§ 151 — Employment requirements

§ 151. Employment requirements. 1. (a) Notwithstanding the provisions\nof section 35.01 of the arts and cultural affairs law, a child performer\nmay be employed, used or exhibited in any of the exhibitions, rehearsals\nor performances set forth in subdivision one of section 35.01 of the\narts and cultural affairs law if a child performer permit has been\nissued in accordance with the provisions of this section.\n (b) A child performer shall be required to have an employment permit.\nEmployment permits for child performers shall be valid for one year from\nthe date of issuance.\n (c) An application for a child performer permit shall be made on a\nform prescribed by the department and shall contain such matters as the\ndepartment may deem to be necessary, including the following:\n (i) the true and stage name and the age of the child, and the name and\naddress of his parent or guardian;\n (ii) the written consent of the parent or guardian;\n (iii) the evidence provided by the child performer each semester to\nthe department demonstrating that such child is maintaining satisfactory\nacademic performance as determined by the child performer's school of\nenrollment pursuant to state law.\n (d) At the time a child performer applies for an employment permit,\nthe commissioner shall inform the child performer of the child performer\ntrust requirements. The commissioner shall provide a notice in bold\ntwelve point type to read as follows: "NEW YORK STATE LAW REQUIRES\nFIFTEEN PERCENT OF A CHILD PERFORMER'S EARNINGS TO BE PLACED IN TRUST IN\nACCORDANCE WITH PART 7 OF ARTICLE 7 OF THE ESTATES, POWERS AND TRUSTS\nLAW. THE CHILD PERFORMER'S PARENTS OR GUARDIAN MUST ESTABLISH THE CHILD\nPERFORMER TRUST ACCOUNT TO COMPLY WITH THIS REQUIREMENT. THE CHILD'S\nPARENTS OR GUARDIAN MUST PROVIDE THE CHILD PERFORMER'S EMPLOYER WITH THE\nINFORMATION NECESSARY TO TRANSFER THESE MONIES TO THE ACCOUNT. FAILURE\nTO COMPLY WITH THIS REQUIREMENT WILL PREVENT THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR\nFROM RENEWING THE CHILD'S PERMIT TO WORK AS A CHILD PERFORMER."\n (e) No permit shall allow a child to participate in an exhibition,\nrehearsal or performance which is harmful to the welfare, development or\nproper education of such child. A permit may be revoked by the\ndepartment for good cause.\n 2. Prior to employment of a child performer, every person, or agent or\nofficer of any entity employing a child performer shall receive a\ncertificate of eligibility to employ a child performer from the\ndepartment. Each application for initial registration shall be\naccompanied by a fee determined by the commissioner in an amount\nsufficient in the aggregate to defray the department's costs of\nadministering the registration program, provided, that such fee shall\nnot exceed three hundred fifty dollars for initial registration or two\nhundred dollars for registration renewal. Companies that operate\ntheaters of four hundred ninety-nine seats or fewer shall pay no more\nthan two hundred dollars for an initial and renewal certificates. An\nemployers' certificate of eligibility shall be renewed every three\nyears.\n 3. Every person, or agent or officer, employing child performers,\neither directly or indirectly through third persons, shall keep on file\nall permits and certificates, either to work or to employ, issued under\nthis article or pursuant to the education law. The files shall be open\nat all times to the inspection of the school attendance and probation\nofficers, the state board of education, and the department. No such\nauthority shall be denied entrance to such place of employment of child\nperformers. If such authority is denied entrance to such place of\nemployment, or if any violations of laws relating to the employment of\nchild performers are found to exist, such authority shall report the\nviolation to the department. Such report shall be made within\nforty-eight hours and shall be in writing, setting forth the fact that\nhe or she has good cause to believe that such laws are being violated in\nsuch place of employment and describing the nature of the violation.\n 4. (a) The work permit of a child performer in the entertainment\nindustry shall not be renewed, nor shall a subsequent work permit be\nissued, unless the parent or guardian demonstrates to the department\nthat a child performer trust account in accordance with part seven of\narticle seven of the estates, powers and trusts law has been established\nfor the benefit of the child performer.\n (b) The limitation set forth in paragraph (a) of this subdivision\nshall not apply to the issuance of an employer's certificate of\neligibility or to a child performer covered by an employer's certificate\nof eligibility who subsequently seeks to obtain an initial individual\npermit to work.\n 5. Failure to produce any permit or certificate either to work or to\nemploy is prima facie evidence of the illegal employment of any child\nperformer whose permit or certificate is not produced. Proof that any\nperson was the manager or superintendent of any place of employment\nsubject to the provisions of this article at the time any child\nperformer is alleged to have been employed therein in violation thereof,\nis prima facie evidence that the person employed or permitted the child\nperformer to work. The sworn statement of the commissioner, or his or\nher deputy or agents, as to the age of any child performer affected by\nthis article is prima facie evidence of the age of such child.\n