This House resolution expresses support for designating the week of August 25 through August 31, 2026, as "Black Breastfeeding Week" to raise awareness about racial disparities in maternal and infant health. The bill highlights data showing that Black mothers face higher barriers to breastfeeding and experience significantly higher infant mortality rates compared to White mothers. It calls on Congress to support policies that provide affordable healthcare, paid parental leave, and safe workplace accommodations for nursing mothers. Additionally, the resolution urges lawmakers to address broader systemic issues such as housing, transportation, and economic opportunity to improve health outcomes in Black communities.
The Family Leave for Parental Involvement in Education Act amends the Family and Medical Leave Act to grant eligible private-sector employees up to 48 hours of unpaid leave per year to attend school conferences or activities for their children or grandchildren. This additional time is capped at 8 hours within any 30-day period and can be taken in intermittent blocks rather than all at once. Employers may require employees to use accrued paid vacation, personal, or sick leave instead of taking this unpaid time off. The bill also extends similar leave provisions to federal employees, allowing them to substitute accumulated annual or sick leave for the new parental involvement entitlements.
The Guaranteed Paid Vacation Act requires employers to provide covered employees with at least one hour of paid annual leave for every 25 hours worked, capped at a maximum of 80 hours per year. Employees may use this leave for any reason without disclosing the specific purpose, and they are permitted to carry over up to 40 unused hours to the following year. The bill prohibits employers from retaliating against workers who take this leave or from counting it as an absence under no-fault attendance policies. Enforcement is handled by the Department of Labor, which can investigate complaints and file lawsuits, while employees also have the right to sue in court for damages and attorney’s fees if their rights are violated.
The AI Tax and Work Protection Act imposes a new excise tax on companies that develop or sell artificial intelligence foundation models, with rates that increase based on the national unemployment level. The revenue generated from this tax is placed into a dedicated trust fund to finance a new federal jobs program administered by a newly created Office of Job Creation within the Department of Labor. This program awards grants to state, local, and tribal governments to hire permanent, full-time workers for specific public service roles, such as in education, healthcare, infrastructure, and community safety. To ensure the jobs created do not replace existing workers, the bill includes strict nondisplacement rules and mandates that grant recipients provide employees with strong labor protections, including collective bargaining rights, competitive wages, and paid leave. Additionally, the legislation directs the Bureau of Labor Statistics to study the impact of AI on the workforce and establishes an advisory committee to guide the implementation of the job creation initiatives.
This bill expands paid family and medical leave benefits for a wide range of federal workers, including those in the Executive Office of the President, the Postal Service, and the District of Columbia courts. It primarily increases the amount of paid leave available for specific events, such as the birth or adoption of a child, by allowing employees to take up to 26 workweeks of leave in total, which includes a separate 12-week portion for other family and medical needs. The legislation also clarifies that leave for adoption can begin before the child is placed with the family to support necessary pre-placement activities. Additionally, it updates the rules for various federal agencies to ensure their leave programs align with these new standards and covers employees who might have previously received different types of paid leave under separate laws.
The More Paid Leave for More Americans Act creates a federal grant program to help states establish or improve paid leave systems that offer up to six weeks of paid time off for reasons like illness, family care, or bonding. To receive funding, states must create a partnership with private entities to manage the program and agree to a national network that standardizes rules and technology across different states. The bill sets specific requirements for benefit amounts, such as providing at least 67 percent of an employee's weekly pay for low-income workers, and allows grants of up to $8 million per state to cover startup costs and ongoing operations. Additionally, the legislation authorizes funding for a national organization to build a shared technology system that helps workers apply for benefits regardless of which states they have worked in.
The Federal Workforce Reproductive Rights Protection Act prevents federal agencies from relocating headquarters or major operations to states with laws restricting or banning abortion, while also barring the use of funds to build or lease facilities in those locations. To support federal employees who need to access reproductive health care, the bill allows workers to decline transfers to restrictive states, grants up to 21 days of paid leave for travel to obtain such services, and provides reimbursement for travel costs without requiring disclosure of the specific medical procedure. Additionally, the legislation prohibits government agencies from investigating an employee's use of abortion services when reviewing security clearances or making personnel decisions and protects workers from retaliation if they exercise these new rights.
The Comprehensive Paid Leave for Federal Employees Act expands paid family and medical leave benefits for federal workers, including those in the Executive Office of the President, the Postal Service, and the District of Columbia courts. Key provisions increase the standard leave entitlement to 12 weeks plus any accrued annual or sick leave, while also extending coverage to include pregnancy loss, fertility issues, and failed adoptions. The bill specifically adds a new category of leave allowing employees to take time off to address the needs of family members who are victims of dating violence, domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, or sex trafficking. To fund this expanded coverage, the legislation requires employees to agree to work for a period equal to the time taken off, with exceptions made for death or serious health conditions.
The Child Care Modernization Act of 2026 updates federal rules to help states create flexible child care systems that offer parents more choices across different settings like homes, centers, and schools. It expands eligibility for assistance to include children of parents who are job seekers, students, or those receiving health treatment, while also raising the income limit for some families. The bill requires states to use cost-based models to set payment rates that cover provider expenses and mandates the creation of new grants to help build and expand child care facilities. Additionally, it establishes new reporting requirements to track how much families spend on care and measures progress on improving workforce quality and access.
The Holiday Pay Act requires employers covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act to pay at least one and a half times an employee's regular hourly rate for any work performed on a legal public holiday. This new requirement applies specifically to workers engaged in commerce or employed in enterprises involved in commerce, ensuring they receive overtime pay when working on recognized federal holidays. The bill also updates enforcement and legal definitions within the Fair Labor Standards Act to include "legal public holiday compensation" alongside existing minimum wage and overtime protections. Additionally, the law clarifies that this federal standard does not prevent states or localities from mandating higher pay rates for holiday work.
