12 Weeks Paid Family and Medical Leave Bill Voted Out of Committee With 100% Wage Replacement Mandated for All Businesses
The House General and Housing Committee voted 9-3-0 in support of H.66, with the three Republican legislators all voting against the paid family and medical leave (PFML) legislation. As the policy committee of jurisdiction, the committee has tackled challenging and complicated conversations in recent weeks concerning how this extensive new mandated benefits program would work. However, many questions remain unanswered and the contrast between paid leave legislation crafted in 2019 is stark.
Multiple aspects of the current bill were reviewed and altered at the suggestion of the Vermont Chamber, including a further definition of “personal bond” regarding familial relationships that require care to qualify for benefits. The removal of refund payments to employees making under $25,000 in wages was also addressed. However, the legislation still aims to create the most expansive PFML program in the nation and relies on the State Treasurer to create a new insurance program rather than working with the already established private insurer. This is opposite to the precedent set by other states that have created PFML programs. The cost and effort that this would take are largely guesswork and likely to be staggering. The legislation will now be reviewed by the House Ways and Means Committee.
| FMLI Passed in 2019 | PFML Proposal 2023 | |
| Administration |
Vermont Department of Financial Regulation (DFR) will issue a Request for Proposals to select an insurance carrier to run a program. The Vermont Department of Labor will write rules regarding the appeals process, carry out marketing, and handle appeals that come to the State The Vermont Department of Taxes will collect and remit to the FMLI Special Fund |
The Vermont Treasurer’s Office will be appropriated between $20 and $80 million to double its size to start a new Division of Family and Medical Leave. DFR will evaluate employers' plans to decide if they are of equal benefit to the state plan to provide an avenue to leave the state plan The Department of Taxes will collect new revenue from a payroll tax and remit to a special fund |
| Benefit Design |
90% of an employee’s average weekly wage up to 55% of the Statewide Average Weekly Wage and 55% of an employee’s average weekly wage more than that amount Maximum weekly benefit amount is the Vermont Average Weekly Wage |
100% of employee’s average weekly wage up to a maximum of the Statewide Average Weekly Wage |
| Eligibility | Those that earn the dollar equivalent of 675 hours at minimum wage |
Employed with the same employer for six months for an average of 20 hours per week Or, is employed and during two of the last four completed calendar quarters has received payments for services for which the employer is required to withhold Vermont income tax |
| Employer Size | Number of employees to be considered a covered employer was reduced from 15 to 10 | “Any person employing one or more individuals in Vermont” |
An elaborated breakdown of the differences between paid leave legislation from 2019 and the current bill is available, here, and was provided as testimony from our partners at the Lake Champlain Chamber of Commerce.
