Summary of 2025 State PFML & Paid Leave Developments

Written by Erica Honig, J.D., Senior Compliance Director, Employee Benefits | Jan 8, 2025 5:48:42 PM

The beginning of a new year is an ideal time to provide employers with a summary of recent developments and updates with respect to state-mandated paid leave and paid family and medical leave (PFML) programs.

For clarity, state-mandated paid leave and PFML laws are separate programs that serve different purposes:

State and local paid leave laws generally require employers to provide paid time off to employees for certain reasons including, but not limited to:
- When an employee is sick
- When an employee’s family member is sick
- When attending a medical appointment for an employer or their family member
- When an employee seeks assistance if they or their family member is a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking
- When an employee’s place of business or school/daycare of employee’s child is closed due to a public health emergency

State PFML laws generally require the applicable state (or city for Washington, D.C.), rather than the employer, to provide full or partial wage replacement to employees who need time away from work for certain reasons including, but not limited to:
- Caring for an employee’s own, or a family member’s, serious health condition
- Bonding with a new child
- Supporting a family member who is on active military service duty

January 1, 2025 Effective Date

In case you missed them, let’s start with several developments and updates outlined below for January 1, 2025:

Category	Jurisdiction	Important Date(s)	Important Details
PFML	Delaware	January 1, 2025	The start date for employee contribution payroll deductions is January 1, 2025. Delaware PFML benefit effective date is January 1, 2026. Click here for a Risk Strategies article with more details.
PFML	Maine	January 1, 2025	The start date for employer (those with 15 or more employees) and employee contributions is January 1, 2025. Maine PFML benefit effective date is May 1, 2026. Click here for a Risk Strategies article with more details.
PFML	Rhode Island	January 1, 2025	The maximum amount of Rhode Island Temporary Caregiver Insurance (TCI)* that an employee can take increased to seven weeks (from six weeks) on January 1, 2025. On January 1, 2026, the maximum amount of TCI will increase from seven weeks to eight weeks. Additionally, recipients with dependent children under 18 may receive a dependents’ allowance, set to increase to $20 per week on January 1, 2025 (currently set at $10 per week).
PFML & Paid Leave	California	January 1, 2025	California expanded the following for employees working in California, effective January 1, 2025: Expanded paid family leave, Expanded leave for victims of violence, and Expanded paid sick leave for agricultural workers Click here for a Risk Strategies article with more details.
Paid Leave	Connecticut	January 1, 2025	Paid sick leave law requirements expanded to include more employers and employees in Connecticut, effective January 1, 2025. Click here for a Risk Strategies article with more details.
Paid Leave	New York	January 1, 2025	New York became the first state in the nation to require employers to provide paid prenatal leave for their employees working in New York, effective January 1, 2025. Click here for a Risk Strategies article with more details.
Paid Leave	Washington State	January 1, 2025	Paid sick leave law requirements in Washington State expanded on January 1, 2025 to: Change the definition of “family member” to include grandchildren, grandparents, and individuals who regularly reside in the employee’s home or where the relationship creates an expectation that the employee care for the person (and that individual depends on the employee for care). The “family member” definition excludes individuals who reside in the same home with no expectation that the employee care for them; Add a child’s spouse to the law’s definition of “child,” and Add the closure of the employee’s business or their child’s school or place of care after the declaration of an emergency by the federal government or a local or state government or agency as a qualified reason to take paid sick leave.

*Rhode Island TCI was signed into law in 2013 and currently provides eligible claimants up to 6 weeks of caregiver benefits to care for a seriously ill child, spouse, domestic partner, parent, parent-in-law or grandparent, or to bond with a newborn child, new adopted child, or new foster-care child. Eligible claimants must apply for TCI benefits during the first 30 days after the first day of leave is taken for reasons of bonding or caregiving.

Remainder of 2025

Now let’s focus on the updates for the remainder of 2025 (subject to change pending any future developments and updates):

Category	Jurisdiction	Important Date(s)	Important Details
Paid Leave	Michigan	February 21, 2025	Michigan paid sick leave changes take effect on February 21, 2025. Click here for a Risk Strategies article with more details.
Paid Leave	Missouri	May 1, 2025	Paid sick leave becomes effective in Missouri on May 1, 2025. Click here for a Risk Strategies article with more details.
Paid Leave	Alaska	July 1, 2025	Paid sick leave becomes effective in Alaska on July 1, 2025. Click here for a Risk Strategies article with more details.
PFML	Maryland	July 1, 2025	The start date for employer (those employers with 15 or more employees) and employee contributions is July 1, 2025. Maryland PFML benefit effective date is July 1, 2026. Click here for a Risk Strategies article with more details.
Paid Leave (COVID sick leave)	New York	July 31, 2025	New York’s COVID-19 sick leave requirements will expire on July 31, 2025. Click here for a Risk Strategies article with more details.
Paid Leave	Nebraska	October 1, 2025	Paid sick leave becomes effective in Nebraska on October 1, 2025. Click here for a Risk Strategies article with more details.

2026 Developments

Finally, see what’s ahead on the horizon for 2026 (subject to change pending any future developments and updates):

Category	Jurisdiction	Important Date(s)	Important Details
PFML	Delaware	January 1, 2026	Delaware PFML benefit effective date is January 1, 2026. Click here for a Risk Strategies article with more details.
PFML	Minnesota	January 1, 2026	The start date for employer and employee contributions and benefit effective date for Minnesota PFML is January 1, 2026. Click here for a Risk Strategies article with more details.
PFML	Maine	May 1, 2026	Maine PFML benefit effective date is May 1, 2026. Click here for a Risk Strategies article with more details.
PFML	Maryland	July 1, 2026	Maryland PFML benefit effective date is July 1, 2026. Click here for a Risk Strategies article with more details.
Paid Leave	Connecticut	January 1, 2026	Paid sick leave law requirements expanded again on January 1, 2026, to include more employers and employees in Connecticut. Click here for a Risk Strategies article with more details.

Employer Action

Employers, particularly multistate employers, are advised to pay close attention to any developments and updates that impact their employees working in the jurisdictions detailed above.

Depending on the effective date, these employers are advised to work with their employment and labor counsel to:

Review and update their leave policies, procedures, and practices, as necessary,
Review and update attendance and payroll systems, as necessary,
Train Human Resources team members and other employees who manage employee leaves, and
Communicate any applicable paid leave/PFML updates to employees in a timely manner.

Risk Strategies helps employers navigate the ever-changing and complex state paid leave and PFML landscape. Contact your Risk Strategies account team with any questions or contact us directly here.

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