PRINTER'S NO. 1777
No. 1459 Session of 2005
INTRODUCED BY VEON, BEBKO-JONES, CALTAGIRONE, DALEY, FREEMAN,
GODSHALL, GOODMAN, JAMES, JOSEPHS, KENNEY, LaGROTTA, LEDERER,
McGEEHAN, PISTELLA, SHANER, LEVDANSKY, PALLONE, ROONEY AND
STABACK, MAY 2, 2005
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON INSURANCE, MAY 2, 2005
AN ACT
1 Providing for family temporary care insurance.
2 The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:
3 (1) It is in the public interest to provide family
4 temporary care insurance benefits to employees to care for
5 their family members. The need for family temporary care
6 insurance benefits has intensified as the number of
7 households with both parents employed has increased, and the
8 number of single parent employees in the work force has
9 grown. The need for partial wage replacement for employees
10 taking family care leave will be exacerbated as the
11 population of those needing care, both children and parents
12 of employees, increases in relation to the number of working
13 age adults.
14 (2) Developing programs that help families adapt to the
15 competing interests of work and home not only benefits
16 employees but also benefits employers by increasing employee
1 productivity and reducing employee turnover.
2 (3) The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (Public Law
3 103-3, 29 U.S.C. § 2601 et seq.) entitles eligible employees
4 working for covered employers to take unpaid, job-protected
5 leave for up to 12 workweeks in a 12-month period. Under the
6 act, unpaid leave may be taken for the birth, adoption or
7 foster placement of a new child; to care for a seriously ill
8 child, parent or spouse; or for the employee's own serious
9 health condition.
10 (4) The majority of employees in this Commonwealth are
11 unable to take family care leave because they are unable to
12 afford leave without pay. When employees do not receive some
13 form of wage replacement during family care leave, families
14 suffer from the employee's loss of income, increasing the
15 demand on the Commonwealth's unemployment compensation
16 program and dependence on the Commonwealth's public
17 assistance and other benefit programs.
18 (5) It is the intent of the General Assembly to create a
19 family temporary care insurance program to help reconcile the
20 demands of work and family. The family temporary care
21 insurance program shall be an independent component of the
22 Commonwealth's unemployment compensation program and shall be
23 funded through employee and employer contributions. Initial
24 and ongoing administrative costs associated with the family
25 temporary care insurance program shall be payable from the
26 Temporary Care Fund.
27 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
28 hereby enacts as follows:
29 Section 1. Short title.
30 This act shall be known and may be cited as the Family
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1 Temporary Care Act.
2 Section 2. Definitions.
3 The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
4 have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
5 context clearly indicates otherwise:
6 "Child." A biological, adopted or foster son or daughter, a
7 stepson or stepdaughter, a legal ward or a son or daughter of an
8 employee who stands in loco parentis to that child.
9 "Department." The Department of Labor and Industry of the
10 Commonwealth.
11 "Employee." As defined in the act of December 5, 1936 (2nd
12 Sp.Sess., 1937 P.L.2897, No.1), known as the Unemployment
13 Compensation Law.
14 "Employer." As defined in the act of December 5, 1936 (2nd
15 Sp.Sess., 1937 P.L.2897, No.1), known as the Unemployment
16 Compensation Law.
17 "Family care leave." Any of the following:
18 (1) Leave for reason of the birth of a child of the
19 employee, the placement of a child with an employee in
20 connection with the adoption or foster care of the child by
21 the employee or the serious health condition of a child of
22 the employee.
23 (2) Leave to care for a parent or spouse who has a
24 serious health condition.
25 "Family member." A child, parent or spouse.
26 "Fund." The Temporary Care Fund.
27 "Parent." A biological, foster or adoptive parent, a
28 stepparent, a legal guardian or other person who stood in loco
29 parentis to the employee when the employee was a child.
30 "Secretary." The Secretary of Labor and Industry of the
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1 Commonwealth.
2 "Serious health condition." An illness, injury, impairment
3 or physical or mental condition that involves inpatient care in
4 a hospital, hospice or residential health care facility or
5 continuing treatment or continuing supervision by a health care
6 provider.
7 Section 3. Program.
8 (a) Establishment.--There is hereby established, within the
9 Commonwealth unemployment compensation program, a family
10 temporary care insurance program to provide up to 12 weeks of
11 wage replacement benefits to eligible employees who take time
12 off work to care for a seriously ill child, spouse or parent or
13 to bond with a new child.
14 (b) Weekly benefit.--An individual's weekly benefit shall be
15 the amount provided for unemployment compensation benefits under
16 the act of December 5, 1936 (2nd Sp.Sess., 1937 P.L.2897, No.1),
17 known as the Unemployment Compensation Law.
18 (c) Maximum benefit.--The maximum amount payable, within a
19 12-month period, to an individual during any temporary care
20 benefit period for family temporary care insurance shall be 12
21 times his or her weekly benefit, but in no case shall the total
22 be more than the total wages paid to the individual during his
23 or her temporary care base period. If the benefit is not a
24 multiple of one dollar, it shall be computed to the next highest
25 multiple of one dollar.
26 (d) Maximum time.--No more than 12 weeks of family temporary
27 care insurance benefits shall be paid within any 12-month
28 period.
29 Section 4. Eligibility.
30 (a) General rule.--An individual shall be deemed eligible
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1 for family temporary care insurance benefits on any day in which
2 the employee is unable to perform his or her regular or
3 customary work because the employee is caring for a new child
4 during the first year after the birth or placement of the child
5 or caring for a seriously ill child, parent or spouse subject to
6 a waiting period of seven consecutive workdays during each
7 family temporary care benefit period during which no benefits
8 are payable within that period.
9 (b) Unemployment compensation.--An individual is not
10 eligible for family temporary care insurance benefits with
11 respect to any day that the employee has received unemployment
12 compensation benefits under the act of December 5, 1936 (2nd
13 Sp.Sess., 1937 P.L.2897, No.1), known as the Unemployment
14 Compensation Law, or under an unemployment compensation act of
15 any other state or of the Federal Government.
16 (c) Other family members.--An individual is not eligible for
17 family temporary care insurance benefits based upon a serious
18 health condition of a child, parent or spouse with respect to
19 any day that another family member is able and available to
20 provide care for the same period of time that the individual is
21 providing the required care.
22 (d) Federal law.--An individual who is entitled to leave
23 under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (Public Law 103-
24 3, 29 U.S.C. § 2601 et seq.) must take family temporary care
25 insurance leave concurrent with leave taken under the Family and
26 Medical Leave Act.
27 (e) Conditions.--As a condition of an employee's initial
28 receipt of family temporary care insurance benefits during any
29 12-month period in which an employee is eligible for these
30 benefits, an employer may require an employee to take up to two
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1 weeks of earned but unused vacation leave prior to the
2 employee's initial receipt of these benefits. If an employer so
3 requires an employee to take vacation leave, that portion of the
4 vacation leave that does not exceed one workweek shall be
5 applied to the waiting period required under subsection (a).
6 This subsection may not be construed to relieve an employer of
7 any duty under a collective bargaining agreement that the
8 employer may have with respect to the subject matter of this
9 subsection.
10 Section 5. Regulations.
11 Eligible employees shall receive benefits in accordance with
12 regulations promulgated by the department in accordance with
13 this act.
14 Section 6. False certification.
15 If the secretary finds that any individual falsely certifies
16 the medical condition of any person in order to obtain family
17 temporary care insurance benefits with the intent to defraud,
18 whether for the maker of the certification or for any other
19 person, the secretary shall assess a penalty against the
20 individual in the amount of 25% of the benefits paid as a result
21 of the false certification, in addition to requiring repayment
22 of all benefits falsely paid.
23 Section 7. No abridgment of rights.
24 Nothing in this act shall be construed to abridge any rights
25 and responsibilities conveyed by any other act and are in
26 addition to any such rights and responsibilities.
27 Section 8. Publication of contribution rate.
28 The secretary shall determine, on an annual basis, the amount
29 of money necessary to provide benefits under this act and a
30 uniform employee/employer contribution rate to be paid by all
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1 employees and employers subject to this act. The secretary shall
2 publish the contribution rate annually in the Pennsylvania
3 Bulletin. The rate shall become effective upon publication.
4 Section 9. Temporary Care Fund.
5 There is hereby established in the department a fund to be
6 known as the Temporary Care Fund. All contributions and
7 penalties collected under this act, together with any
8 appropriations that may be provided, shall be deposited in the
9 fund to provide payment of benefits under this act.
10 Section 10. Applicability.
11 This act shall apply to periods of family temporary care
12 leave commencing on or after July 1, 2006.
13 Section 11. Effective date.
14 This act shall take effect January 1, 2006.
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