SC House tries again with 12 weeks of paid parental leave for state workers

Yahoo

30-04-2025

Rep. Beth Bernstein, D-Columbia, talks about a bill that would double state employees' paid parental leave Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (Screenshot of SCETV legislative livestream)
COLUMBIA — State employees in South Carolina who newly become parents could get twice as much paid leave under a bill the House passed this week.
The bipartisan bill sent to the Senate on Wednesday by a vote of 86-18 would give employees of K-12 schools, state agencies, and public colleges 12 weeks of paid leave after giving birth instead of six. Non-birthing parents, including fathers and adoptive parents, would qualify for four weeks instead of two.
With four working days left in the 2025 session and no movement on an identical bill in the Senate, passage this year is highly unlikely. But the bill remains alive for 2026. It does not need to be reintroduced.
The House passed an identical bill three years ago. But only half the time made it into law due to senators' concerns about cost. Sponsors in both chambers celebrated passage while vowing to try again.
Six weeks is not enough, said Rep. Beth Bernstein, again the bill's primary House sponsor.
Not only are the first weeks of a child's life vital for parents to bond with their new child, but increasing the state's leave to 12 weeks could make it more competitive in the job market, Bernstein said.
'Whether I'm the birthing parent or not, the bond you have with your child, particularly at birth, is something that is special and something that should be preserved,' the Columbia Democrat said.
Cost remained a concern for the bill's opponents.
The cost for state agencies and school districts is unclear, since it will depend on how many employees use the leave and what job they're performing. Some departments might need to offer incentives to other workers to take over for that worker while they're gone or hire temporary workers, according to a financial analysis of the bill.
One particular point of contention was the cost to school districts, which would have to offer the same benefit to teachers and other full-time employees. That cost would also vary, since the cost of hiring a substitute teacher fluctuates based on their experience and location, according to the analysis.
Still, some legislators, especially in the ultra-conservative Freedom Caucus, questioned whether the bill could cause school districts to raise property taxes in an effort to recoup the costs of paying for the extra six weeks of leave.
'You're voting to take more money away from people who don't have benefits and give it to people who do have benefits,' said Rep. Josiah Magnuson, a Campobello Republican and vice-chairman of the Freedom Caucus.
Rep. Neal Collins pointed to his own school district as evidence more money's not necessary.
Pickens County adopted a policy earlier this week providing 12 weeks of paid parental leave. The district estimates the cost at $115,000 per year, an amount that won't require a tax increase, the Easley Republican said.
Magnuson, a father of two young children, also characterized the bill as government overreach in telling parents how long they could stay home. And he criticized the bill's wording for referring to eligible employees as those who 'give birth' versus a 'co-parent' instead of mother and father.
'I don't know about you, but I think that our government should acknowledge mothers and should acknowledge fathers,' said Magnuson, who's also a charter member of the Family Caucus.
Bernstein called Magnuson's arguments disingenuous, particularly considering he voted in favor of the House's previous attempt to approve 12 weeks of paid leave.
Most legislators who voted against the bill are in the Freedom Caucus, which has some overlap with the Family Caucus.
They promote themselves as advocates for families yet voted against a bill that would keep families together longer, she said.
'For those of you in this chamber who talk about family and family preservation and the family bonding and vote against this bill, that does not make sense,' Bernstein said.
Those first weeks were vital for Rep. Travis Moore's wife when she gave birth to the couple's first child 15 years ago, the Roebuck Republican said.
'I think there are so many things that happen developmentally and relationally in those first few weeks and months,' Moore said.
To allow his wife to stay home longer, coworkers in the solicitor's office where she worked donated some of their time off so she could spend more weeks at home with her baby, he said.
She wanted to stay home for 12 weeks, but the couple couldn't afford that, Moore said.
'She really wanted to be home longer, but we weren't in a position for her not to go to work,' Moore said.