Skip to main content
HR 23 105th Congress House

Stop Sweatshops Act of 1997

Official title: To amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to provide for legal accountability for sweatshop conditions in the garment industry, and for other purposes.

Introduced: June 26, 1997 See on congress.gov
Labor and Employment AccountingBusiness recordsChild laborClothing industry
More subjectsShow fewer subjects
Clothing workersCommerceContractorsEvidence (Law)FamiliesFinance and Financial SectorFines (Penalties)FraudGovernment Operations and PoliticsGovernment paperworkHome laborHours of laborLawLiability (Law)Manufacturing industries
This bill died when the 105th Congress ended
It never became law before the 105th Congress (1997–1998) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 4 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Feb 7, 1997
Referred to the Subcommittee on Workforce Protections.
Jan 7, 1997
Referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.
Jan 7, 1997
Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR E71)
Jan 7, 1997
Introduced in House
 Ask about this bill AI · grounded in the bill text

Have a question about what this bill does? Ask in plain English; the answer is drawn from the bill's actual text and official record, and it'll tell you when something isn't in the text rather than guess.

AI answers can be imperfect; always confirm against the full bill text.

 Latest action February 7, 1997

Referred to the Subcommittee on Workforce Protections.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Stop Sweatshops Act of 1997 - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to provide for the civil liability of manufacturers for sweatshop conditions maintained by their contractors in the garment industry. Sets forth civil penalties for violation of recordkeeping and payroll accounting requirements.

 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 2
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 23: Stop Sweatshops Act of 1997. 105th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/105-HR-23/
MLA
"H.R. 23: Stop Sweatshops Act of 1997." 105th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/105-HR-23/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.R. 23, 105th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/105-HR-23/.
Markdown link
[H.R. 23: Stop Sweatshops Act of 1997](https://openamerica.io/bill/105-HR-23/)
Report a problem