EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTIN G LAW.
[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
*sb0058*
SENATE BILL 58
K3 5lr0827
(PRE–FILED)
By: Senator Benson
Requested: September 13, 2024
Introduced and read first time: January 8, 2025
Assigned to: Finance
A BILL ENTITLED
AN ACT concerning 1
Labor and Employment – Parental School Engagement Leave Act 2
FOR the purpose of requiring certain employers to provide certain employees with parental 3
school engagement leave to attend meetings and conferences relating to the 4
schooling of the employee’s child; requiring the State Superintendent of Schools and 5
the Commissioner of Labor to provide notice of certain requirements of this Act and 6
develop and make available a document that may be used to validate an employee’s 7
use of parental school engagement leave; and generally relating to parental school 8
engagement leave. 9
BY adding to 10
Article – Labor and Employment 11
Section 3–1801 through 3–1805 to be under the new subtitle “Subtitle 18. Parental 12
School Engagement Leave Act” 13
Annotated Code of Maryland 14
(2016 Replacement Volume and 2024 Supplement) 15
SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 16
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 17
Article – Labor and Employment 18
SUBTITLE 18. PARENTAL SCHOOL ENGAGEMENT LEAVE ACT. 19
3–1801. 20
(A) IN THIS SUBTITLE THE FOLLOWING WORDS HAVE THE MEANINGS 21
INDICATED. 22
2 SENATE BILL 58
(B) “CHILD” MEANS A BIOLOGICAL CHILD, AN ADOPTED CHILD, A FOSTER 1
CHILD, A STEPCHILD, OR A LEGAL WARD OF A N EMPLOYEE WHO IS ENROLLED IN A 2
SCHOOL. 3
(C) (1) “EMPLOYER” MEANS A PERSON THAT EMPLOYS AT LEAST 50 4
INDIVIDUALS IN THE STATE. 5
(2) “EMPLOYER” INCLUDES A UNIT OF STATE OR LOCAL 6
GOVERNMENT . 7
(D) “PARENTAL SCHOOL ENGAG EMENT LEAVE ” MEANS LEAVE AWAY FRO M 8
WORK THAT IS PROVIDE D BY AN EMPLOYER UND ER § 3–1803 OF THIS SUBTITLE. 9
(E) “SCHOOL” MEANS AN ELEMENTARY OR A SECONDARY PUBLI C OR 10
NONPUBLIC SCHOOL THAT IS LOCATED IN THE STATE OR A STATE THAT SHARES A 11
COMMON BOUNDARY WITH THE STATE. 12
(F) “SCHOOL ADMINISTRATOR ” MEANS THE PRINCIPAL OR A SIMILAR 13
ADMINISTRATOR WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE OPERATIONS OF A SCHO OL. 14
3–1802. 15
THIS SUBTITLE MAY NOT BE CONSTRUED TO LIMIT OR OTHER WISE AFFECT 16
ANY OTHER LAW , EMPLOYER POLICY , OR COLLECTIVE BARGAI NING AGREEMENT 17
THAT PROVIDES FOR PA RENTAL SCHOOL ENGAGE MENT LEAVE BENEFITS THAT ARE 18
MORE GENEROUS THAN R EQUIRED UNDER THIS S UBTITLE. 19
3–1803. 20
(A) AN EMPLOYER SHALL PRO VIDE AN EMPLOYEE WIT H AT LEAST 12 HOURS 21
OF PAID PARENTAL SCHOOL ENGA GEMENT LEAVE EACH SCHOOL YEAR IF THE 22
EMPLOYEE: 23
(1) HAS BEEN EMPLOYED BY THE EMPLOYER FOR AT LEAST 6 24
CONSECUTIVE MONTHS ; AND 25
(2) HAS WORKED AN AVERAGE NUMBER OF HOURS PER WEEK IN A 26
POSITION EQUAL TO AT LEAST 50% OF THE FULL –TIME EQUIVALENT AMOU NT 27
REQUIRED FOR TH E POSITION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH T HE EMPLOYER ’S POLICY OR 28
PRACTICES OR A COLLE CTIVE BARGAINING AGR EEMENT. 29
(B) (1) AN EMPLOYEE MAY USE P ARENTAL SCHOOL ENGAG EMENT LEAVE 30
TO ATTEND SCHOOL MEETINGS AND CONFERE NCES FOR THE EMPLOYEE’S CHILD. 31 SENATE BILL 58 3
(2) PARENTAL SCHOOL ENGAG EMENT LEAVE SHALL BE : 1
(I) PAID AT THE REGULAR RATE OF PAY EARNED BY THE 2
EMPLOYEE; AND 3
(II) SEPARATE FROM ANY OT HER LEAVE BENEFITS P ROVIDED 4
BY THE EMPLOYER . 5
(3) AN EMPLOYER MAY NOT REQUIRE AN EMPLOYEE TO EXHAUST ANY 6
OTHER LEAVE BENEFITS BEFORE USING PARENTA L SCHOOL ENGAGEMENT LEAVE. 7
(4) AN EMPLOYER IS NOT REQUIRED TO PAY OUT ON THE 8
TERMINATION OF EMPLO YMENT UNUSED PARENTA L SCHOOL ENGAGEMENT LEAVE. 9
(5) AN EMPLOYER MAY NOT B E REQUIRED TO ALLOW AN EMPLOYEE 10
TO USE MORE THAN 4 HOURS OF PARENTAL SCHOOL ENGAGEMENT LEAVE AT A TIME. 11
(6) AN EMPLOYEE MAY NOT C ARRY OVER UNUSED PAR ENTAL SCHOOL 12
ENGAGEMENT LEAVE TO THE FOLLOWING SCHOOL YEAR. 13
(C) (1) IF THE NEED TO USE PARENTAL SCHOO L ENGAGEMENT LEAVE I S 14
FORESEEABLE , AN EMPLOYEE SHALL PRO VIDE TO THE EMPLOYER A WR ITTEN 15
REQUEST TO TAKE THE PARENTAL SCHOOL ENGA GEMENT LEAVE AT LEAST 4 16
CALENDAR DAYS BEFORE THE DATE OF THE SCHOOL MEETING OR CONFERENC E. 17
(2) IF THE NEED TO USE PARENTAL SCHO OL ENGAGEMENT LEAVE IS 18
UNFORESEEABLE , AN EMPLOYEE SHALL : 19
(I) PROVIDE NOTICE TO AN EMPLOYER AS SOON AS 20
PRACTICABLE ; AND 21
(II) GENERALLY COMPLY WIT H THE EMPLOYER ’S NOTICE OR 22
PROCEDURAL REQUIREME NTS FOR REQUESTING O R REPORTING OTHER LE AVE, IF 23
THOSE REQUIREMENTS D O NOT INTERFERE WITH THE EMPLOYEE ’S ABILITY TO USE 24
PARENTAL SCHOOL ENGA GEMENT LEAVE . 25
(3) AN EMPLOYER MAY DENY A REQUEST TO USE PARENTAL SC HOOL 26
ENGAGEMENT LEAVE IF : 27
(I) 1. AN EMPLOYEE FAILS TO PROVIDE THE NOTICE 28
REQUIRED UNDER PARAG RAPH (2) OF THIS SUBSECTION ; AND 29
4 SENATE BILL 58
2. THE EMPLOYEE ’S ABSENCE WILL CAUSE A 1
DISRUPTION TO THE EM PLOYER; OR 2
(II) GRANTING THE LEAVE R EQUEST WOULD CAUSE MORE THAN 3
5% OF THE EMPLOYER ’S TOTAL WORKFORCE OR WORKFORCE SHIFT , WHICHEVER IS 4
APPLICABLE, TO TAKE PARENTAL SCHOOL ENGA GEMENT LEAVE AT THE SAME TIME . 5
(D) (1) ON REQUEST BY AN EMPLOY EE WHO USES PARENTAL SCHOOL 6
ENGAGEMENT LEAVE TO ATTEND A SCHOOL MEETING OR CONFERENCE , A SCHOOL 7
ADMINISTRATOR SHALL PROVIDE TO THE EMPLO YEE DOCUMENTATION THAT 8
INDICATES THE EXACT TIME AND DATE OF THE MEETING OR CONFE RENCE. 9
(2) TO BE CONSIDERED A VA LID USE OF PARENTAL SCHOOL 10
ENGAGEMENT LEAVE THA T IS NOT SUBJ ECT TO ADVERSE ACTION UNDER AN 11
EMPLOYER POLICY , AN EMPLOYEE SHALL SUBMI T TO THE EMPLOYER THE 12
DOCUMENTATION OBTAIN ED UNDER PARAGRAPH (1) OF THIS SUBSECTION WITHIN 13
2 BUSINESS DAYS AFTER THE MEETING OR CONFERENC E OCCURS. 14
(3) THE STATE SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS AND THE 15
COMMISSION ER JOINTLY SHALL DEVELOP AND MA KE AVAILABLE A MODEL 16
DOCUMENT THAT MAY BE USED TO SATISFY THE REQUIREM ENTS OF THIS 17
SUBSECTION. 18
3–1804. 19
IF AN EMPLOYER FAILS TO COMPLY WITH THE REQU IREMENTS OF THIS 20
SUBTITLE, THE COMMISSION MAY ASSESS THE EMPLOYER A CIVIL PENALTY NOT 21
EXCEEDING $100 FOR EACH EMPLOYEE WITH RESPECT TO WHIC H THE EMPLOYER IS 22
NOT IN COMPLIANCE WI TH THIS SUBTITLE . 23
3–1805. 24
(A) FOR SCHOOLS LOCATED I N THE STATE, THE STATE SUPERINTENDENT 25
OF SCHOOLS SHALL NOTIFY THE SCHOOL ADMINISTRATOR S, PARENTS, AND 26
GUARDIANS OF THE REQUIRE MENTS OF THIS SUBTITLE. 27
(B) THE COMMISSIONER SHALL : 28
(1) NOTIFY EMPLOYER S OF THE REQUIREMENTS OF THIS SUBTITLE; 29
AND 30
(2) ADOPT REGULATIONS TO CARRY OUT THIS SUBTI TLE. 31
SENATE BILL 58 5
SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect 1
October 1, 2025. 2