Bill > LD1712

Introduced Session

This bill makes the following changes to the paid family and medical leave benefits program. 1. It provides examples of what type of conditions constitute undue hardship for an employer and allows an employer to determine other conditions, based on that employer's specific business, that constitute undue hardship. It also provides that the decision of an employer to deny the use of leave based on undue hardship is not reviewable by the Department of Labor. 2. It requires an employer to deduct from an employee's wages 50% of the payroll premium, instead of allowing an employer to choose to deduct up to 50% of the payroll premium, but allows an employer to pay any amount of the employee's share of the payroll premium. It specifies that the existence of a collective bargaining agreement does not prevent an employer from deducting an employee's share of the premium imposed to finance the payment of benefits under the program nor does it require the employer to bargain before making that deduction. 3. It extends to all employers subject to a collective bargaining agreement the exemption for public employers or employees of a public employer subject to a collective bargaining agreement from participating in the program until the expiration of the collective bargaining agreement in effect on October 25, 2023. 4. It establishes a benefit amount, regardless of income, of 65% of an employee's average weekly wage. 5. It requires an employee to file an application for family leave benefits no more than 15 days after the start of family leave and to file an application for medical leave benefits no more than 30 days after the start of the medical leave. 6. It changes the fine imposed for failure or refusal by an employer to make premium contributions to a maximum of $50 per employee. The fine is waivable by the department if the department determines it is in the interest of equity and good conscience. It requires the department to notify an employer and allows an employer to appeal the decision. It allows an employer who is found to have failed or refused to make premium contributions to retroactively deduct from an employee's wages that employee's share of the premium. Finally, it stays the imposition of any fines until January 1, 2026 unless the employer willfully fails or refuses to make the premium contributions. 7. It provides that benefits paid from the program are subject to state income tax to the extent those benefits are not included in the taxpayer's federal adjusted gross income. It also provides that a taxpayer's federal adjusted gross income may be reduced by the amount subject to repayment that has been previously taxed by the State. It also allows individuals filing a new claim for family leave benefits or medical leave benefits to elect to have the administrator of the program deduct and withhold state income tax from the individual's payment of benefits at the rate of 5% and requires the administrator of the program to deduct and withhold state income tax. It also requires the department to advise individuals filing a new claim for benefits that the benefits are subject to state income tax.

Committee Categories

Tiffany Roberts (D)*,  Amy Arata (R),  Joe Baldacci (D),  Richard Bradstreet (R),  Amanda Collamore (R),  Ed Crockett (D),  Allison Hepler (D),  Anne-Marie Mastraccio (D),  Dani O'Halloran (D),  Holly Stover (D), 

Placed in Legislative Files (DEAD) (on 06/04/2025)

Official Document