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H.R. 7002

BillFederalHouseIn Committee
Justice for Exploited Children Act
About This Bill
Committee
Latest Action · January 9, 2026
Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
Congress
119th (2025–2027)
Introduced
January 9, 2026
Sponsor
Rep. Hillary J. ScholtenD
Cosponsors (9)
7D 2R
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Summary

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This bill significantly increases penalties for child labor violations under the Fair Labor Standards Act. Currently, the law has relatively modest penalties for businesses that illegally employ children; this legislation raises both criminal and civil fines substantially. For criminal violations, the bill imposes up to $100,000 in fines and five years in prison for repeated or willful child labor violations, and up to $500,000 in fines and ten years in prison if a violation results in serious injury or death of a child worker. On the civil side, the bill increases penalties from a flat $11,000 to between $1,000 and $150,000 per violation (doubled if repeated or willful), and raises penalties for cases involving serious injury or death to between $25,000 and $601,150. The enhanced penalties take effect immediately upon the bill's enactment and apply to all future violations.

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