House labor committee hears agency concerns and support for Senate Bill 87 on extended leave for newborns with 'diversidad funcional'

Ángel Peña Ramírez, presidente Protempore of the House Commission on Labor and Labor Relations, opened a committee hearing on Senate Bill 87 and invited agency testimony on the bill that would extend parental leave when a newborn is diagnosed with a condition described in the measure as "diversidad funcional."

The Department of Labor and Human Resources (Departamento del Trabajo y Recursos Humanos, DTRH), represented at the hearing by Reinaldo Santiago González, urged the committee to include clear criteria and definitions in the bill to determine when a newborn qualifies as having a "diversidad funcional." "La Ley Orgánica del Departamento del Trabajo establece que la secretaria del trabajo tiene el deber ministerial de promover el bienestar de los trabajadores y mejorar mejorar sus condiciones de vida," Santiago González said while explaining the department's focus on ensuring the bill is administrable across public and private employment sectors.

Fabiola Plaza Rivera, appearing for the Office of the Procuradora de la Mujer on behalf of Procuradora Astrid Piñeiro Vázquez, said the office favors the bill as a way to give families time to address care needs and recommended specific textual changes. "El proyecto del senado 87 amplía la licencia de maternidad en 2 semanas y otorga 10 días de licencia de paternidad a los servidores públicos," Plaza Rivera said, adding that the office recommended clarifying language in the proposed insertion to section 9.1 of Article 9 of Law 8 of 2017 and proposing supportive programs for parents of children with diverse care needs.

Committee members and witnesses stressed differences between existing statutes governing private-sector and public-sector leave. Witnesses noted that existing federal-style leave protections discussed in the hearing (referred to in testimony as the Family Medical Leave Act) typically apply in the private sector only to employers with at least 50 employees, an applicability gap the DTRH asked the committee to consider when drafting the bill.

Several participants urged the committee to harmonize the bill's language with earlier Puerto Rico statutes mentioned during testimony, including Law 3 of 1942 (mothers in industrial employment), Law 8 of 2017, Law 238 of 2004 (Carta de Derechos de las Personas con Impedimento), and Law 250 of 2012, and to review prior proposals such as PDC 1807 that sought to replace terms like "impedimento" with "diversidad funcional." Reinaldo Santiago González asked that the committee solicit additional technical comments from the Department of Justice; the chair said the committee expected to receive those comments within five days.

Representative Denis Márquez urged caution about immediate implementation at birth, noting the diagnostic process for many conditions can require extended evaluation. "La determinación de que un niño o una niña que tenga diversidad funcional, pues, va en múltiples ocasiones requiere un conjunto de prueba. No se puede terminar a simple vista," Márquez said, and suggested bringing medical specialists to the table to advise on realistic timelines for diagnosis and certification.

The committee did not take any votes. Members directed staff to gather outstanding agency comments — including those from the Department of Justice and the agencies identified as OGP and AFF in testimony — and signaled intent to continue refining the language so the measure can be administrable in both public and private employment contexts.

The hearing record shows agency preference for a medical-certification requirement to establish eligibility and multiple calls to clarify whether the bill's additional leave would be paid or unpaid in each sector. No final statutory changes were adopted at the hearing; committee members concluded by asking for written comments and technical recommendations to be filed with the commission before further action.