HB 1207: Paid family & med. leave insurance program; definitions, notice requirements, civil action, report. - Virginia

Commerce Agriculture & Natural Resources Subcommittee Substitute → Commerce and Labor Substitute · 9 edits

MAJOR

This bill was revised from a House substitute to a Senate substitute, shifting the proposing committee from Appropriations to Commerce and Labor. The most significant change is an acceleration of the program's start dates, moving the beginning of contributions from July 2028 to April 2028 and the start of benefit payments from January 2029 to December 2028. The Senate version also clarifies the relationship between private insurance policies and the state program and adds a requirement for the Department of Human Resource Management to evaluate the impact of the new leave policies.

Scope change

The bill's scope remains focused on establishing a paid family and medical leave insurance program, but the Senate version adds a specific mandate for the Department of Human Resource Management to evaluate the impact of the new program on existing state employee leave policies.

TIMELINE

The start date for collecting contributions was moved forward from July 1, 2028, to April 1, 2028.

The start date for paying benefits to eligible individuals was moved forward from January 1, 2029, to December 1, 2028.

The deadline for the Virginia Employment Commission to finalize rules and regulations was moved forward from July 1, 2028, to April 1, 2028.

REQUIREMENT

A new requirement was added for the Department of Human Resource Management to evaluate the impact of the new leave program on existing state employee benefits and report findings to the Governor and General Assembly by October 1, 2026.

The requirement for a memorandum of understanding and data sharing between agencies was changed from a mandate to a possibility ('may establish') and the State Corporation Commission is now listed as a consultant rather than a primary partner.

The definition of 'Retaliatory personnel action' was slightly tightened to remove the phrase 'taking of any adverse action' and clarify that it includes interference with investigations.

The definition of 'Health care provider' was updated to change 'licensed clinical social workers' to 'licensed clinical social worker' and 'other providers permitted by the Commissioner' to 'other provider as determined by the Commissioner'.

DEFINITION

The definition of 'Private family leave insurance' was slightly shortened to remove a specific clause about meeting minimum requirements, which was moved to a new section clarifying when private policies count toward state obligations.

TECHNICAL

Minor grammatical and formatting corrections were made throughout the text, such as adding semicolons in lists and fixing spacing errors.

Subcommittee #2 Subcommittee Substitute → Appropriations Substitute · 9 edits

MAJOR

This bill was amended to shift the program's oversight from the Labor and Commerce Committee to the Appropriations Committee, reflecting a focus on funding. The changes clarify definitions to include the Virginia Employment Commission, adjust benefit calculation references to align with standard unemployment insurance terms, and update the timeline for state employee leave policies to include specific budgetary instructions for the Governor. Additionally, the bill expands the list of languages for public outreach and clarifies the certification process for various types of leave.

Scope change

The bill's scope of oversight shifted from the House Committee on Labor and Commerce to the House Committee on Appropriations, indicating a change in the legislative body responsible for reviewing the bill's financial implications.

SCOPE

The proposing committee was changed from the House Committee on Labor and Commerce to the House Committee on Appropriations.

DEFINITION

New definitions were added for 'Benefit year', 'Commission', and 'Commissioner' to clarify the program's timeline and administrative oversight.

The definition of 'Health care provider' was expanded to explicitly include licensed clinical social workers and other providers permitted by the Commissioner.

REQUIREMENT

The certification requirements for serious health conditions and family member care were simplified by removing the specific 60-90 day submission window, giving the Commission more flexibility in setting rules.

New provisions were added to allow self-employed individuals to receive benefits without a waiting period if they elect coverage within 26 weeks of becoming self-employed.

The calculation for weekly benefits was updated to reference the 'base period' defined in other sections rather than a fixed 12-month period.

A new subsection was added to ensure that deductions for this insurance do not cause an employee's wages to fall below the minimum wage required by law.

The list of languages required for public education outreach was reduced from nine specific languages to English, Spanish, and other languages spoken by more than five percent of the population.

TIMELINE

The requirement for the Department of Human Resource Management to update Commonwealth leave policies was updated to include instructions for the Governor to submit necessary funding in the budget bill.

Finance and Appropriations Substitute → Governor Substitute · 5 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended from a Senate Substitute to a Governor Substitute, primarily changing the document title and bill number while removing the newly added Chapter 8 (sections 60.2-800 through 60.2-821) that established the Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program. The Governor's version reverts the bill to its state before the Senate added the new program, effectively deleting the creation of the fund, benefit rules, and employer contribution requirements.

Scope change

The bill's scope was significantly reduced; the Governor's version no longer includes the new paid family and medical leave insurance program, whereas the Senate version established a comprehensive new program with specific benefits, funding, and eligibility rules.

SCOPE

Deleted the entire new Chapter 8 (sections 60.2-800 through 60.2-821) which created the Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program, including definitions, benefit amounts, eligibility criteria, and employer obligations.

FISCAL

Removed the creation of the 'Family and Medical Leave Insurance Trust Fund' and all provisions regarding payroll contributions, reimbursement, and fund management.

TIMELINE

Removed all specific implementation dates, including the start of benefit payments (January 1, 2029) and the start of contribution collection (April 1, 2028).

TECHNICAL

Changed the bill header from 'Senate Substitute' to 'House Substitute' and updated the bill number from 26109116D to 26110336D.

REQUIREMENT

Removed the requirement for the Department of Human Resource Management to align Commonwealth employee leave policies with the new state program.

Enrolled → Labor and Commerce Substitute · 2 edits

MINOR

The bill was converted from an Enrolled version (ready for signing) to a Labor and Commerce Substitute version, which is a revised draft offered for further consideration. The substantive policy text regarding paid family and medical leave remains largely the same, but the formatting was updated to include line numbers and draft headers, indicating this is not the final legal text.

Scope change

The bill's scope and applicability remain unchanged; the text describes the same insurance program, eligibility criteria, and employer obligations as the Enrolled version.

TECHNICAL

The document structure changed from a final 'Enrolled' format to a 'Draft' substitute format, adding line numbers and committee headers while removing the 'Approved' status.

Minor formatting adjustments were made to section headers and spacing to align with the substitute bill markup style.

Introduced → Enrolled · 3 edits · Mar 31, 2026

MINOR

The bill was successfully enacted into law, transitioning from a draft proposal to an official state statute. The primary substantive change is the addition of two new sections to the Virginia Insurance Code that define 'paid family and medical leave insurance' and 'private family leave insurance,' ensuring these new benefits are recognized as valid insurance products that licensed insurers can write.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded from a standalone chapter to include specific amendments to the Insurance Code, formally integrating the new paid leave program into the state's insurance regulatory framework.

TECHNICAL

Added new definitions for 'paid family and medical leave insurance' and 'private family leave insurance' to the Insurance Code to ensure the new program is legally recognized as an insurable product.

REQUIREMENT

Updated the list of insurance classes that insurers are authorized to write to explicitly include the new paid family and medical leave insurance.

Amended the policy filing requirements to ensure forms for the new paid leave insurance are submitted to and approved by the Virginia Employment Commission.

Commerce and Labor Substitute → Finance and Appropriations Substitute · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill was amended to change the Senate committee from Commerce and Labor to Finance and Appropriations, updating the bill number and amendment ID to reflect the new committee's jurisdiction. The substantive policy text regarding the paid family and medical leave program, including definitions, eligibility, benefits, and funding, remains unchanged.

Scope change

The bill's scope and applicability remain the same; only the administrative metadata regarding the sponsoring committee and bill identifiers were updated.

TECHNICAL

The committee proposing the substitute changed from 'Commerce and Labor' to 'Finance and Appropriations', and the bill number was updated from 26108995D to 26109116D.

The date of the proposed amendment was updated from March 2, 2026, to March 3, 2026.

The header text was corrected to remove a duplicate word ('Family') in the definition of 'Private family leave insurance'.

Appropriations Substitute → Commerce Agriculture & Natural Resources Subcommittee Substitute · 2 edits

MINOR

The bill was amended from an Appropriations Substitute to a Commerce, Agriculture, and Natural Resources Subcommittee Substitute, resulting in significant formatting cleanup and the addition of a bill tracking number. The substantive policy content, including eligibility rules, benefit amounts, funding mechanisms, and implementation timelines, remains unchanged.

TECHNICAL

Removed extraneous header text, blank lines, and placeholder dates to clean up the document formatting.

Added a bill tracking number (26107639D) and updated the header to reflect the new subcommittee substitute status.

Labor and Commerce Substitute → Subcommittee #2 Subcommittee Substitute · 1 edit

MINOR

The bill text was reformatted from a standard legislative layout to a 'House Substitute' version with added spacing and headers. The substantive policy content, including eligibility criteria, benefit amounts, funding mechanisms, and effective dates, remains unchanged.

TECHNICAL

The document structure was altered to include 'HOUSE SUBSTITUTE' headers and extra blank lines, likely reflecting an amendment process, but the actual legal text and policy provisions are identical to the previous version.

Paid family & med. leave insurance program; definitions, notice requirements, civil action, report.

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