Democrats in Maine, emboldened by a new Democratic governor and a newly won Senate majority, like their chances of passing paid family and medical leave legislation this year.
House Speaker Sara Gideon (D) announced Jan. 15 that she will file legislation that would create a family and medical leave insurance program. It would provide up to 12 weeks of paid family leave to all private sector workers for the birth or adoption of a child and up to 20 weeks to deal with other medical issues. Overseen by the state’s Department of Labor, the program would be funded by a ...