The laws governing child performers differ greatly from state to state. It is a parent’s responsibility to understand the applicable laws in their home state and also any state where their child may work. Sadly, there is no comprehensive searchable database of these laws.
A starting point would be the Federal Department of Labor. It doesn’t have details, but will give you a good clue as to whether your state has any regulation at all. Next, we suggest you check your state’s Film Commission. This entity is usually government funded, so they tend to have information about child labor in entertainment. The Directors Guild of American (DGA) keeps this list of Film Commissions.
We have provided more detailed information related to some of the more production-heavy states. This includes recent legislative activity that may not be reflected on the resources above. Find information related to pending legislation here.