North Carolina 2025-2026 Regular Session

North Carolina Senate Bill S549 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1		GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
2	2		SESSION 2025
3		-	S 1
4		-	SENATE BILL 549
	3	+	S D
	4	+	SENATE BILL DRS15252-LR-89A
	5	+
5	6
6	7
7	8		Short Title: State Emp. Leave/Bereavement/Pregnancy Loss. (Public)
8	9		Sponsors: Senator Murdock (Primary Sponsor).
9		-	Referred to: ~~Rules and Operations of the Senate~~
10		-	~~March 26, 2025~~
11		-	~~S549 -v-1~~
	10	+	Referred to:
	11	+
	12	+	DRS15252 -LR-89A
12	13		A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
13	14		AN ACT PROVIDING STATE EMPLOYEES WITH PAID LEAVE DESIGNATED FOR 2
14	15		BEREAVEMENT AND FOLLOWING A PREGNANCY LOSS AND APPROPRIATING 3
15	16		FUNDS FOR THOSE PURPOSES. 4
16	17		The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 5
17	18		SECTION 1.(a) Effective July 1, 2025, Article 2 of Chapter 126 of the General 6
18	19		Statutes is amended by adding a new section to read: 7
19	20		"§ 126-8.7. Paid leave for pregnancy loss. 8
20	21		(a) The State Human Resources Commission (Commission) shall adopt rules and policies 9
21	22		to provide that a permanent, probationary, or time-limited full-time State employee shall be 10
22	23		granted paid leave for pregnancy loss. For the purposes of this section, the term "pregnancy loss" 11
23	24		means a miscarriage, an unsuccessful round of intrauterine insemination or of an assisted 12
24	25		reproductive technology procedure, a failed adoption arrangement, a failed surrogacy 13
25	26		arrangement, or a diagnosis or event that impacts pregnancy or fertility. 14
26	27		(b) The Commission shall adopt rules and policies to provide that a permanent, 15
27	28		probationary, or time-limited part-time State employee shall be granted a prorated amount of 16
28	29		paid leave for pregnancy loss on an equitable basis. 17
29	30		(c) The rules and policies adopted by the Commission shall include the following 18
30	31		requirements, at the minimum: 19
31	32		(1) That the duration of leave for pregnancy loss shall be not less than 56 hours 20
32	33		of paid leave. 21
33	34		(2) That an employee requesting the paid leave shall submit a request for leave to 22
34	35		process and address their own health needs and the health needs of their 23
35	36		partners during the time period following a pregnancy loss. 24
36	37		(3) A period of minimum service before an employee becomes eligible for paid 25
37	38		leave under this section. The rules shall provide that the period of minimum 26
38	39		service may be met by aggregating employment at any of the following: 27
39	40		a. State agencies, departments, and institutions, including The University 28
40	41		of North Carolina. 29
41	42		b. Public school units that provide paid leave in accordance with this 30
42	43		section. 31
43	44		c. Community colleges located in this State. 32
44	45		(d) The leave authorized by this section: 33
45	46		(1) Is available without exhaustion of the employee's sick and vacation leave and 34
46	47		is awarded in addition to shared leave under G.S. 126-8.3, or other leave 35
47		-	authorized by State or federal law. 36 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
48		-	Page 2 Senate Bill 549-First Edition
	48	+	authorized by State or federal law. 36
	49	+	FILED SENATE
	50	+	Mar 25, 2025
	51	+	S.B. 549
	52	+	PRINCIPAL CLERK General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
	53	+	Page 2 DRS15252-LR-89A
49	54		(2) Has no cash value upon termination from employment. 1
50	55		(3) May not be used for calculating an employee's retirement benefits. 2
51	56		(e) The provisions of this section shall apply to employees of State agencies, 3
52	57		departments, and institutions, including The University of North Carolina; to public school 4
53	58		employees; and to community college employees. The appropriate governing board, officer, or 5
54	59		entity shall adopt rules and policies to award paid leave for pregnancy loss to employees that are 6
55	60		substantially equivalent to those adopted by the State Human Resources Commission." 7
56	61		SECTION 1.(b) Effective July 1, 2025, G.S. 126-5(c19) reads as rewritten: 8
57	62		"(c19) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Chapter, G.S. 126-8.6 applies and 9
58	63		126-8.7 apply to all State employees, public school employees, and community college 10
59	64		employees. G.S. 126-8.6 does and 126-8.7 do not apply to employees described in subdivisions 11
60	65		(2) and (3) of subsection (c1) of G.S. 126-5. The legislative and judicial branches shall adopt 12
61	66		parental leave and paid bereavement leave policies." 13
62	67		SECTION 1.(c) Effective July 1, 2025, there is appropriated from the General Fund 14
63	68		to the Reserve for Compensation Increases the sum of one million eight hundred thousand dollars 15
64	69		($1,800,000) for the 2025-2026 fiscal year and the sum of one million eight hundred thousand 16
65	70		dollars ($1,800,000) for the 2025-2027 fiscal year to fund paid leave for pregnancy loss as 17
66	71		enacted in this section. 18
67	72		SECTION 1.(d) This section becomes effective July 1, 2025, and applies to requests 19
68	73		for pregnancy loss leave occurring on or after that date. 20
69	74		SECTION 2.(a) Effective July 1, 2025, Article 2 of Chapter 126 of the General 21
70	75		Statutes is amended by adding a new section to read: 22
71	76		"§ 126-8.8. Paid bereavement leave for death of immediate family member. 23
72	77		(a) The State Human Resources Commission (Commission) shall adopt rules and policies 24
73	78		to provide that a permanent, probationary, or time-limited full-time State employee shall be 25
74	79		granted up to three consecutive workdays of paid bereavement leave on the death of any member 26
75	80		of the employee's immediate family. For the purposes of this section, "immediate family 27
76	81		member" means a spouse, parent, child, brother, sister, grandparent, or grandchild. The term 28
77	82		includes the step, half, and in-law relationships. 29
78	83		(b) The Commission shall adopt rules and policies to provide that a permanent, 30
79	84		probationary, or time-limited part-time State employee shall be granted a prorated amount of 31
80	85		paid bereavement leave on an equitable basis. 32
81	86		(c) The rules and policies adopted by the Commission shall include the following 33
82	87		requirements, at a minimum: 34
83	88		(1) That an employee requesting paid bereavement leave submit a statement 35
84	89		stating the name and relationship of the deceased. 36
85	90		(2) A period of minimum service before an employee becomes eligible for paid 37
86	91		bereavement leave under this section. The rules shall provide that the period 38
87	92		of minimum service may be met by aggregating employment at any of the 39
88	93		following: 40
89	94		a. State agencies, departments, and institutions, including The University 41
90	95		of North Carolina. 42
91	96		b. Public school units that provide paid bereavement leave in accordance 43
92	97		with this section. 44
93	98		c. Community colleges located in this State. 45
94	99		(d) The paid bereavement leave authorized by this section: 46
95	100		(1) Is available without exhaustion of the employee's sick and vacation leave and 47
96	101		is awarded in addition to shared leave under G.S. 126-8.3, or other leave 48
97	102		authorized by State or federal law. 49
98	103		(2) Has no cash value upon termination from employment. 50
99	104		(3) May not be used for calculating an employee's retirement benefits. 51 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
100		-	~~Senate Bill 549-First Edition~~ Page 3
	105	+	DRS15252-LR-89A Page 3
101	106		(e) The provisions of this section shall apply to employees of State agencies, 1
102	107		departments, and institutions, including The University of North Carolina; to public school 2
103	108		employees; and to community college employees. The appropriate governing board, officer, or 3
104	109		entity shall adopt rules and policies to award paid bereavement leave to employees that are 4
105	110		substantially equivalent to those adopted by the State Human Resources Commission." 5
106	111		SECTION 2.(b) Effective July 1, 2025, G.S. 126-5(c19), as amended by Section 1 6
107	112		of this act, reads as rewritten: 7
108	113		"(c19) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Chapter, G.S. 126-8.6 and G.S. 126-8.7 8
109	114		G.S. 126-8.6, 126-8.7, and 126-8.8 apply to all State employees, public school employees, and 9
110	115		community college employees. G.S. 126-8.6 and G.S. 126-8.7 G.S. 126-8.6, 126-8.7, and 10
111	116		126-8.8 do not apply to employees described in subdivisions (2) and (3) of subsection (c1) of 11
112	117		G.S. 126-5. The legislative and judicial branches shall adopt parental leave and pregnancy loss 12
113	118		leave policies." 13
114	119		SECTION 2.(c) Effective July 1, 2025, there is appropriated from the General Fund 14
115	120		to the Reserve for Compensation Increases the sum of two million dollars ($2,000,000) for the 15
116	121		2025-2026 fiscal year and the sum of two million dollars ($2,000,000) for the 2026-2027 fiscal 16
117	122		year to fund paid bereavement leave as enacted in this section 17
118	123		SECTION 2.(d) This section becomes effective July 1, 2025, and applies to requests 18
119	124		for paid bereavement leave for deaths occurring on or after that date. 19
120	125		SECTION 3. Except as otherwise provided, this act is effective when it becomes 20
121	126		law. 21