SACRAMENTO – The State Senate voted Thursday to give final approval to Sen. Patricia Wiggins' extension of the pear shed bill.

Senate Bill 319, sponsored by Wiggins (D–Santa Rosa), extends an existing exemption to state law allowing agricultural packing plants in Lake County to employ minors, 16 or 17 years of age and residing in Lake County, for up to 10 hours per day and more than 48 hours (but not more than 60 hours) per week during peak harvest season.

The longer hours are contingent upon the written approval of the Lake County Office of Education.

The Senate had previously approved SB 319, but a subsequent vote was required for concurrence with minor, mostly technical amendments made while the bill was in the Assembly.

Final passage means SB 319 is now headed to the desk of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

“I am very pleased that my colleagues in both the Senate and Assembly have shown their overwhelming support for both my bill and for this exemption that has meant so much to the agricultural community and to teen workers in Lake County,” Wiggins said Friday. “I am confident that Gov. Schwarzenegger will soon sign this bill into law.”

Existing law allows the state labor commissioner to issue exemptions for agricultural packing plants to employ minors (16 or 17 years of age) to work for up to 10 hours per day during peak harvest season when school is not in session. The commissioner requires inspections of agricultural packing plants prior to issuing the exemption.

Current law also allows the labor commissioner, upon receiving written approval from the Lake County Board of Education, to issue exemptions to agricultural packing plants to employ minors enrolled in schools located in Lake County to work for up to 10 hours per day and more than 48 hours (but not more than 60 hours) per week during peak harvest season, when school is not in session.

The Wiggins bill extends the exemption for agricultural packing plants until Jan. 1, 2012, and also requires that the labor commissioner issue the written reports on the general working conditions of minors employed in agricultural packing industry to the Legislature.

“We needed to extend this exemption to help deal with the labor shortages in Lake

County's agricultural industry during harvest time,” Wiggins said. “The pear-packing season lasts only four to six weeks and coincides with the increase in tourism – the other large labor industry in Lake County. With both tourism and agriculture at peak activity, the available labor pool is limited.”

Visit Wiggins' Web site at http://dist02.casen.govoffice.com/.

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