ST. PAUL – Sen. Julia Coleman, R-Waconia, and Rep. Jordan Rasmusson, R-Fergus Falls, on Monday introduced a paid family and medical leave proposal which expands access and provides tax incentives to businesses which offer the benefit to their employees.
“We have heard from Minnesotans about the need to ensure more Minnesotans have access to paid family and medical leave. Businesses want to offer their employees more, and families need more help. Our proposal meets both needs,” Coleman said. “It will expand the availability of paid leave across Minnesota, particularly for those who work for small businesses. Businesses can provide a competitive benefit that suits their work force, and families will have more options to care for their loved ones in a time of need.”
The proposal has two main components. First, it will create an insurance product to provide for paid family and medical leave insurance. Currently, this product is not allowed under Minnesota law and businesses self-finance their paid family and medical leave offerings. By creating this product, more businesses will be able to use insurance to finance a leave offering and the offering will be directly suited to the needs of families. Unlike the one-size-fits-all government run program proposed by Democrats, this bill allows businesses and insurers to develop customized products to give more flexibility to families and employers.
The second component provides a tax incentive to businesses with fewer than 50 employees to offer paid family and medical leave. The bill currently includes a cap of $50 million in tax credits but could be expanded in future years if more businesses decide to participate. Businesses would receive a tax credit of up to $3,000 per employee enrolled. Small businesses employ nearly half of all working Minnesotans, and many of them have struggled to finance a paid leave benefit for their employees. Offering a tax credit will help more businesses offer paid leave to more Minnesotans.
“One of the strongest features of this program is that it is flexible and helps private businesses do what they do best,” Rasmusson said. “We don’t need a new government bureaucracy financed by a large tax increase accompanied with stringent mandates and penalties to provide paid leave. More Minnesotans will have paid family and medical leave if we work together to get this done.”
Coleman’s bill was scheduled for a hearing on Monday afternoon in the Senate Commerce Committee. Coleman said she expects the bill to make it to the floor for a vote by the entire Senate.
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