1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to employment; creating a voluntary paid 
  1.3             parental leave program; providing for wage 
  1.4             reimbursement; proposing coding for new law in 
  1.5             Minnesota Statutes, chapter 181. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  [181.9441] [VOLUNTARY PAID PARENTAL LEAVE 
  1.8   PROGRAM CREATED.] 
  1.9      Subdivision 1.  [VOLUNTARY PAID PARENTAL LEAVE 
  1.10  REIMBURSEMENT.] The commissioner of economic security shall 
  1.11  reimburse an "employer" as defined in section 268.035, 
  1.12  subdivision 14, that provides qualified paid parental leave 
  1.13  under this section.  The reimbursement shall be one-half of the 
  1.14  employer payment, subject to a maximum of 26 weeks per calendar 
  1.15  year. 
  1.16     Subd. 2.  [QUALIFIED PAID PARENTAL LEAVE; REQUIREMENTS.] A 
  1.17  "qualified paid parental leave" is a paid leave of absence to an 
  1.18  employee who is a natural or adoptive parent in conjunction with 
  1.19  the birth or adoption of a child.  Qualified paid parental leave 
  1.20  does not include sick leave or vacation leave, but must be in 
  1.21  addition to sick leave or vacation leave.  The leave must be at 
  1.22  least six weeks and must be used within the first year of birth, 
  1.23  or during the first year in which the employee becomes an 
  1.24  adoptive parent, except that employers with more than 50 
  1.25  employees must provide at least 26 weeks of paid and unpaid 
  2.1   leave.  In order to receive reimbursement under this section, an 
  2.2   employer must pay the employee at least $100 per week.  An 
  2.3   employer may not be reimbursed for more than $250 per week for 
  2.4   an employee on leave.  The commissioner shall adjust these 
  2.5   amounts annually by the United States all-items consumer price 
  2.6   index to reflect inflation.  Benefits received under this 
  2.7   section shall be considered income for the purposes of section 
  2.8   119B.061.  There is annually appropriated from the general fund 
  2.9   to the commissioner of economic security sums sufficient to make 
  2.10  the payments required under this section. 
  2.11     Subd. 3.  [NOTIFICATION.] The commissioner of economic 
  2.12  security shall notify employers of the voluntary paid parental 
  2.13  leave program through the department's newsletter, Web site, and 
  2.14  other communications with employers. 
  2.15     Subd. 4.  [REPORT.] By February 1, 2002, the commissioner 
  2.16  of economic security shall report to the legislature on the 
  2.17  number of employers requesting the paid parental leave 
  2.18  reimbursement, including an estimation of the number of 
  2.19  employees using the program as part of their parental leave. 
  2.20     Sec. 2.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  2.21     Section 1 is effective July 1, 2000, and applies to 
  2.22  employer-paid leave benefits paid on or after that date.