10/05/2017

D.C. Council Reconsidering Paid Leave Bill Next Week

If unchanged, all D.C. employers will be subject to the 0.62 percent payroll tax

Next week, the D.C. Council is considering changes to the paid leave bill passed in December 2016. On Oct. 10, the D.C. Council will hold a hearing on multiple paid leave bills to modify the legislation and funding mechanisms for the government program.

If unchanged, the current law will go into effect and all D.C. employers will be subject to the 0.62 percent payroll tax on all employees on July 1, 2019. Employees would not be able to access the paid leave benefit until July 1, 2020 at a minimum, but very likely longer as technical delays are common with new government programs.

The American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) is working with a wide-ranging coalition of other large D.C. organizations including the D.C. Chamber of Commerce and the Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area to support legislation that will best serve employees and employers. ASAE is supportive of aspects of Chairman Mendelson’s employer mandate alternative, but it does not support the additional tax that would be levied upon employers who provide their own leave. ASAE also has strong concerns regarding the complicated nature of the enforcement provisions in the legislation and the unnecessary burden they would create for employers.

ASAE’s planned testimony for the Oct. 10 hearing can be found here. ASAE will keep its members updated as this issue progresses. For more information, contact ASAE at publicpolicy@asaecenter.org.

This article was provided to OSAE by the Power of A and ASAE's Inroads.