Sponsors (2)
Official title: Direct the Secretary of Labor to carry out a grant program to award grants to States to carry out a paid leave program, to establish the Interstate Paid Leave Action Network, and for other purposes.
Introduced July 16, 2026 by John Boozman · Last progress July 16, 2026
The bill substantially expands and standardizes access to paid family and medical leave in participating States—backed by federal grants and shared technology to simplify claims—but does so by shifting costs and administrative burdens to employers, States, and taxpayers and by introducing privacy and state‑flexibility risks.
Parents, family caregivers, and other employees gain explicit access to FMLA‑type leave reasons (birth, placement, caring for a covered individual, and their own serious illness), making more workers eligible for protected leave.
Eligible employees in participating States receive at least six weeks of paid leave with higher income replacement for low‑income workers (at least 67%), improving short‑term financial security during leave.
The bill leverages the existing FMLA framework and standardizes definitions and eligibility across participating States, reducing confusion about entitlements for workers and employers.
Employers (and potentially employees) will face higher labor costs from new payroll contributions, premiums, or increased leave obligations, which could affect hiring, wages, and small‑business finances.
States and employers will incur additional administrative and reporting burdens (verification, notices, audits, payroll collection, claims processing), increasing bureaucracy and compliance costs—especially for multi‑state operations.
The program relies on multi‑year federal grants that increase federal spending and may create short‑term dependency or long‑term fiscal pressure on State budgets as federal support phases down.
Based on analysis of 4 sections of legislative text.
Creates a federal grant program and an interstate network to help States adopt, coordinate, and deliver paid-leave benefits and public–private administration models.
Creates a federal grant program to help states build or expand state-paid leave programs and establishes an Interstate Paid Leave Action Network (I–PLAN) to help states coordinate benefit delivery and reduce administrative burdens. The bill defines eligible state programs and partnerships, sets grant application and prioritization rules, and creates an interstate agreement process and technical support network for participating States.