Early versions of new labor restrictions still being hashed out in Congress would have barred children under 16 from operating power-driven farm equipment and kept anyone under 18 from working at agricultural co-ops and stockyards (the latest version would let kids keep running machines on their parents' spreads).
They pile the lobbying pressure on with warnings that incentives for investment need to keep coming, and under time pressure, if ageing equipment is to be used to squeeze more out of emptying reservoirs.