Florida SB 220: Taxation of Affordable Housing

Bill Text

220 
Paid Parental Leave 
2025-10-17T04:25:24Z 
Defining the term “paid parental leave”; requiring the state to provide paid parental leave to certain employees for a specified period of time; prohibiting the state from requiring that an employee use his or her annual or sick leave for paid parental leave; providing that the employee is entitled to accumulate specified benefits during such leave, etc. 
Original Filed Version 
2026 
S 
2026-07-01T00:00:00Z 
GB 
General Bill 
__ 

 Florida Senate - 2026 SB 220 

 By Senator Smith 

 17-00356-26 2026220__ 
 1 A bill to be entitled 
 2 An act relating to paid parental leave; amending s. 
 3 110.221, F.S.; defining the term “paid parental 
 4 leave”; requiring the state to provide paid parental 
 5 leave to certain employees for a specified period of 
 6 time; prohibiting the state from requiring that an 
 7 employee use his or her annual or sick leave for paid 
 8 parental leave; providing that the employee is 
 9 entitled to accumulate specified benefits during such 
 10 leave; prohibiting the state from refusing to grant 
 11 such leave; providing an effective date. 
 12 
 13 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 
 14 
 15 Section 1. Section 110.221, Florida Statutes, is amended to 
 16 read: 
 17 110.221 Parental or family medical leave.— 
 18 (1) As used in this section, the term: 
 19 (a) “Family” means a child, parent, or spouse., and the 
 20 term 
 21 (b) “Family medical leave” means leave requested by an 
 22 employee for a serious family illness including an accident, 
 23 disease, or condition that poses imminent danger of death, 
 24 requires hospitalization involving an organ transplant, limb 
 25 amputation, or other procedure of similar severity, or any 
 26 mental or physical condition that requires constant in-home 
 27 care. 
 28 (c) “Paid parental leave” means fully paid leave for the 
 29 father or mother of a child who is born to or adopted by that 
 30 parent. 
 31 (d) The term “Parental leave” means leave for the father or 
 32 mother of a child who is born to or adopted by that parent. 
 33 (2) The state shall provide 12 weeks of paid parental leave 
 34 to any employee in the career service following the birth or 
 35 adoption of a child by the employee. The state may not require 
 36 such employee to use his or her annual leave or sick leave 
 37 during the initial 12-week period. The employee is entitled to 
 38 accumulate all benefits granted under paid leave status. 
 39 (3) The state may shall not: 
 40 (a) Terminate the employment of any employee in the career 
 41 service because of the pregnancy of the employee or the 
 42 employee’s spouse or the adoption of a child by that employee. 
 43 (b) Refuse to grant to a career service employee: 
 44 1. Paid parental leave; or 
 45 2. Parental or family medical leave without pay for a 
 46 period not to exceed 6 months. Such leave shall commence on a 
 47 date that is determined by the employee in consultation with the 
 48 attending physician following notification to the employer in 
 49 writing, and that is approved by the employer. 
 50 (c) Deny a career service employee the use of and payment 
 51 for annual leave credits for parental or family medical leave. 
 52 Such leave shall commence on a date determined by the employee 
 53 in consultation with the attending physician following 
 54 notification to the employer in writing. 
 55 (d) Deny a career service employee the use of and payment 
 56 for accrued sick leave or family sick leave for any reason 
 57 deemed necessary by a physician or as established by policy. 
 58 (e) Require that a career service employee take a mandatory 
 59 parental or family medical leave. 
 60 (4)(3) Upon returning at the end of parental or family 
 61 medical leave of absence, such employee shall be reinstated to 
 62 the same job or to an equivalent position with equivalent pay 
 63 and with seniority, retirement, fringe benefits, and other 
 64 service credits accumulated prior to the leave period. If any 
 65 portion of the parental or family medical leave is paid leave, 
 66 the employee shall be entitled to accumulate all benefits 
 67 granted under paid leave status. 
 68 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026.