Paid Family and Sick Leave

The basics

The federal Family and Medical Leave Act gives eligible workers up to 12 weeks a year of job-protected leave for a new child or a serious health condition, but the leave is unpaid¹. It covers public agencies, schools, and private employers with 50 or more workers; workers must have worked for the employer at least 12 months and 1,250 hours, at a site with 50 or more employees within 75 miles¹.

Many employers offer paid leave on their own. In March 2026, 81% of private industry workers had access to paid sick leave and 49% had access to paid family and medical leave, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics². Access to paid sick leave ranged from 58% in leisure and hospitality to 98% in finance and insurance².

A federal tax credit created by the 2017 tax law rewards employers that give workers paid family and medical leave³. The 2025 federal budget and tax law made the credit permanent starting in 2026 and let employers claim it based on premiums for paid leave insurance³. The credit is worth 12.5% to 25% of the leave wages paid, depending on how much of normal pay the worker gets³.

As of April 2026, 15 states plus the District of Columbia had passed their own paid family and medical leave programs, according to a count by the National Partnership for Women & Families; Virginia became the first Southern state to do so in 2026, with benefits set to begin in December 2028⁴¹⁰. The 2024 Democratic platform called for a national program guaranteeing up to 12 weeks of paid leave⁵. The 2024 Republican platform does not lay out a paid leave plan; it pledges tax credits for unpaid family caregivers⁶.

Key terms

Paid sick leave

Paid time off, usually a few days a year, for a worker's own illness or a sick family member².

Paid family and medical leave

Longer paid time off, often weeks, to care for a new child, a seriously ill family member, or the worker's own serious illness²⁴.

FMLA

The federal Family and Medical Leave Act, which protects the jobs of eligible workers during up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave¹.

Section 45S credit

A federal tax credit for employers that voluntarily offer paid family and medical leave; made permanent in 2025³.

Preemption

When a higher level of government passes a law that blocks lower levels from making their own rules on the same subject⁷⁸.

In Texas

Austin passed an ordinance in February 2018 requiring most private employers to offer paid sick leave, and San Antonio and Dallas passed similar ordinances⁹¹¹. Courts blocked all three. In November 2018, a Texas appeals court ruled Austin's ordinance was preempted by the Texas Minimum Wage Act, and in 2020 the Texas Supreme Court declined to hear the city's appeal⁹. San Antonio's ordinance never took effect amid a similar challenge, and a federal judge blocked Dallas's in March 2020⁹¹¹.

In 2023, the Legislature passed House Bill 2127, called the Texas Regulatory Consistency Act, effective September 1, 2023⁷. It bars cities and counties from local rules on employment leave, hiring, breaks, benefits, and scheduling for private employers that go beyond state or federal law⁷. Houston, San Antonio, and El Paso sued, and a Travis County judge struck the law down, but on July 18, 2025, the Third Court of Appeals reversed that ruling, holding the cities lacked standing to sue⁸. Today no Texas city, including Colleyville, can require private employers to offer paid sick leave, and Texas has no statewide requirement⁷⁹.

How people see it

The strongest case for each view, in terms its supporters would recognize. We don't pick a side.

Questions to ask a candidate

• Should Texas require employers to offer paid sick days, or leave it to each business?
• Should cities like Austin or Dallas be allowed to set their own paid leave rules?
• Should Congress create a national paid family and medical leave program, and how should it be paid for?
• Are tax credits enough to get more employers to offer paid leave?