In an effort to make statewide paid family leave a reality Colorado Democrats will introduce revisions to a bill in the next legislative session, according to Colorado Public Radio.
Senate Bill 188 was originally proposed with the intent of creating statewide paid family leave program that would partially reimburse employees for up to 12 weeks of leave. The program would have been funded through the state by taking a portion from employees’ paychecks and requiring employers to match that amount.
Sponsors of the bill are now working to move forward with creating a task force to study the idea of the program and come up with ways to revise it. One of the things the task force is meant to examine is whether or not the program should be state-funded at all. Sen. Faith Winter, a major supporter of the bill, is still optimistic about the program and expects it to be set up by 2023.
A number of small business advocates, including NFIB, spoke out firmly against the bill citing the fact many local employers would be unable to pay such a substantial amount. Opponents of the bill also took issue with how “family” would be defined and whether businesses with their own program would be able to opt-out.
