Paid Leave Oregon: state reports broad early takeup, $931 average weekly benefit and healthy trust fund reserve

Karen Hummelba, director of Paid Leave Oregon at the Oregon Employment Department, briefed the Senate Committee on Early Childhood and Behavioral Health Tuesday on the new paid‑leave program and bonding (parental) leave statistics.

Hummelba said the program began accepting claims in September 2023 and provides up to 12 weeks of paid leave in a benefit year for qualifying events (medical leave, family leave, bonding leave, safe leave and pre‑placement leave for prospective adoptive or foster parents). Birthing parents with pregnancy‑related limitations may receive up to 14 weeks. Benefit years begin on a claimant’s first day of leave.

The program is funded by payroll contributions; by statute the contribution rate cannot exceed 1 percent of an employee’s gross wages. For the 2025 rate year the contribution rate is set at 1 percent, applied up to the Social Security wage base. Hummelba said the trust fund has about 6.7 months of reserves and is incrementally increasing;

To date the department has recorded more than 191,000 identity‑verified applications. Bonding claims — leave taken to bond with a child after birth, adoption or foster placement — currently make up about 27 percent of claims (Hummelba said bonding was higher in the program’s earliest months and has settled near 27 percent). Claimants take an average of 10.5 weeks of leave; the average weekly benefit for bonding claims is $931. Hummelba said bonding payments to date account for roughly half of total benefit dollars paid (the department reported about $930 million in benefits paid across all leave types to date).

Eligibility requires employment in Oregon, at least $1,000 in earnings in the prior year, contribution to the trust fund and a qualifying event. Medical documentation is required for family and medical leave claims. Workers are generally expected to provide 30 days’ advance notice for planned leave.

Hummelba described outreach efforts focused on health‑care providers, community organizations and employers; the department also coordinates with the Bureau of Labor and Industries on workplace notice requirements. Committee members asked about fiscal solvency and the program’s outreach; Hummelba said the fund is being monitored monthly and current indicators show steady reserves and stable claim and cost patterns.

Ending: Committee members praised the program’s early uptake and noted it has changed how families use leave; lawmakers also raised remaining questions about long‑term provider effects and continued monitoring of fund health.