Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
Act 885 of the Regular Session
Act 885 of the Regular Session
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State of Arkansas As Engrossed: S3/17/25 H4/3/25 1
95th General Assembly A Bill 2
Regular Session, 2025 SENATE BILL 241 3
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By: Senator J. Scott 5
By: Representatives Pilkington, Clowney, Wooldridge 6
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For An Act To Be Entitled 8
AN ACT TO AMEND THE UNIFORM ATTENDANCE AND LEAVE 9
POLICY ACT; TO GRANT PAID LEAVE TO PUBLIC EMPLOYEES 10
IN THE EVENT OF THE DEATH OF A PUBLIC EMPLOYEE'S 11
FAMILY MEMBER OR CHILD; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES. 12
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Subtitle 15
TO AMEND THE UNIFORM ATTENDANCE AND 16
LEAVE POLICY ACT; AND TO GRANT PAID 17
LEAVE TO PUBLIC EMPLOYEES IN THE EVENT 18
OF THE DEATH OF A PUBLIC EMPLOYEE'S 19
FAMILY MEMBER OR CHILD. 20
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS: 22
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SECTION 1. Arkansas Code § 21-5-214, as amended by Acts 2025, No. 205, 24
is amended to read as follows: 25
21-4-214. Catastrophic leave program — Definition. 26
(a)(1) The Department of Shared Administrative Services shall have 27
administrative responsibility for developing, implementing, and maintaining 28
the statewide catastrophic leave bank program. 29
(2)(A) Each state agency shall participate in a catastrophic 30
leave bank to be administered by the Office of Personnel Management. 31
(B) The following governmental entities may establish a 32
catastrophic leave bank for the governmental entities' employees: 33
(i) The General Assembly; 34
(ii) The Bureau of Legislative Research; 35
(iii) Arkansas Legislative Audit; 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 H4/3/25 SB241
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(iv) The Arkansas Department of Transportation; 1
(v) The Arkansas State Game and Fish Commission; 2
(vi) The Supreme Court; 3
(vii) The Court of Appeals; 4
(viii) The Administrative Office of the Courts; 5
(ix) A constitutional office; and 6
(x) An institution of higher education. 7
(b) Accrued annual leave and sick leave of employees may be donated to 8
a catastrophic leave bank. 9
(c)(1) Catastrophic leave with pay may be granted to an employee when 10
the employee is unable to perform his or her duties due to : 11
(A) a A catastrophic illness, including maternity 12
purposes.; or 13
(B) The death of an immediate family member . 14
(2)(A) As used in this section, "immediate family member" means 15
the father, mother, sister, brother, husband, wife, child, grandmother, 16
grandfather, grandchild, in -laws, or any individual acting as parent or 17
guardian of the employee. 18
(B) As used in subdivision (c)(2)(A) of this section, 19
"child" means: 20
(i) A biological child; 21
(ii) An unborn child; 22
(iii) A stepchild; 23
(iv) An adoptive child; or 24
(v) A child in foster care who has been placed in 25
the home of the employee. 26
(d) An employee may be eligible for catastrophic leave when: 27
(1)(A) The employee has been employed by the state for one (1) 28
year or more or was previously employed by a public school district or state -29
supported institution of higher education for one (1) year or more. 30
(B) A person who was employed by a public school district 31
or state-supported institution of higher education for less than one (1) year 32
also is eligible for catastrophic leave if: 33
(i) The person's combined years of employment with 34
the state and with a public school district or state -supported institution of 35
higher education totals more than one (1) year; and 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 H4/3/25 SB241
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(ii) The lapse in the person's employment between the 1
state and a public school district or state -supported institution of higher 2
education is less than six (6) months; 3
(2) The employee is female, and the catastrophic leave is to be 4
used for maternity purposes after: 5
(A) The birth of the employee's biological child; 6
(B) The placement of an adoptive child under one (1) year 7
of age in the home of the employee; or 8
(C) The foster placement of an infant under one (1) year 9
of age; 10
(3)(A) At the onset of the illness or injury the employee had to 11
his or her credit at least eighty (80) hours of combined sick and annual 12
leave and has exhausted all such leave, unless the combined sick and annual 13
leave requirement is waived under subdivision (d)(3)(B) of this section. 14
(B) A state agency director or a president of an 15
institution of higher education may waive the minimum eighty -hour requirement 16
for combined sick and annual leave if the agency director determines that the 17
employee warrants eligibility because of extraordinary circumstances under 18
the standards and guidelines promulgated under subdivision (g)(2) (h)(2) of 19
this section; 20
(C)(i) An employee on catastrophic leave for maternity 21
purposes or for the death of an immediate family member is not required to 22
exhaust sick or annual leave before being granted catastrophic leave. 23
(ii) An employee on catastrophic leave for maternity 24
purposes or for the death of an immediate family member does not accrue any 25
leave; 26
(4) An acceptable medical certificate from a the treating 27
physician or acceptable documentation of the death of an immediate family 28
member supporting the continued absence is on file; and 29
(5) The employee has not been disciplined for any leave abuse 30
during the past year from the time of application. 31
(e)(1) Up to twelve (12) consecutive weeks of catastrophic leave with 32
full pay may be granted to an employee for maternity purposes. 33
(2) The employee shall be eligible for the leave only within the 34
first twelve (12) weeks after the birth, fostering, or adoption of a child. 35
(3) After the expiration of the twelve (12) weeks of leave under 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 H4/3/25 SB241
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subdivision (e)(1) of this section, maternity leave shall be treated as any 1
other leave for sickness or disability under § 21 -4-209. 2
(4) Catastrophic leave for maternity purposes shall run 3
concurrently with the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, Pub. L. No. 103 -4
3. 5
(5) The employee shall not be eligible for an additional twelve 6
(12) weeks of leave for the adoption of a child if the employee took twelve 7
(12) weeks of leave after the initial foster placement of the same child into 8
the employee's home. 9
(f)(1)(A) If the administrator of a catastrophic leave program elects 10
to grant catastrophic leave to an employee under subsection (c)(1)(B) of this 11
section, the employee shall be eligible for up to forty (40) hours of 12
catastrophic leave with pay each calendar year for the death of an immediate 13
family member. 14
(B) An employee shall be eligible for leave under 15
subdivision (f)(1) of this section only within the first four (4) weeks after 16
the death of an immediate family member. 17
(C) After the expiration of the forty (40) hours of leave 18
under subdivision (f)(1) of this section, an employee may use his or her 19
accrued sick leave for the death of an immediate family member. 20
(2) Catastrophic leave for the death of an immediate family 21
member under subdivision (f)(1) of this section shall run concurrently with 22
leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, Pub. L. No. 103 -3, if 23
applicable. 24
(3)(A) Unused catastrophic leave granted under this subsection 25
shall not be carried over to the next calendar year. 26
(B) Upon termination or retirement, catastrophic leave 27
granted under this subsection is not compensable to the employee. 28
(f)(g) If the illness or injury is that of an employee and is covered 29
by workers' compensation, the compensation based on catastrophic leave when 30
combined with the weekly workers' compensation benefit received by the 31
employee shall not exceed the compensation being received by the employee at 32
the onset of the illness or injury. 33
(g)(h) The Secretary of the Department of Shared Administrative 34
Services, or the secretary's designee, shall establish policies and 35
procedures: 36 As Engrossed: S3/17/25 H4/3/25 SB241
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(1) As deemed necessary to carry out the provisions of this 1
section; and 2
(2) To prescribe the standards and guidelines of the 3
extraordinary circumstances that the state agency director or the president 4
of an institution of higher education may use to waive the minimum 5
requirement for combined sick and annual leave. 6
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/s/J. Scott 8
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APPROVED: 4/18/25 11
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