Latest news with #PaidFamilyandMedicalLeaveAct
Yahoo
16-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Despite changes, paid worker leave bill voted down again
Mar. 15—SANTA FE — A renewed attempt to enact a state-run paid worker leave plan bit the dust Saturday in a Senate committee, as changes made to the bill in an attempt to get it across the Roundhouse finish line instead led to the measure's defeat. After a barrage of concerns from Democrats and Republicans, from a lack of funding to hurting businesses to the bill not going far enough, the Senate Finance Committee on Saturday voted 8-3 not to pass House Bill 11. "We'll just keep soldiering on until we get the bill through," bill sponsor Rep. Christine Chandler, D-Los Alamos, told the Journal after the committee vote. "I was hoping and expecting it was going to be this year, and that expectation was based on all the compromises we had made and all the listening we had done." Indeed, the measure was once a very different bill. First introduced in 2019 as the Paid Family and Medical Leave Act, the many iterations have explored different funding mechanisms, including scenarios where only employees pay into a leave fund to the state fully covering it. The approach to this year's bill, which sponsors ironed out last month to help it pass through a key House committee, came in two parts: $9,000 baby rebates for new, working parents and up to six weeks paid medical leave, covered by new premiums on workers and most employers. The legislation as introduced initially this year would've mandated higher premiums from employers and employees to pay for parental and medical leave and allowed for more medical time off. Bill sponsors made the changes to appease some more moderate Democrats and business leaders, and HB11 successfully passed the House for the first time — something bill sponsor Senate President Pro Tem Mimi Stewart, D-Albuquerque, has been urging the House to do. The Senate in the last two years has passed the Paid Family and Medical Leave Act. Stewart said on Saturday afternoon that HB11 wasn't the right solution, with its reduced medical leave timeframe and baby rebates. "The changes made this year resulted in a bill that no longer upholds many of the provisions we strongly supported in the original version. ... It just doesn't quite work for what families really need or when they need it," Stewart said in a statement. She added, "We're not done yet. We will continue working to find a solution that benefits both New Mexico families and the businesses that support our workforce." Bill sponsor Rep. Linda Serrato, D-Santa Fe, said the House sponsors did what they needed with the bill to get it through the chamber it's historically held up in. It passed with seven extra votes. "As legislators, we all realize perfection is the enemy of the good, and I think we have to do what we can to meet in the middle," Serrato told the Journal. Chandler said it's perplexing the Senate Finance Committee in the last two years has passed a more expansive Paid Family and Medical Leave Act but wouldn't let the slimmed-down version through this year. Three Democrats who voted for the bill in past years voted against it Saturday: Sens. Pete Campos of Las Vegas, Benny Shendo of Jemez Pueblo and Roberto "Bobby" Gonzales of Ranchos de Taos. Even the Democrats who voted in favor of the bill started the debate with a list of concerns and questions about it. Sen. Linda Trujillo, D-Santa Fe, said it doesn't go far enough, while Sen. Michael Padilla, D-Albuquerque, reiterated concerns he voiced earlier in the week about where money for the baby rebates would come from. The "no" vote from Senate Finance Chair George Muñoz, D-Gallup, wasn't a surprise, as he's consistently voted against the bill in the past. This year, he called it one of many unfunded mandates the House of Representatives wants the Senate to pass. On Saturday, he said the bill is too extreme. "We can never take a baby step," Muñoz said. "If you have just mothers with 12 weeks (leave) and families taking care of parents for medical assistance, I'd vote for this all day long." At the end of the day, not all once-supportive advocates backed the bill either. "We really do think that New Mexicans deserve full, comprehensive paid family and medical leave," said Tracy McDaniel, policy director at the Southwest Women's Law Center. She's been very involved in the bill's legislative progress in the past and acted as a bill expert earlier this year. However, she said bill sponsors didn't invite advocates to the table when overhauling the bill last month, and she was disappointed to see paid medical leave timeframes dialed down as well as being unsure of the proposed state-funded baby rebates. "We're going to have to be working with sponsors in the interim around how we create something that really works well for New Mexicans," McDaniel said. "The (paid family and medical leave) coalition continues to think that a contribution-based model works well. ... That's really the way that we create a solvent, sustainable fund." Republicans have for years vehemently opposed the measure, which they say would make it harder for New Mexico businesses to operate by not only having to find replacement employees for up to 12 weeks but also having to pay new premiums. The sentiments echo those of influential business leaders in New Mexico, as well as small-town employers. Rita Chaparro owns Rope's Western and Casual Wear in Clayton, a town of about 2,500 people in northeastern New Mexico. She learned about the paid leave proposal from the Journal. "It will literally kill our small businesses," Chaparro said. "We cannot add another tax." Her own store wouldn't be affected, as it only has two employees — the legislation would only tax employers with five or more workers. But Chaparro said she's concerned about the other shops and restaurants in the town that are struggling to stay open. "We're really having a hard time. So no more adding anything to our plate, please," she said. Republican members of the Senate Finance Committee on Saturday also had issues with the lack of details in the 36-page bill. "It just sounds like an absolute employment nightmare," said Sen. Nicole Tobiassen, R-Albuquerque. "And I can see the lawsuits." While it may be the end of the line this year for a Paid Family and Medical Leave Act, bill sponsors and advocates say they'll be back. "If you're asking if the House will stop fighting for working families? Never," Serrato said.
Yahoo
09-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Paid leave bill clears first Senate committee
A bill to extend paid time off to more New Mexico workers took a step closer to becoming law Saturday. The Paid Family and Medical Leave Act passed out of the Senate Tax, Business and Transportation Committee on a 6-4 party-line vote. It now heads to the Senate Finance Committee, which approved last year's version of the bill. Paid leave advocates have been pushing for years to create a state-run program. Last year's bill passed the Senate before failing narrowly in the House. This year's bill started in and has already passed the House, where a handful of more conservative Democrats who opposed the bill last year either stepped down or lost their primary races in June. 'House Bill 11 is a uniquely New Mexican version of paid family and medical leave,' Rep. Christine Chandler, D-Los Alamos, the bill's House sponsor, told the Senate committee Saturday. The first component of the bill, which Chandler likened to an insurance program, would create a fund paid for by premiums on both employers and employees to pay for six weeks of paid leave for workers who get sick or need to take time off for listed reasons such as domestic violence or grieving a lost child. The second component would create the 'Welcome Child Fund' to pay new parents $3,000 a month for up to three months to take time off for a newborn or just-adopted child. 'It's unique and it's different, but I think we feel very fortunate we have strong revenues in our Early Childhood [Education and Care] Department' to pay for it, Chandler said. 'I think it'll be a great boon for us in the state to be supporting families that are having new children,' she added. The Senate committee made a few mostly technical tweaks to the bill, meaning if the Senate passes it, the House will need to agree to the changes before it goes to Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham's desk. The six weeks of nonparental leave is a change from previous iterations of the bill. Last year's bill would have provided for 12 weeks' leave, and an initial version this year provided for nine weeks. The public hearing looked similar to others that have been held on the bill over the past couple of years, with supporters saying it would help families with children or who are struggling with medical emergencies and opponents worrying it would drive up costs for businesses that will struggle to replace people who take leave. Bernadette Hardy, with NM Native Vote, said she lost her job when she had to take time off to give birth to her son. Shortly thereafter, her mother was diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer and died. With no income, Hardy and her infant son were left homeless. 'I share my story because people should not be left in poverty because of an unforeseen tragedy,' she said. A few supporters of paid leave called on lawmakers to amend the bill to increase the amount of paid medical leave back to nine weeks. Lan Sena, director of the Center for Civic Policy and a cancer survivor, said six weeks is not enough for someone to get a transplant or treatment. 'We are being hit the hardest during our darkest times,' Sena said. Carla Sonntag, president and CEO of the New Mexico Business Coalition, said many employees as well as employers oppose the bill. 'Many of them don't want to be taxed right now,' she said. 'They need the money to feed their families.' Representatives of other business groups who spoke against the bill noted the particular difficulties sectors such as construction and agriculture have in replacing an employee who goes on leave. 'It isn't fair to the 8,500 agricultural employees in New Mexico who would have to pay into the program to subsidize it but never receive any benefit because they work less than 150 days a year,' said Tom Patterson, president-elect of the New Mexico Cattle Growers' Association. George Gunnery, the owner of Tomasita's restaurant, said he supported the parental leave component, but 'overall HB 11 is too burdensome and too big on our family-owned businesses, businesses that are currently struggling.' Gundrey said more established businesses like his would be able to adjust by raising prices or holding off on employee raises, but newer ones would struggle. He said the bill sends the wrong message to people looking to start a business: 'You are better off leaving the state and starting your business where small businesses are more supported and more appreciated.' Chandler said 13 states and Washington, D.C., have similar programs and haven't experienced the 'doomsday scenarios' she heard from commenters and Republican lawmakers. 'I think to expect that our businesses would go under really doesn't give enough credit to New Mexico businesses,' she said.
Yahoo
09-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Paid leave bill passes first Senate committee
Mar. 8—A measure to send thousands of dollars in rebates to working parents who have a new baby has passed another legislative hurdle. Passed on a party-line committee vote Saturday, a paid work leave effort is heading to the Senate Finance Committee, its second-to-last stop before potentially landing on the governor's desk. The Welcome Child and Family Wellness Leave Act, formerly the Paid Family and Medical Leave Act, would send rebates of up to $9,000 over the span of three months to working families with a new baby, paid for through the state's Early Childhood Care and Education Department budget, according to bill sponsors. It also ensures parents don't lose their jobs for taking leave in those 12 weeks and specifies that only one parent is eligible for the rebates, unless parents split the money. House Bill 11 additionally allows employees to take up to six weeks of paid time off for medical, bereavement, foster, military exigency or safety — like sexual assault — purposes. That money would come from a fund paid for by employees and employers with five or more workers, with new wage premiums of 0.15% on employers and 0.2% on employees. The effort, initially introduced in the Roundhouse in 2019, made it past the House for the first time this year. Similar efforts have already passed the Senate multiple times in the past, though the parental leave portion of the bill has significantly changed this year. Despite the debate on HB11 falling on a weekend, members of the public filled the Senate Tax, Business and Transportation Committee meeting and even flooded Zoom on Saturday morning to express their opposition or support for the measure. Most of the committee discussion on the legislation was public comment, not legislative debate. Republican committee members, similar to past debates, voiced concerns over the fiscal solvency of the proposed paid leave fund and worried about the financial impact on New Mexicans. "It's really sad that we're going to try and bill our employees throughout the state of New Mexico when we know that we have the lowest payroll base in the union," said Sen. Gabriel Ramos, R-Silver City. Committee chair Sen. Carrie Hamblen, D-Las Cruces, asked if bill sponsors considered specialty jobs, bringing up that a radiologist's position would be difficult to find a replacement for. "The person will leave, regardless ... and then the employer will be facing the same replacement issue," said bill sponsor Rep. Christine Chandler, D-Los Alamos. Republicans tried to table the bill but failed on a 4-6, party-line vote. If HB11 passes the Senate Finance Committee, which has some more moderate Democratic members, it heads to the full floor.
Yahoo
01-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
House passes paid leave program with five Democrats voting against it
Feb. 28—SANTA FE — If the Senate doesn't throw any curveballs, it could soon be up to Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham to decide whether New Mexico should provide baby rebates and paid medical leave. The Welcome Child and Family Wellness Leave Act, formerly the Paid Family and Medical Leave Act, passed the House floor by a vote of 38-31 on Friday. That's where the bill died by two votes last year, and it's already passed the Senate twice in past years, though the bill has significantly changed compared to its previous iterations. All Republicans and five Democrats — Reps. Martha Garcia of Pine Hill, Patricia Lundstrom of Gallup, Wonda Johnson of Church Rock, Marian Matthews of Albuquerque and Joseph Sanchez of Alcalde — voted against the legislation. Republicans and business advocates have fiercely opposed the measure. Rep. Christine Chandler, D-Los Alamos, called the bill "transformational legislation." She and other advocates have been pushing for such legislation at the Roundhouse since 2019. "We're creating a safety net for people who may become ill or have these other life events that are significant where they need the support, for a very small amount of money," she said. Much of the contention over the current bill comes from the mandatory contributions it would impose on workers and businesses. It proposes a 0.2% premium on employee wages — $2 for every $1,000 — and a 0.15% premium on employers' wages — $1.50 for every $1,000. Businesses with less than five employees would be exempt. The contributions would go into a state fund that would pay employee leave for medical, bereavement, foster, military exigency or abuse victim safety purposes. Those premiums are lower than the bill initially proposed, when employees and employers were also fronting the cost for parental leave. However, Democrats changed the bill a week-and-a-half ago to take that portion of the money from the state Early Childhood Education and Care Department instead. The state agency would provide funding for a parent to get up to $9,000 for a new baby, delivering checks over the course of 12 weeks. HB11 would also ensure working parents keep their job while taking up to 12 weeks of time off for bonding. If signed into law, the state will start assessing premiums on employers in January 2027 and on employees in July 2027. Workers could start getting the new baby rebates and using paid leave in 2028. The House hit its three-hour debate limit Friday, with Republicans failing to change the bill. A primary concern from GOP members and business leaders around New Mexico is an inability to replace workers, particularly essential workers, while they take leave. "We are creating a workforce nightmare," House Caucus Chair Rebecca Dow, R-Truth or Consequences, told the Journal before the floor debate. She was preparing her talking points in her office while staff carted around large boxes, which Dow said were previously full of "over 100,000 unduplicated citizens who wrote in and said, 'Do not pass this.'" The towering stacks of paper sat on all the Republicans' desks on the floor during the debate. Dow's first and ultimately only attempt to replace the bill failed on a 40-29 vote. She introduced a substitute bill that would've provided up to six weeks of paid parental leave, with money coming from an early childhood trust fund, and an option for workers to pay 0.5% of their wages to get an extra three weeks paid time off — a measure similar to her own parental leave bill that hasn't made it to its first committee. "When we impose a mandatory tax on employers, the consumers pay the cost," she said. The debate on her substitute bill took so long Dow didn't have time to introduce the other two amendments she had planned. Dow told the Journal before the debate she didn't think any of her changes to the bill stood a chance. She's repeatedly asked when Republicans are going to compromise, she said, but "all we do here is compromise." As for the bill moving onto the Senate, Chandler said "they should really embrace this." However, Senate President Pro Tem Mimi Stewart, D-Albuquerque, expressed concerns to the Journal about the House changes to the bill and the feasibility of the state paying for parental leave. Chandler said she hasn't heard from the governor's office yet on the bill, though Rep. Linda Serrato, D-Santa Fe, another sponsor on the legislation, said it fundamentally supports "a stronger workforce." "What's really important to see is the support received in the House floor," she said.
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Today at the Roundhouse, Feb. 27
Feb. 27—We're nearing the end of another workweek at the Legislature, though we can probably expect committee and floor sessions this weekend. Here are a few bills to keep an eye out for, both in committees and on the floors, on Thursday, Feb. 27. Budget: The Senate Finance Committee plans to take up the $10.8 billion budget the House sent it earlier this week, reviewing specific sections with Legislative Finance Committee staff. It's not clear if the committee will vote on it. Plastic bag ban: A move to ban single-use plastic bags and require retail stores to charge 10 cents per paper bag goes before its first committee, the House Energy, Environment and Natural Resources Committee, in the morning. On the floor: The House floor has nearly 50 bills on its calendar, including a measure to make every session 45 days with no bill discussion limits, a proposed Paid Family and Medical Leave Act and a bill to implement a 6% liquor sales tax. Floor leadership often decides the day of which bills to take up. Music to your ears: It's New Mexico Philharmonics Day at the Roundhouse, and there's also an invite-only reception in the evening. It's also Apprenticeship Day and Animal Protection Lobby Day.
