Bill
A 5547
A-5547 allows 14–15 year old professional athletes to work past 11:30 p.m. with a parent permit and DLWD waiver process for extraordinary circumstances, prioritizing welfare.
Note: the descriptive title you provided (“Authorizes school districts to establish an extraordinary needs reserve fund for the expenses of providing special education”) does not match the bill text supplied. The bill text for A-5547 amends New Jersey child labor law to address evening work limits for minors who are professional athletes and adds a departmental waiver process. The summary below reflects the actual bill text and committee statement.
Bill number: A-5547 (Reprint A, 1R — reported with committee amendments)
Primary sponsor: Paula Bologna
Cosponsors: Robert Smullen, Joseph Sempolinski, Andrea Bailey
Introduced: April 10, 2025
Status: Reported out of Assembly Labor Committee with amendments (6/16/2025); held for consideration in Education; takes effect immediately upon enactment (per bill text)
Purpose
- To modify New Jersey’s child labor law (P.L.1940, c.153; C.34:2-21.3) to provide limited additional evening work flexibility for minors aged 14–15 who are employed as professional athletes and to authorize the Department of Labor and Workforce Development (DLWD) to establish a process for waivers from evening time limits under exigent/extraordinary circumstances.
Key provisions and changes
- 14–15 year olds employed as professional athletes:
- Current law allows employment until 11:30 p.m. of any day.
- A-5547 permits employment after 11:30 p.m. if the workday began before 11:30 p.m. and continues later because of return travel or a match/game delay — provided there is a special written permit from the minor’s parent or legal guardian stating the hours the minor may work.
- DLWD waiver process:
- The bill authorizes the Department to create an application/waiver process to exceed evening time limits for “exigent or extraordinary circumstances.”
- In evaluating applications, the Department must consider:
1. Number of days that would exceed the evening limit;
2. Nature of the work;
3. Time of year of the work;
4. Impact on the minor’s well‑being (including academic and physical);
5. Any other relevant factors as determined by the Commissioner.
- Conforming language:
- The bill retains and references existing child labor provisions (hours limits for other age groups, seasonal exceptions, performance employment to 11:30 p.m., etc.).
- Effective date:
- Provision takes effect immediately upon enactment.
Who would be affected
- Primary: minors aged 14–15 employed as professional athletes by national sports associations, leagues, or teams.
- Secondary: parents/guardians (must provide written permits), employers (teams/leagues) who must secure permits and potentially apply for DLWD waivers, and DLWD (administration and adjudication of waiver process).
- Indirect: schools, given consideration of academic impact, and health/athletic safety stakeholders.
Potential impacts and considerations
- Increased scheduling flexibility for youth athletes facing travel or game delays.
- Requires parental consent (written permit) and places oversight responsibility on employers and DLWD.
- Raises policy considerations about minors’ academic/sleep/health impacts; the waiver factors explicitly require consideration of such welfare impacts.
- Enables case-by-case DLWD review rather than categorical exceptions, allowing oversight but also administrative burden.
Legislative history / next steps
- Referred to Assembly Labor Committee (4/10/2025), reported with amendments (6/16/2025). Held for consideration in Education. If enacted by the Legislature and signed by the Governor, the amendments take effect immediately.
Related/companion legislation
- Companion bills listed include S-697 and S-4400 (Senate) and prior-session related bills (S-7689, S-1060, A-11036, A-1035, A-2402).
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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