With less than a week left to go in the 2023 legislative session, Minnesota Democrats signed off on the largest and most expensive employment mandate in state history.

Despite bipartisan opposition to the proposal and over the vigorous objections of NFIB and the business community, a conference committee of three House DFLers and three Senate DFLers reached an agreement on the Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) mandate.

It will be voted on by the House and Senate this week and signed into law by Governor Walz, who supports the mandate.

Below is a comparison of key elements of the bill at the start and finish of the program.

Looking ahead, two key dates will determine how the program plays out:

October 31, 2023: An actuarial study examining the financial soundness of the program (e.g., reserve level, benefit set, payroll tax rate) is due by the end of October 2023. We believe the program requires a much higher payroll tax to be sustainable. If that’s the case, the Legislature will have to adjust the benefits or tax rate in the 2024 or 2025 legislative sessions.

November 5, 2024: All 134 members of the Minnesota House of Representatives are up for election in 2024. This is the time to replace anti-small business politicians with lawmakers who share pro-growth and free market values.

While the program is, inarguably, one of the most burdensome for small employers in the country, we will continue fighting to protect NFIB members’ right to own, operate, and grow their business at every turn.