Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas House Bill HB5598 Compare Versions

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1	1		By: Bryant H.B. No. 5598
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4	6		A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	7		AN ACT
6	8		relating to the minimum wage and a requirement for a biennial study
7	9		and report on the living wage in this state, expanding access to
8	10		childcare, and providing paid parental leave.
9	11		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	12		ARTICLE 1. RAISING THE MINIMUM WAGE
11	13		SECTION 1.01 Section 62.051, Labor Code, is amended to read
12	14		as follows:
13	15		Sec. 62.051. MINIMUM WAGE. Except as provided by Section
14	16		62.057, an employer shall pay to each employee not less than the
15	17		greater of:
16	18		(1) $15 an hour; or
17	19		(2) the federal minimum wage under Section 6, Fair
18	20		Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. Section 206).
19	21		SECTION 1.02 Subchapter B, Chapter 62, Labor Code, is
20	22		amended by adding Section 62.058 to read as follows:
21	23		Sec. 62.058. BIENNIAL STUDY AND REPORT ON STATE LIVING
22	24		WAGE. (a) In this section, "consumer price index" means the
23	25		Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers
24	26		(CPI-W), published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United
25	27		States Department of Labor.
26	28		(b) Not later than September 1 of each even-numbered year,
27	29		the commission shall conduct a study and deliver a report to the
28	30		legislature on the living wage in this state. In conducting the
29	31		study, the commission shall seek to determine what wage rate is
30	32		required to meet minimum standards of living throughout this state,
31	33		classified on the basis of county or region. In making that
32	34		determination, the commission shall consider factors such as the
33	35		consumer price index and the cost of daily necessities in each
34	36		county or region.
35	37		(c) In its report, the commission must include information
36	38		from the preceding two-year period for each county or region
37	39		regarding:
38	40		(1) the number of jobs created that pay at least the
39	41		minimum wage;
40	42		(2) the effect of the consumer price index on the
41	43		purchasing power of individuals and families;
42	44		(3) the cost of daily necessities, such as housing,
43	45		clothing, food, health care, and child care;
44	46		(4) the number of small businesses created and closed;
45	47		(5) housing affordability for individuals and
46	48		families relying on the minimum wage; and
47	49		(6) the feasibility of obtaining health care coverage
48	50		when working in a job paying the minimum wage.
49	51		(d) The commission may consult with other state agencies as
50	52		necessary to conduct the study under this section.
51	53		SECTION 1.03 Section 62.151, Labor Code, is repealed.
52	54		ARTICLE 2. PAID PARENTAL LEAVE
53	55		SECTION 2.01 Subtitle B, Title 4, Labor Code, is amended by
54	56		adding Chapter 320 to read as follows:
55	57		CHAPTER 320. PAID PARENTAL LEAVE FOR CERTAIN EMPLOYEES
56	58		Sec. 320.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
57	59		(1) "Employee" means an individual who performs
58	60		services in this state for an employer for compensation under a
59	61		contract for hire, whether express or implied. The term does not
60	62		include an independent contractor or a state employee to which
61	63		Section 661.9125, Government Code, applies.
62	64		(2) "Employer" means a person that employs 50 or more
63	65		employees.
64	66		Sec. 320.002. PAID PARENTAL LEAVE FOR CERTAIN EMPLOYEES.
65	67		(a) This section applies only to an employee who, during the
66	68		preceding 12 months, has worked for the employer on a full-time
67	69		basis.
68	70		(b) Subject to Subsection (c), an employee to whom this
69	71		section applies is entitled, on request, to 60 days of paid leave
70	72		for the:
71	73		(1) birth of a child by the employee;
72	74		(2) birth of a child by the employee's spouse;
73	75		(3) birth of a child by a gestational surrogate;
74	76		(4) adoption of a child; or
75	77		(5) provision of foster care or kinship care to a child
76	78		younger than one year of age who is in the conservatorship of the
77	79		Department of Family and Protective Services.
78	80		(c) The amount of paid leave to which an employee is
79	81		entitled under Subsection (b) for each week of leave taken under
80	82		that subsection is an amount equal to the employee's average weekly
81	83		wage during the 12-month period preceding the first day that the
82	84		employee takes leave under that subsection.
83	85		(d) This section does not entitle an employee to leave in
84	86		addition to any leave the employee is entitled to under the federal
85	87		Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. Section 2601 et
86	88		seq.). An employee is not entitled to paid leave under this section
87	89		for any period during which the employee is taking other paid leave.
88	90		(e) An employee may not take leave under this section:
89	91		(1) later than the first anniversary of the date of
90	92		birth or adoption of a child or placement of a child in foster care
91	93		or kinship care; or
92	94		(2) more than one time during a 12-month period.
93	95		(f) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, an
94	96		employee who takes leave under this section for the purpose
95	97		described by Subsection (b)(1) may take the leave before the birth
96	98		of the child.
97	99		(g) An employer may not take an adverse employment action
98	100		against an employee because the employee has taken or plans to take
99	101		paid leave under this section. For purposes of this subsection,
100	102		"adverse employment action" includes termination or suspension of
101	103		the employee's employment, an action that affects the employee's
102	104		compensation, promotion, or performance evaluation, or any other
103	105		employment action that would dissuade a reasonable employee from
104	106		taking paid leave under this chapter.
105	107		Sec. 320.003. PAYMENT OF PAID PARENTAL LEAVE COSTS. (a) To
106	108		pay for the costs associated with paid leave required under Section
107	109		320.002, an employer may directly pay those costs or maintain an
108	110		insurance policy providing coverage for those costs in accordance
109	111		with this section.
110	112		(b) An employer electing to maintain an insurance policy
111	113		under Subsection (a) shall maintain a policy that provides
112	114		sufficient coverage for the employer's employees who are entitled
113	115		to paid leave under Section 320.002. To the extent the policy does
114	116		not cover the costs associated with paid leave required under
115	117		Section 320.002, the employer is liable for those costs.
116	118		(c) The commissioner of insurance may adopt rules
117	119		prescribing sufficient coverage requirements and reasonable rates
118	120		for an insurance policy described by this section.
119	121		Sec. 320.004. EXCEPTION. Notwithstanding any other
120	122		provision of this chapter, an employee is not entitled to paid leave
121	123		under Section 320.002, and an employer is not required to pay costs
122	124		associated with that leave under Section 320.003, if no insurer
123	125		authorized to engage in the business of insurance in this state
124	126		offers an insurance policy described by Section 320.003 by October
125	127		1 of the year preceding the year in which the paid leave requirement
126	128		would take effect.
127	129		SECTION 2.02 An employee is not entitled to paid leave under
128	130		Chapter 320, Labor Code, as added by this Act, before January 1,
129	131		2027.
130	132		ARTICLE 3. EXPANDED CHILDCARE SUBSIDY
131	133		SECTION 3.01 Subchapter A, Chapter 302, Labor Code, is
132	134		amended by adding Section 302.00415 to read as follows:
133	135		Sec. 302.00415. SUBSIDIZED CHILD CARE PROGRAM:
134	136		ELIGIBILITY. (a) A child is eligible for subsidized child care if
135	137		the child:
136	138		(1) is:
137	139		(A) younger than four years of age; and
138	140		(B) a member of a household with a total annual
139	141		income that is at or below 250 percent of the federal poverty
140	142		guidelines; or
141	143		(2) meets eligibility requirements established by the
142	144		commission.
143	145		(b) The commission may adopt rules necessary to administer
144	146		this section.
145	147		SECTION 3.02 This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.