Outdoor Recreation Enhancement Act
Key claim: The Outdoor Recreation Enhancement Act would extend FLSA minimum-wage and overtime exemptions to employees of recreational establishments engaged in outfitting, guiding, and related outdoor recreation, and would exempt qualifying Interior and Agriculture Department recreation contracts from service-contract labor standards and paid sick leave.
Abstract
(HR2771 · 115th Congress) Outdoor Recreation Enhancement Act This bill amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to extend the exemption from minimum wage and maximum hours requirements to an employee of a recreational establishment engaged in providing services or facilities directly related to outfitting and guiding or similar outdoor recreation activities, or rental of outdoor recreational equipment. Federal agencies shall notify their contractors of the applicability of this exemption. This bill exempts from service contract labor standards and paid sick leave requirements contracts with the Department of the Interior or the Department of Agriculture that provide services directly related to the recreational activities specified by this bill. Latest action (2017-06-02): Referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.
Why this matters
Outfitters and guides operating on Forest Service and Interior lands are a significant rural small-business segment, and labor cost rules directly affect their viability, seasonal hiring, and prices charged to recreation consumers. Extending FLSA and Service Contract Act exemptions would lower payroll costs for these employers but reduce wage and paid-leave protections for seasonal recreation workers, a tradeoff central to rural recreation-economy policy.