Opt-In Paid Leave Takes Shape Amid Skepticism in New Hampshire

New Hampshire’s governor is touting a one-of-a-kind paid family and medical leave program that will create a state employees plan and give private employers and workers the option to join instead of requiring them to pay into it—a potential model for other Republican-led states.

But the Granite State initiative faces a rocky path forward.

Paid leave advocates say it’s an untested approach that will leave many workers without coverage. Gov. Chris Sununu’s fellow Republicans in the state legislature aren’t all on board, and the state’s business community is officially neutral, although appreciative that there’s no mandatory payroll tax involved. ...