MIAMI - Jobless dwarfs should have the option of being flung around a barroom for cash rather than standing in the unemployment line, according to one Florida state lawmaker.

Representative Ritch Workman has introduced a bill to undo a ban on “dwarf-tossing’’ as part of what he says is his mission to repeal overreaching and outdated laws. Although the dwarf-tossing measure is not a “jobs bill,’’ the Republican said, it may put a few people to work in a state where unemployment is 1.6 percentage points above the US average.

Dwarf-tossing, a competition in which bar patrons see how far they can throw little people in protective gear, was banned in Florida in 1989 after opponents complained that it was dangerous and dehumanizing.

While Workman, a mortgage broker, agrees that the practice is “offensive’’ and “stupid,’’ he thinks the ban keeps willing projectiles from gainful employment. “If this is a job they want and people would pay to see it or participate in it, why in the world would we prohibit it?’’ Workman said.

A spokeswoman for Republican Governor Rick Scott said in an e-mail his office had not reviewed the bill.

Carolyn Fiddler, a spokeswoman for the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, said that the bill highlights Republicans’ lack of understanding of what drives employment growth.

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