing them to work more and longer hours if a.

16 or 17 year old wants to work.

He or she should be free to do so.

To me, it's no different than a student who wants to dedicate a lot of time to a team sport or student club or volunteer in community.

It's amazing if you're a gifted athlete other than football.

Football is restricted only practice 5 hours a day, but that does not include film, time, conditioning or anything else.

All the other sports unlimited practice time.

We restrict 1617 year olds a lot more than that.

Opponents noted that the bill won't add any new people to Kentucky's workforce.

I think it's important to say that not a single child would be added to Kentucky's labor force from the changes House Bill 255 makes to our child labor protections.

This legislation does not open up the job market to Kentucky teens.

It simply lowers the guardrails to allow children to work in more dangerous jobs.

And for too many hours each day and each week, a child could potentially be doing school and work for up to 75 hours a week under current law.

And this removes that cap.

The bill, this job builds that 16 and 17 year olds can't work in like coalmining and jobs with heavy machinery.

But there are exceptions which allow students to work in these settings as an apprentice.

This means that House Bill 255 could allow 16 and 17 year olds to do apprenticeships and jobs under state law that are extremely hazardous occupations in federal law, including manufacturing and storing of explosives, coal mining, fighting, forest fires, logging in sawmill operations, exposure to radioactive substances, operation of boom trucks, cranes and cherry pickers, wrecking and demolition operations and more.

House Bill 255 failed as three Republicans joined two Democrats to tie the vote.

Lawmakers also heard a bill that would limit SNAP benefits commonly known as food stamps to able bodied workers without dependents.

Federal law.

There's a default work requirement for able bodied adults to be on food stamps.

It applies to able bodied adults without dependents ages 18 to 52.

It doesn't apply to anybody with a disability.

Primary caretakers or anyone with a child or dependents does not require.

You work even full time.

You can volunteer, you can train, you can go to school to meet those requirements.

However, states can can waive this requirement.

And Kentucky's been doing that in a pretty broad swath across our state.

And this has been kind of been done unilaterally by the cabinet instead of the General Assembly.

House Bill 367 would require the Cabinet for health and Family services to get permission from the legislature before providing snap waivers.

They waive the work requirement for healthy adults with no children.

But some Republicans pushed back.

I think that this bill works against everything that we've done in the last few years to address the issues of the benefit of polio for our working workers in Kentucky, especially our working poor demographics in it.

All this does is it places another wedge between people who are working and are trying to do what is best for them and what we want them to do policy wise for the Commonwealth.

It throws another wedge in there to keep them down in a lower economic demographic.

House Bill 367 also failed, receiving six no votes and five yes votes.

For these bills.

To get a second chance, they'll need to be heard again in committee and gain majority support to move forward.

For Kentucky Edition, I'm Clayton Dalton.

Thank you.

Clayton House Bill 255 The one loosening child labor laws will be heard in the same committee again tomorrow, offering yet another chance to advance.