State Paid Family Leave Laws Across the U.S.
The Brief
This page was last updated May 18, 2022.
Eleven states and the District of Columbia have enacted paid family leave (PFL) programs. These programs are active in California, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Washington, the District of Columbia, and Connecticut, while the programs in Oregon, Colorado, Maryland, and Delaware have yet to go into effect.
Most states at this point have adopted or considered paid family leave. In at least two states—New Hampshire and Vermont—paid family leave passed the legislature only to be vetoed by the governor. In New Hampshire, a voluntary program will take effect in January 2023. Other states are currently considering legislation that would provide paid family leave only for government employees. In 2021, North Dakota passed legislation banning cities and counties from enacting local paid family leave legislation.
The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) guarantees most workers at companies with at least 50 employees access to unpaid, job-protected parental, family caregiver, personal medical, and military exigency leave. Some states expanded job protection as part of their PFL program while others left job protection for leave-takers as it is under FMLA. For a full list of state-level job protection laws, see the State Family and Medical Leave and Job-Protection Laws explainer.
The map below shows the status of state-level PFL policies and programs, and the table outlines the basic features of the PFL programs that have been enacted.
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Status of PFL Laws
- States with no PFL legislation introduced
- PFL legislation introduced
- States with PFL laws, but programs are not yet active
- States with active PFL programs
- States with no PFL legislation introduced
- PFL legislation introduced
- States with PFL laws, but programs are not yet active
- States with active PFL programs
Alabama |
Alaska |
Arkansas |
Delaware |
Florida |
Idaho |
Kansas |
Kentucky |
Louisiana |
Maine |
Michigan |
Minnesota |
Mississippi |
Nevada |
New Hampshire |
North Carolina |
Ohio |
Pennsylvania |
Texas |
Utah |
West Virginia |
Wisconsin |
Wyoming |
South Dakota |
Alabama |
Arizona |
Georgia |
Hawaii |
Illinois |
Indiana |
Iowa |
Maryland |
Missouri |
Montana |
Nebraska |
New Mexico |
North Dakota |
Oklahoma |
South Carolina |
Tennessee |
Vermont |
Virginia |
Connecticut |
Oregon |
Colorado |
California |
New Jersey |
Rhode Island |
New York |
District Of Columbia |
Washington |
Massachusetts |
Features of State PFL Programs
Sources
California Employment Development Department (source, source)
Small Business Majority
New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development
Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training (source, source, source)
New York Paid Family Leave
DC Department of Employment Services
Washington Employment Security Department
Revised Code of Washington
Massachusetts Department of Family and Medical Leave
Newfront
Connecticut Paid Leave
Oregon Employment Department
Colorado Proposition 118
Washington City Paper
Maryland General Assembly
Delaware General Assembly
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