Maine Paid Family Medical Leave program issues new rules, calls for public hearing

On Wednesday a new set of rules for Maine’s Paid Family Medical Leave program that incorporates public comments received at a hearing earlier this summer was released. More than 15 clarifications and amendments that address everything from private family medical leave plans to self-employed workers is addressed in the second draft of rules.

Senator Mattie Daughtry, Assistant Senate Majority Leader, said with a program of this size a slow deliberative process was important.

“The first public comment had 1,000 comments from 300 people. You can see those comments were incorporated. So having this second comment period is important so that when it goes live in January that it is meeting the needs of what we need for this program in our state,” Daughtry said.

Maine’s Paid Family Medical Leave program would allow employees to take up to 12 weeks of leave to care for a newborn or adopted child or to deal with a serious health condition.

Luke Monohan, Director of the Maine Paid Family Medical Leave program, said feedback from a diverse group of businesses and public members lead to commonsense changes that will make the program better for workers in Maine.

“It’s a complex program. It’s a program that will affect almost all workers and businesses in Maine. The fact that we were able to integrate so much and come up with so many changes and make people feel heard in the process,” Monohan said.

In a statement the Maine State Chamber of Commerce said the new proposed rule allows employers to declare private plans at least 12 months earlier than the previous rule and revises the ability for businesses to assert a hardship for leave.

The revised proposed Rule:

• Clarifies the definition of family member.
• Clarifies the role of employee leasing companies.
• Determines employer liability based upon an employer’s established payroll in 20 or more calendar workweeks in the 12-month period preceding September 30th of each year by Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN).
• Clarifies the circumstances under which volunteers are not covered by the law.
• Clarifies that an applicant must be employed on or before the day the approved leave will begin.
• Clarifies eligibility for leave that runs concurrently with the Federal Family Medical Leave Act in the year before benefits for the Paid Family and Medical Leave Program are taken.
• Amends provisions regarding notice and undue hardship.
• Clarifies that fraud means “willful” acts.
• Changes certain timelines.
• Explains and clarifies the role of the Maine Bureau of Insurance and the Maine Department of Labor regarding the review of fully-insured private plans.
• Clarifies the definition of income for self-employed individuals to elect coverage.
• Amends the reasons an employee or employer may seek an appeal and notification to parties for appeals.
• Amends the factors to determine minimum criteria for substitute plans.
• Amends the process for submitting applications for substitute plans beginning April 1, 2025. Amends the start of premium exemption and benefit coverage relative to private plan substitution approvals. 
• Establishes application fee for substitution of private plans.
• Adds a section establishing the process for requesting advisory rulings.

A public hearing on the new rules will be held September 17 in Augusta. Public comments will be taken until September 30.

The final rules must be established prior to January 1, 2025.

Get notified of announcements regarding the Maine Paid Family Medical Leave program.