HB 721 2023
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to paid family leave insurance; 2
providing a short title; amending s. 624.406, F.S.; 3
authorizing life insurers to transact paid family 4
leave insurance; amending s. 624.6011, F.S.; revising 5
the definition of the term "kinds of insurance" to 6
include paid family leave insurance; creating s. 7
624.6086, F.S.; defining terms; creating s. 627.445, 8
F.S.; providing a short title; providing legislative 9
findings and intent; defining terms; specifying 10
circumstances under which family leave benefits may be 11
provided; requiring paid family leave insurance 12
policies to specify details and requirements with 13
regard to covered family leave reasons; specifying 14
requirements for policies relating to benefit periods, 15
waiting periods, benefit amounts and certain offsets, 16
and the payment of benefits; providing that 17
eligibility for family leave benefits may be limited, 18
excluded, or reduced but must be specified in the 19
policy; specifying permissible limitations, 20
exclusions, and reductions; providing applicable 21
provisions for calculating rates; specifying the means 22
by which a policy may offer family leave benefits; 23
authorizing the Financial Services Commission to adopt 24
rules; providing an effective date. 25
HB 721 2023
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 27
28
Section 1. This act may be cited as the "Florida Paid 29
Family Leave Insurance Act." 30
Section 2. Subsection (1) of section 624.406, Florida 31
Statutes, is amended to read: 32
624.406 Combinations of insuring powers, one insurer. —An 33
insurer which otherwise qualifies therefor may be authorized to 34
transact any one kind or combination of kinds of insurance as 35
defined in part V except: 36
(1) A life insurer may also gra nt annuities, but shall not 37
be authorized to transact any other kind of insurance except 38
health insurance, disability income insurance, paid family leave 39
insurance, excess coverage for health maintenance organizations, 40
or excess insurance, specific and agg regate, for self-insurers 41
of a plan of health insurance and multiple -employer welfare 42
arrangements. 43
Section 3. Subsection (8) is added to section 624.6011, 44
Florida Statutes, to read: 45
624.6011 "Kinds of insurance" defined. —Insurance shall be 46
classified into the following "kinds of insurance": 47
(8) Paid family leave. 48
Section 4. Section 624.6086, Florida Statutes, is created 49
to read: 50
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
624.6086 "Paid family leave insurance" defined. — 51
(1) "Paid family leave insurance" is insurance issued to 52
an employer which is related to a benefit program provided to an 53
employee to pay for a percentage or portion of the employee's 54
income loss due to: 55
(a) The birth of a child or adoption of a child by the 56
employee; 57
(b) Placement of a child with the employee for foster 58
care; 59
(c) Care of the employee's family member who has a serious 60
health condition; or 61
(d) Circumstances arising out of the fact that the 62
employee's family member who is a servicemember is on active 63
duty or has been notified of an impending call or order to 64
active duty. 65
(2) Family leave insurance may be written as an amendment 66
or a rider to a group disability income policy, included in a 67
group disability income policy, or written as a separate group 68
insurance policy purchased by an employer. 69
(3) As used in this section, the terms "child," "family 70
leave," and "family member" have the same meanings as provided 71
in s. 627.445(3). 72
Section 5. Section 627.445, Florida Statutes, is created 73
to read: 74
627.445 Paid family leave insurance. — 75
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
(1) SHORT TITLE.—This section may be cited as the "Paid 76
Family Leave Income Replacement Benefits Act." 77
(2) LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS AND INTENT. —The Legislature 78
intends to provide the workers of this family -friendly state 79
with access to paid family leave insurance to encourage an 80
entrepreneurial atmosphere, to encourage economic growth, and to 81
promote a healthy business climate. Many workers need to take 82
time off work for family reasons, including bonding with a new 83
child or caring for an ill family member. Increasing ly, 84
employers in this state want to make paid leave benefits 85
available to workers who need time off for these reasons. 86
Employers recognize workers will be healthier and more 87
productive when able to take care of family responsibilities 88
without a complete lo ss of income, and employers believe that 89
offering paid family leave benefits to their employees will 90
improve recruitment opportunities and reduce turnover in the 91
workplace. Disability insurers currently offer income 92
replacement benefits to workers who need time off from work 93
because of their own disabling medical condition. Disability 94
insurers have extensive experience, claims staff, systems, and 95
expertise that can be used to provide fully insured paid family 96
leave benefits for employees, either through emp loyer-sponsored 97
group insurance policies or voluntarily purchased employee 98
policies. It is in the best interests of this state's workers 99
and employers to permit disability insurers to expand their 100
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
fully insured benefits in this state to include paid family 101
leave benefits. 102
(3) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term: 103
(a) "Armed Forces of the United States" includes members 104
of the National Guard and the reserves. 105
(b) "Child" means a person who is: 106
1. Under 18 years of age, or 18 years of age or older and 107
incapable of self-care because of a mental or physical 108
disability; and 109
2. A biological, adopted, or foster son or daughter; a 110
stepson or stepdaughter; a legal ward; or a son or daughter of a 111
person to whom the employee stands in loco parentis. 112
(c) "Family leave" is any leave taken by an employee from 113
work for any of the reasons specified in subsection (4). 114
(d) "Family member" includes a child, spouse, or parent, 115
or other person defined as a family member in the policy. 116
(e) "Health care pr ovider" means any physician, hospital, 117
or other institution, organization, or person that furnishes 118
health care services and is licensed or otherwise authorized to 119
practice in this state. 120
(f) "Parent" means a biological, foster, or adoptive 121
parent; a stepparent; a legal guardian; or other person who 122
stood in loco parentis to the employee when the employee was a 123
child. 124
(g) "Serious health condition" means an illness, injury, 125
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impairment, or physical or mental condition, including 126
transplantation preparati on and recovery from surgery related to 127
organ or tissue donation, which involves inpatient care in a 128
hospital, hospice, or residential health care facility; 129
continuing treatment; or continuing supervision by a health care 130
provider as defined in the policy. Continuing supervision by a 131
health care provider includes a period of incapacity which is 132
permanent or long-term due to a condition for which treatment 133
may not be effective and where the family member need not be 134
receiving active treatment by a health car e provider. 135
(4) FAMILY LEAVE BENEFITS. —Family leave benefits may be 136
provided for any leave taken by an employee from work to: 137
(a) Participate in providing care, including physical or 138
psychological care, for a family member of the employee made 139
necessary by a serious health condition of the family member; 140
(b) Bond with the employee's child during the first 12 141
months after the child's birth or the first 12 months after the 142
placement of the child for adoption by or foster care with the 143
employee; 144
(c) Address a qualifying exigency as interpreted under the 145
Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, 29 U.S.C. s. 2612(a)(1)(E) 146
and 29 C.F.R. s. 825.126(a)(1) -(8), arising out of the fact that 147
the spouse, child, or parent of the employee is on active duty 148
or has been notified of an impending call or order to active 149
duty, in the Armed Forces of the United States; 150
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
(d) Care for a family servicemember injured in the line of 151
duty; or 152
(e) Take other leave to provide care for a family member 153
or other family leave as spe cified in the policy. 154
(5) EXPLANATION OF FAMILY LEAVE REASONS. —The policy must 155
specify details and requirements with regard to each of the 156
covered family leave reasons. 157
(6) BENEFIT PERIOD. —The policy must specify the length of 158
family leave benefits ava ilable for each covered family leave 159
reason, which may not be less than 2 weeks during a period of 52 160
consecutive calendar weeks. For purposes of this subsection, 52 161
consecutive calendar weeks may be calculated by: 162
(a) A calendar year; 163
(b) Any fixed period starting on a particular date, such 164
as the effective or anniversary date; 165
(c) The period measured forward from the employee's first 166
day of family leave; 167
(d) A rolling period measured by looking back from the 168
employee's first day of family leave; or 169
(e) Any other method specified in the policy. 170
(7) WAITING PERIOD. —The policy must specify whether there 171
is an unpaid waiting period, and if so, the terms and conditions 172
of the unpaid waiting period, which may include, but are not 173
limited to, whether: 174
(a) The waiting period runs over a consecutive calendar 175
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
day period; 176
(b) The waiting period is counted toward the annual 177
allotment of family leave benefits or is in addition to the 178
annual allotment of family leave benefits; 179
(c) The waiting period must be met only once per benefit 180
year or must be met for each separate claim for benefits; and 181
(d) The employee may work or receive paid time off or 182
other compensation by the employer during the waiting period. 183
(8) AMOUNT OF FAMILY LEAVE BENEFITS; OTH ER INCOME.— 184
(a) The policy must specify: 185
1. The amount of benefits that will be paid for covered 186
family reasons; 187
2. The definition of the wages or other income upon which 188
the amount of family leave benefits will be issued; and 189
3. How such wages or other income will be calculated. 190
(b) If the family leave benefits are subject to offsets 191
for wages or other income received or for which the insured may 192
be eligible, the policy must specify all such wages or other 193
income that may be set off and the circu mstances under which it 194
may be offset. 195
(9) PERMISSIBLE LIMITATIONS, EXCLUSIONS, OR REDUCTIONS. —196
Eligibility for family leave benefits under this section may be 197
limited, excluded, or reduced, but any limitation, exclusion, or 198
reduction must be specified in the policy. Permissible 199
limitations, exclusions, or reductions may include, but are not 200
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
limited to, any of the following reasons: 201
(a) For any period of family leave wherein the required 202
notice and medical certification as prescribed in the policy has 203
not been provided; 204
(b) For any family leave related to a serious health 205
condition or other harm to a family member brought about by the 206
willful intention of the employee; 207
(c) For any period of family leave during which the 208
employee performed work for rem uneration or profit; 209
(d) For any period of family leave for which the employee 210
is eligible to receive from his or her employer, or from a fund 211
to which the employer has contributed, remuneration or 212
maintenance; 213
(e) For any period of family leave in whi ch the employee 214
is eligible to receive benefits under any other statutory 215
program or employer-sponsored program, including, but not 216
limited to, unemployment insurance benefits, workers' 217
compensation benefits, statutory disability benefits, statutory 218
paid leave benefits, or any paid time off or employer's paid 219
leave policy; 220
(f) For any period of family leave commencing before the 221
employee becomes eligible for family leave benefits under the 222
policy; or 223
(g) For periods of family leave where more than one p erson 224
seeks family leave for the same family member. 225
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
(10) PAYMENT OF FAMILY LEAVE BENEFITS. —Family leave 226
benefits provided under this section must be paid periodically 227
and promptly, except as to a contested period of family leave 228
and subject to any of th e limitations, exclusions, or reductions 229
under subsection (9). 230
(11) INSURANCE POLICY. — 231
(a) Rates for policies or riders providing paid family 232
leave benefits must be calculated pursuant to s. 627.062. 233
(b) A policy issued pursuant to this section may o ffer 234
coverage for paid family leave benefits or may offer paid family 235
leave benefits as a rider to a policy of disability income 236
insurance. 237
(12) RULEMAKING.—The commission may adopt rules to 238
administer this section. 239
Section 6. This act shall take eff ect upon becoming a law. 240