Bill Text: MS HB1312 | 2024 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Major medical leave; expand authorized purposes for the use of by state employees.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Failed) 2024-03-05 - Died In Committee [HB1312 Detail]
Download: Mississippi-2024-HB1312-Introduced.html
2024 Regular Session
To: State Affairs; Appropriations A
By: Representative McLean
House Bill 1312
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 25-3-91, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO DEFINE CERTAIN TERMS FOR THE PURPOSE OF THE LEAVE LAWS FOR STATE EMPLOYEES; TO AMEND SECTION 25-3-95, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO EXPAND THE AUTHORIZED PURPOSES FOR THE USE OF MAJOR MEDICAL LEAVE BY STATE EMPLOYEES; TO AMEND SECTION 25-3-93, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO CONFORM TO THE PRECEDING PROVISIONS; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Section 25-3-91, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
25-3-91. For purposes of Sections 25-3-91 through 25-3-99, the following words and terms shall have the meaning described herein, unless the context requires otherwise:
(a) "Appointing
authority" * * *
means such person, agency or authority authorized by law to employ
individuals in state government, but shall not include the Board of Directors
of the Mississippi Industries for the Blind.
(b) "Catastrophic injury or illness" means a life-threatening injury or illness of an employee or a member of an employee's immediate family which totally incapacitates the employee from work, as verified by a licensed physician, and forces the employee to exhaust all leave time earned by that employee, resulting in the loss of compensation from the state for the employee. Conditions that are short-term in nature, including, but not limited to, common illnesses such as influenza and the measles, and common injuries, are not catastrophic. Chronic illnesses or injuries, such as cancer or major surgery, which result in intermittent absences from work and which are long-term in nature and require long recuperation periods may be considered catastrophic.
(c) "Domestic violence" has the meaning as defined in Section 97-3-7.
( * * *d) "Employee" means a person
appointed to a position in the state service or nonstate service as defined in
Section 25-9-107, for which he or she is compensated on a full-time
permanent or provisional basis, a temporary basis, or a part-time basis.
However, in order for an employee to be eligible to receive donated leave, the
employee must meet the requirements provided in Section 25-3-95(8).
(f) "Family member" means:
(i) Regardless of age, a biological, adopted or foster child, stepchild or legal ward, a child of a domestic partner, a child to whom the employee stands in loco parentis, or an individual to whom the employee stood in loco parentis when the individual was a minor;
(ii) A biological, foster, stepparent or adoptive parent or legal guardian of an employee or an employee's spouse or domestic partner or a person who stood in loco parentis when the employee or employee's spouse or domestic partner was a minor child;
(iii) A person to whom the employee is legally married under the laws of any state, or a domestic partner of an employee as registered under the laws of any state or political subdivision;
(iv) A grandparent, grandchild or sibling (whether of a biological, foster, adoptive or step relationship) of the employee or the employee's spouse or domestic partner; or
(v) A person for whom the employee is responsible for providing or arranging health or safety-related care, including, but not limited to, helping that individual obtain diagnostic, preventive, routine or therapeutic health treatment or ensuring the person is safe following domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking.
(g) "Health care professional" means any person licensed under federal or state law to provide medical or nursing services, including, but not limited to, doctors and nurses.
( * * *h) "Workday" * * * means a day as defined in Section
25-1-98.
( * * *i) "Temporary employment"
means the employment of a person in a temporary or time-limited position not to
exceed twelve (12) months.
( * * *j) "Part-time employment"
means the employment of a person in a part-time position.
(k) "Sexual assault" has the same meaning "sexual battery" as defined in Section 97-3-95.
(l) "Stalking" has the meaning as defined in Section 97-3-107.
SECTION 2. Section 25-3-95, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
25-3-95. (1) All employees and appointed officers of the State of Mississippi, except employees of the public universities who do not contribute to the Mississippi Public Employees' Retirement System or the State Institutions of Higher Learning Optional Retirement Program, shall accrue credits for major medical leave as follows:
Continuous Accrual Rate Accrual Rate
Service (Monthly) (Annually)
1 month to 3 years 8 hours per month 12 days per year
37 months to 8 years 7 hours per month 10.5 days per year
97 months to 15 years 6 hours per month 9 days per year
Over 15 years 5 hours per month 7.5 days per year
Faculty members employed by the eight (8) public universities on a nine-month contract shall accrue credit for major medical leave as follows:
Continuous Accrual Rate Accrual Rate
Service (Per Month) (Per Academic Year)
1 month to 3 years 13-1/3 hours per month 15 days per
academic year
37 months to 8 years 14-1/5 hours per month 16 days per
academic year
97 months to 15 years 15-2/5 hours per month 17 days per
academic year
Over 15 years 16 hours per month 18 days per
academic year
Part-time employees shall accrue major medical leave on a pro rata basis. There shall be no maximum limit to major medical leave accumulation. All unused major medical leave shall be counted as creditable service for the purposes of the retirement system as provided in Sections 25-11-103 and 25-13-5.
(2) (a) Major medical leave may be used for * * * any of the purposes authorized in paragraph (b) this
subsection, only after the employee has used one (1) day of accrued
personal or compensatory leave for each absence due to * * * an authorized purpose, or leave
without pay if the employee has no accrued personal or compensatory leave;
provided that faculty members employed by the eight (8) public universities on
a nine-month basis may use major medical leave for the first day of absence due
to * * * an
authorized purpose. However, major medical leave may be used, without
prior use of personal leave, to cover regularly scheduled visits to a * * * health care professional's office
or a hospital for the continuing treatment of a chronic disease, as certified
in advance by a * * * health
care professional.
(b) The authorized purposes for the use of major medical leave are the following:
(i) An employee's mental or physical illness, injury or health condition; an employee's need for medical diagnosis, care or treatment of a mental or physical illness, injury or health condition; an employee's need for preventive medical care;
(ii) Care of a family member with a mental or physical illness, injury or health condition; care of a family member who needs medical diagnosis, care or treatment of a mental or physical illness, injury or health condition; care of a family member who needs preventive medical care; or in the case of an employee's child, to attend a school meeting or a meeting at a place where the child is receiving care necessitated by the child's health condition or disability, domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking;
(iii) Absence necessary due to domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking, provided the leave is to allow the employee to obtain for the employee or the employee's family member:
1. Medical attention needed to recover from physical or psychological injury or disability caused by domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking;
2. Services from a victim services organization;
3. Psychological or other counseling;
4. Relocation or taking steps to secure an existing home due to the domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking; or
5. Legal services, including preparing for or participating in any civil or criminal legal proceeding related to or resulting from the domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking.
(c) For each absence due to an authorized purpose of thirty-two (32) consecutive working hours (combined personal leave and major medical leave), an employer may require reasonable documentation that the major medical leave has been used for an authorized purpose under paragraph (b) of this subsection.
(i) Documentation signed by a health care professional indicating that major medical leave is or was necessary shall be considered reasonable documentation. However, if the employee or employee's family member did not receive services from a health care professional, or if documentation cannot be obtained from a health care professional in a reasonable time or without added expense, the employee may provide a written statement indicating that the employee is taking or took major medical leave for an authorized purpose under paragraph (b). A written statement under this subparagraph (i) may be written in the employee's first language and need not be notarized or in any particular format.
(ii) In cases of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking, one (1) of the following types of documentation selected by the employee shall be considered reasonable documentation:
1. A police report indicating that the employee or the employee's family member was a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking;
2. A written statement from a witness advocate affirming that the employee or employee's family member is or was receiving services from a victim services organization;
3. A court document indicating that the employee or employee's family member is or was involved in legal action related to domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking; or
4. A written statement from the employee affirming that the employee or employee's family member is taking or took major medical leave for an authorized purpose under paragraph (b). A written statement under this item 4 may be written in the employee's first language and need not be notarized or in any particular format.
(iii) An employer may not require that the documentation explain the nature of the illness, details of the underlying health needs, or the details of the domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking.
( * * *d) When an employee's absence is due
to a work-related injury for which the employee is receiving temporary
disability benefits under Section 71-3-17(b) or 71-3-21, the injured employee
shall not use accrued personal and/or medical leave and receive workers'
compensation benefits simultaneously if the combined receipt of both benefits
results in the employee being paid, while absent due to the work-related
injury, a total amount that exceeds one hundred percent (100%) of his or her
wages earned in state employment at the time of injury. In such cases, the
injured employee may use only as much of his or her accrued personal and/or
medical leave as necessary, which may be fewer than eight (8) hours of accrued
personal and/or major medical leave in a day, to constitute the difference
between the amount of temporary disability workers' compensation benefits
received and one hundred percent (100%) of his or her wages earned at
the time of injury in state employment. It is the intent of the Legislature
that no state employee who is absent and disabled from work due to a work-related
injury shall receive more than one hundred percent (100%) of his or her wages
earned in state employment at the time of injury through the use of accrued
personal and/or medical leave combined with temporary disability benefits under
the Workers' Compensation Law. The procedure for implementing this paragraph ( * * *d) shall be as directed by the applicable
appointing authority. The receipt or payment of benefits in compliance with
this paragraph ( * * *d)
shall be considered the employee's exclusive remedy against the employer in
accordance with Section 71-3-9.
(3) An employee may use up to three (3) days of earned major medical leave for each occurrence of death in the immediate family requiring the employee's absence from work. No qualifying time or use of personal leave will be required prior to use of major medical leave for this purpose. For the purpose of this subsection (3), the immediate family is defined as spouse, parent, stepparent, sibling, child, stepchild, grandchild, grandparent, son- or daughter-in-law, mother- or father-in-law or brother- or sister-in-law. Child means a biological, adopted or foster child, or a child for whom the individual stands or stood in loco parentis.
* * *
( * * *4) Upon retirement from active
employment, each faculty member of the state-supported public
universities who is employed on a nine-month basis shall receive credit and be
paid for not more than thirty (30) days of unused major medical leave for
service as a state employee. Unused major medical leave in excess of thirty
(30) days shall be counted as creditable service for the purposes of the retirement
system as provided in Sections 25-11-103 and 25-13-5.
( * * *5) Any state
law enforcement officer who is injured by wound or accident in the line
of duty shall not be required to use earned major medical leave during the
period of recovery from such injury. As used in
this subsection, the term "state law enforcement officer" means a
person employed by a state agency who, as a condition of his or her employment,
is required by law to complete a course of study at the Law Enforcement
Officers Training Academy.
( * * *6) For the purpose of Sections 25-3-91
through 25-3-99, the earned major medical leave of each employee shall be
credited monthly after the completion of each calendar month, and the
appointing authority shall not increase the amount of major medical leave to an
employee's credit. It shall be unlawful for an appointing authority to grant
major medical leave in an amount greater than was earned and accumulated by the
officer or employee.
( * * *7) Any employee may donate a portion
of his or her earned personal leave or major medical leave to another employee
who is suffering from a catastrophic injury or illness, as defined in Section
25-3-91, or to another employee who has a member of his or her immediate family
who is suffering from a catastrophic injury or illness, in accordance with the
following:
(a) The employee donating the leave (the "donor employee") shall designate the employee who is to receive the leave (the "recipient employee") and the amount of earned personal leave and major medical leave that is to be donated, and shall notify the donor employee's appointing authority or supervisor of his or her designation. The donor employee's appointing authority or supervisor then shall notify the recipient employee's appointing authority or supervisor of the amount of leave that has been donated by the donor employee to the recipient employee.
(b) The maximum amount of earned personal leave that an employee may donate to any other employee may not exceed a number of days that would leave the donor employee with fewer than seven (7) days of personal leave left, and the maximum amount of earned major medical leave that an employee may donate to any other employee may not exceed fifty percent (50%) of the earned major medical leave of the donor employee. All donated leave shall be in increments of not less than twenty-four (24) hours.
(c) An employee must have exhausted all of his or her earned personal leave and major medical leave before he or she will be eligible to receive any leave donated by another employee.
(d) Before an employee may receive donated leave, he or she must provide his or her appointing authority or supervisor with a physician's statement that states the beginning date of the catastrophic injury or illness, a description of the injury or illness, and a prognosis for recovery and the anticipated date that the recipient employee will be able to return to work.
(e) If an employee is aggrieved by the decision of his or her appointing authority that the employee is not eligible to receive donated leave because the injury or illness of the employee or member of the employee's immediate family is not, in the appointing authority's determination, a catastrophic injury or illness, the employee may appeal the decision to the employee appeals board.
(f) * * * The maximum period
of time that an employee may use donated leave without resuming work at his or
her place of employment is ninety (90) days, which commences on the first day
that the recipient employee uses donated leave. Donated leave that is not used
because a recipient employee has used the maximum amount of donated leave
authorized under this paragraph shall be returned to the donor employees in the
manner provided under paragraph (g) of this subsection.
(g) If the total amount of leave that is donated to any employee is not used by the recipient employee, the donated leave shall be returned to the donor employees on a pro rata basis, based on the ratio of the number of days of leave donated by each donor employee to the total number of days of leave donated by all donor employees.
(h) The failure of any appointing authority or supervisor of any employee to properly deduct an employee's donation of leave to another employee from the donor employee's earned personal leave or major medical leave shall constitute just cause for the dismissal of the appointing authority or supervisor.
(i) No person through the use of coercion, threats or intimidation shall require or attempt to require any employee to donate his or her leave to another employee. Any person who alleges a violation of this paragraph shall report the violation to the executive head of the agency by whom he or she is employed or, if the alleged violator is the executive head of the agency, then the employee shall report the violation to the State Personnel Board. Any person found to have violated this paragraph shall be subject to removal from office or termination of employment.
(j) No employee can donate leave after tendering notice of separation for any reason or after termination.
(k) Recipient employees of agencies with more than five hundred (500) employees as of March 25, 2003, may receive donated leave only from donor employees within the same agency. A recipient employee in an agency with five hundred (500) or fewer employees as of March 25, 2003, may receive donated leave from any donor employee.
(l) In order for an employee to be eligible to receive donated leave, the employee must:
(i) Have been employed for a total of at least twelve (12) months by the employer on the date on which the leave is donated; and
(ii) Have been employed for at least one thousand two hundred fifty (1,250) hours of service with such employer during the previous twelve-month period from the date on which the leave is donated.
(m) Donated leave shall not be used in lieu of disability retirement.
(n) For the purposes of this subsection, "immediate family" means spouse, parent, stepparent, sibling, child or stepchild.
( * * *8) An employee may use up to six (6)
weeks of earned major medical leave for the placement with the employee of a
child for adoption or foster care and to care for the newly placed child within
one (1) year of placement.
SECTION 3. Section 25-3-93, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
25-3-93. (1) (a) Except as provided in subsection (1)(b), all employees and appointed officers of the State of Mississippi, who are employees as defined in Section 25-3-91, shall be allowed credit for personal leave computed as follows:
Continuous Accrual Rate Accrual Rate
Service (Monthly) (Annually)
1 month to 3 years 12 hours per month 18 days per year
37 months to 8 years 14 hours per month 21 days per year
97 months to 15 years 16 hours per month 24 days per year
Over 15 years 18 hours per month 27 days per year
However, employees who were hired prior to July 1, 1984, who have continuous service of more than five (5) years but not more than eight (8) years shall accrue fifteen (15) hours of personal leave each month.
(b) Temporary employees who work less than a full workweek and part-time employees shall be allowed credit for personal leave computed on a pro rata basis. Faculty members employed by the eight (8) public universities on a nine-month contract, and employees of the public universities who do not contribute to the Mississippi Public Employees' Retirement System or the State Institutions of Higher Learning Optional Retirement Program, shall not be eligible for personal leave.
(2) For the purpose of computing credit for personal leave, each appointed officer or employee shall be considered to work not more than five (5) days each week. Leaves of absence granted by the appointing authority for one (1) year or less shall be permitted without forfeiting previously accumulated continuous service. The provisions of this section shall not apply to military leaves of absence. The time for taking personal leave, except when such leave is taken due to an illness, shall be determined by the appointing authority of which such employees are employed.
(3) For the purpose of Sections 25-3-91 through 25-3-99, the earned personal leave of each employee shall be credited monthly after the completion of each calendar month of service, and the appointing authority shall not increase the amount of personal leave to an employee's credit. It shall be unlawful for an appointing authority to grant personal leave in an amount greater than was earned and accumulated by the officer or employee.
(4) Employees are encouraged
to use earned personal leave. Personal leave may be used for vacations and
personal business as scheduled by the appointing authority and shall be used * * * by the employee for an
authorized purpose under Section 25-3-95(2)(b) requiring absences of one
(1) day or less. Accrued personal or compensatory leave shall be used for the
first day of an employee's * * * authorized purpose under Section 25-3-95(2)(b)
requiring his or her absence of more than one (1) day. Accrued personal
or compensatory leave may also be used for an * * * authorized purpose under Section 25-3-95(2)(b)
involving the employee's * * * family * * * member.
There shall be no limit to the accumulation of personal leave. Upon
termination of employment each employee shall be paid for not more than thirty
(30) days of accumulated personal leave. Unused personal leave in excess of
thirty (30) days shall be counted as creditable service for the purposes of the
retirement system as provided in Sections 25-11-103 and 25-13-5.
(5) Any state law enforcement officer who is injured by wound or accident in the line of duty shall not be required to use earned personal leave during the period of recovery from such injury. As used in this subsection, the term "state law enforcement officer" means a person employed by a state agency who, as a condition of his or her employment, is required by law to complete a course of study at the Law Enforcement Officers Training Academy.
(6) Any employee may donate a portion of his or her earned personal leave to another employee who is suffering from a catastrophic injury or illness, or to another employee who has a member of his or her immediate family who is suffering from a catastrophic injury or illness, in accordance with subsection (8) of Section 25-3-95.
SECTION 4. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2024.
