Committee delays implementation dates for family leave program, keeps policy framework intact

The Economic Matters Committee voted to approve House Bill 102 as amended, which delays multiple implementation dates for the State’s family leave program and preserves the program’s overall statutory structure while directing the Department of Labor to complete regulations and actuarial work before contributions and benefits begin.

Under the amendment approved by the committee, the secretary of labor must adopt regulations by July 1, 2027, establishing an optional self-employed enrollment program and setting contribution amounts, benefit amounts and enrollment procedures. The amendment pushes contributions back 18 months: payroll withholding would begin Jan. 1, 2027 (moved from July of the earlier calendar year) and employer remittance would begin in April 2027. Weekly benefit payments were pushed back approximately 18 months as well, from a prior July 1, 2026 target to January 2028 in the amended timeline. The bill also defines an anchor date for wage and benefit…