This bill would create a federal paid leave program allowing employees to take up to 96 hours of paid time off each year for reproductive health needs, including menstrual care, endometriosis, fertility treatments, and pregnancy-related procedures. It applies to private employers with at least five employees and certain government workers, requiring employers to grant this leave upon request without requiring employees to find replacements during their absence. The legislation prohibits retaliation against employees who use this leave and establishes enforcement mechanisms through the Department of Labor, including civil penalties for violations. Employers with existing paid leave policies that already cover these reproductive health reasons would not need to provide additional leave under this bill.
The Caring for All Families Act expands family medical leave eligibility under the FMLA to include domestic partners, adult children, children of domestic partners, and extended family members such as grandparents, grandchildren, siblings, and in-laws. It also adds new "parental involvement and family wellness" leave allowing employees to attend school activities for their children/grandchildren or meet routine medical needs for themselves, their children, spouse/domestic partner, or elderly individuals with family-like relationships. Employees may take up to 4 hours per 30-day period or 24 hours per year for these purposes, with the leave being in addition to existing FMLA protections. This bill directly affects private sector employees covered by the FMLA and federal employees, broadening who qualifies for leave and expanding leave purposes to include family wellness activities.
This bill requires the Secretary of Defense to create regulations within 180 days that exempt active-duty military members taking parental leave (over 31 consecutive days) from performance evaluations during that leave period. It directly affects service members using the expanded 12-week paid parental leave for birth, adoption, or placement of a child. The key provision mandates that members can take this leave without needing special waivers from their commanding officer, addressing inconsistent current policies across military branches. The bill also aims to reduce paperwork burdens by allowing leave use within a two-year window after the birth or adoption event. These changes implement a 2022 policy expansion to ensure military parents aren't penalized for taking leave.
HR 4029 increases federal Medicaid funding for home and community-based services (HCBS) by raising the Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) by 10 points for eligible states during 2026-2027, capping at 95%. It directly affects states that submit approved applications and their Medicaid beneficiaries receiving HCBS, requiring funds to boost pay for home health workers (including hazard pay and paid leave), reduce waiting lists, and support family caregivers. States must use funds to supplement, not replace, existing state spending, improve worker retention, and expand services for those on waiting lists or relocated from homes to institutions. All states must report outcomes by December 2029, including service access metrics and workforce improvements.
HR 4351 amends the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) to shorten the employment duration required for spouses of active-duty military members to qualify for leave. It reduces the qualifying time from 12 months to 90 calendar days with the employer. This change directly affects spouses of service members on covered active duty, making it easier for them to access FMLA leave for their partner’s military service. The bill achieves this by revising the FMLA’s definition of "eligible employee" to include this new 90-day requirement for military spouses.
Living Donor Protection Act of 2025 This bill prohibits life insurance, disability insurance, and long-term insurance carriers from denying or otherwise restricting coverage for living organ donors. Specifically, carriers may not deny, cancel, vary premiums, or otherwise impose conditions on policies based on an individual's status as a living organ donor. The bill also expressly specifies that recovery from organ-donation surgery constitutes a serious health condition that entitles eligible employees to job-protected medical leave. In addition, the Department of Health and Human Services must update educational materials on living organ donation to include information about the benefits and risks of living organ donation and the impact of donation on insurance access, particularly with respect to the bill's changes.
This bill amends the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) to clarify that RFRA does not block enforcement of key federal laws protecting civil rights and safety. Specifically, it adds an exception preventing RFRA claims from overriding laws that prohibit discrimination (like the Civil Rights Act of 1964), ensure workplace protections (such as the Family and Medical Leave Act), prevent child exploitation, or guarantee healthcare access. The amendment ensures religious freedom arguments cannot be used to challenge these existing legal requirements. It also clarifies that RFRA does not apply to lawsuits against government entities seeking relief for violations of these protections.
The HCBS Relief Act of 2025 increases federal funding for Medicaid home and community-based services (HCBS) by 10 percentage points (capped at 95%) for participating states during fiscal years 2026-2027. It directly affects states that submit approved applications, Medicaid beneficiaries receiving HCBS, and home health workers by requiring states to use funds to raise wages/benefits for HCBS workers, reduce waiting lists, support family caregivers, and improve service quality. Key provisions mandate that states detail specific activities (like wage increases, paid leave, and equipment purchases) in applications, ensure funds supplement rather than replace state spending, and report on outcomes by 2029. The bill aims to strengthen HCBS access and workforce stability without changing Medicaid eligibility rules.
The MIL FMLA Act expands the Family and Medical Leave Act to provide military families with additional leave options. It allows eligible employees to take up to 26 workweeks of leave during a 12-month period to care for a covered servicemember (active duty member or veteran), regardless of the employee's family relationship to the servicemember. The bill adds new definitions to include domestic partners, grandparents, siblings, and other extended family members as eligible caregivers, and creates a new "veteran leave" provision for employees who are covered servicemembers needing leave due to service-related serious injury or illness. These changes aim to better support military families by providing more comprehensive leave options for caregiving needs related to military service.
HR 1753 creates two new tax credits to support local journalism and small businesses. It offers a 80% credit (up to $5,000) for eligible small businesses (with <50 full-time employees) that advertise in qualifying local media like community newspapers or FCC-licensed radio/TV stations, reducing to 50% ($2,500 max) after the first year. A separate credit provides 50% (then 30%) of wages paid to local news journalists (at least 200 hours quarterly) for employers whose primary income comes from local newspaper publishing, capped at $12,500 per journalist per quarter. Both credits expire after 5 years and require strict definitions of "local" media to qualify, including having in-community journalists and limiting corporate ownership. The bill directly affects small local news publishers and qualifying small businesses seeking tax relief for local advertising and journalism staffing.
