Amusement Park News

  At yesterday's full committee markup of the FY22 Labor HHSE bill, Congressman Andy Harris (R-MD-1) offered an amendment to remove provisions 116, 117 and 118 from the bill. Congressman Rutherford and Cuellar spoke in favor of the amendment and Congressman Pocan and Chairwoman DeLauro spoke in opposition of the amendment. After the debate, Congressman Pocan offered a compromise of removing sections 116 and 117 but keeping section 118. Section 118 prevented employers who have had any number of listed violations from participating in the H-2B program. Harris countered and said he would consider the proposal but only if this provision did not take effect until October 1, 2022. Pocan accepted but the Chairwoman said the amendment would have to be rewritten and reintroduced. There was not time for this. Therefore, the amendment, without any alterations, came up for a vote and it passed. Victory!Congressman Harris did a masterful job defending the program and his amendment but he did an even ...   [read more]

  Through a press release, the Oregon State Fair announced today that it would be operating in 2021 without restrictions.  Like most events, the 2020 state fair did not take place due to the COVID-19 pandemic.  The midway is provided by Rainier Amusements.  Below is the official press release issued by the fair: We are thrilled to announce the Oregon State Fair will operate at full capacity during our fair dates, August 27 to September 6, with no mask or physical distancing requirements, or proof of vaccination. The announcement comes on the heels of Oregon Governor Kate Brown's decision to fully reopen Oregon for business by July with no COVID restrictions. Scores of traditional events, attractions, vendors, and exhibits of the Fair will be presented in the best way we know how. Still our programming efforts were unavoidably impacted by the pandemic, meaning fairgoers will see some changes. We will provide more updates to the Fair's schedule of events soon. Keep an eye ...   [read more]