Congress moves to strip minimum wage from seasonal outdoor guides

What it does

This bill exempts employees of small seasonal outdoor recreation businesses (those operating ≤7 months/year or with highly seasonal revenue patterns) from federal minimum wage and maximum-hours requirements under the Fair Labor Standards Act. Outdoor guides and outfitters meeting these criteria would no longer be guaranteed minimum pay or overtime protections.

Why we flagged it

The bill's operative mechanism is a carve-out from federal wage protections for a specific class of small, seasonal employers. It is functionally a labor-cost reduction for outdoor recreation businesses, not a public-safety or efficiency measure.

What the text implies

• Seasonal outdoor recreation workers—guides, outfitters, equipment handlers—often earn below-median wages and depend on tips and seasonal work; loss of minimum wage floor may push many below poverty line during work season.
• The 'seven months or less' and 'seasonal revenue' tests create ambiguity: a business operating 7 months with steady revenue may qualify, as may one operating year-round but with 2:1 revenue skew; employers have incentive to structure operations to meet exemption thresholds.
• No carve-out for worker safety, child labor, or other FLSA protections—only minimum wage and overtime are exempted by the text, but the amendment's scope depends on how § 13(a) is read; if the exemption is categorical, other FLSA duties may also be waived.
• Seasonal workers in this sector often lack union representation and have few alternative employers; exemption removes a federal wage floor without offsetting bargaining power or state-level protections.

Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.

Who it affects

Workers in covered outdoor recreation businesses lose federal minimum wage and overtime protections, reducing their earnings floor and eliminating overtime pay. The exemption targets a labor-intensive, often low-wage sector where workers have limited bargaining power and seasonal employment already creates income instability.

Who stands to gain

• small seasonal outdoor recreation businesses (outfitters, guide services, equipment rental operators
• tourism and adventure recreation operators

Named in the bill

Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, Section 13(a) FLSA, outdoor recreational outfitting services, guiding services, seasonal employers

Where it stands

5 cosponsors: 5 Republicans.

• May 19, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
• May 19, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Education and Workforce · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

1 lobbying clients named this bill on 2 disclosure filings across 2 quarters, Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $20,000 in lobbying spend. A filing names 1 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.

More lobbying clients named this bill than 0% of bills with at least one filing.

Burgess Owens, the sponsor, reported $133,666 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.

• America Outdoors Association — $20,000 on 2 filings

Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 20, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.