II 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1898 

To amend the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 to expand family 

and medical leave for spouses, sons, daughters, and parents of 

servicemembers with combat-related injuries. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 30, 2007 

Mr. REID (for Mrs. CLINTON (for herself, Mrs. DOLE, Ms. MIKULSKI, Mr. 

GRAHAM, Mr. KENNEDY, and Mr. BROWN)) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To amend the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 to 

expand family and medical leave for spouses, sons, 

daughters, and parents of servicemembers with combatrelated injuries. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Military Family and 

5 Medical Leave Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. MILITARY FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE. 

2 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 101 of the Family and 

3 Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2611) is amended 

4 by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(14) ACTIVE DUTY.—The term ‘active duty’ 

6 means duty under a call or order to active duty 

7 under a provision of law referred to in section 

8 101(a)(13)(B) of title 10, United States Code. 

9 ‘‘(15) COVERED SERVICEMEMBER.—The term 

10 ‘covered servicemember’ means a member of the 

11 Armed Forces, including a member of the National 

12 Guard or a Reserve, who is undergoing medical 

13 treatment, recuperation, or therapy, or is otherwise 

14 in medical hold or medical holdover status, for a se15 rious injury or illness. 

16 ‘‘(16) MEDICAL HOLD OR MEDICAL HOLDOVER

17 STATUS.—The term ‘medical hold or medical hold18 over status’ means— 

19 ‘‘(A) the status of a member of the Armed 

20 Forces, including a member of the National 

21 Guard or a Reserve, assigned or attached to a 

22 military hospital for medical care; and 

23 ‘‘(B) the status of a member of a reserve 

24 component of the Armed Forces who is sepa25 rated, whether pre-deployment or post-deploy26 ment, from the member’s unit while in need of 


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1 health care based on a medical condition identi2 fied while the member is on active duty in the 

3 Armed Forces. 

4 ‘‘(17) SERIOUS INJURY OR ILLNESS.—The term 

5 ‘serious injury or illness’, in the case of a member 

6 of the Armed Forces, means an injury or illness in7 curred by the member in line of duty on active duty 

8 in the Armed Forces that may render the member 

9 medically unfit to perform the duties of the mem10 ber’s office, grade, rank, or rating.’’. 

11 (b) MILITARY FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE.— 

12 (1) ENTITLEMENT TO LEAVE.—Section 102(a) 

13 of such Act (29 U.S.C. 2612(a)) is amended by add14 ing at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(3) MILITARY FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE.— 

16 Subject to section 103, an eligible employee shall be 

17 entitled to a total of 26 workweeks of leave during 

18 a 12-month period to care for a covered 

19 servicemember who is the spouse, son, daughter, or 

20 parent of the employee. The leave described in this 

21 paragraph shall only be available during a single 12- 

22 month period. 

23 ‘‘(4) COMBINED LEAVE TOTAL.—During the 

24 single 12-month period described in paragraph (3), 

25 an eligible employee shall be entitled to a combined 


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1 total of 26 workweeks of leave under paragraphs (1) 

2 and (3). Nothing in this paragraph shall be con3 strued to limit the availability of leave under para4 graph (1) during any other 12-month period.’’. 

5 (2) SCHEDULE.—Section 102(b) of such Act 

6 (29 U.S.C. 2612(b)) is amended— 

7 (A) in paragraph (1), in the second sen8 tence— 

9 (i) by striking ‘‘section 103(b)(5)’’ 

10 and inserting ‘‘subsection (b)(5) or (f) (as 

11 appropriate) of section 103’’; and 

12 (ii) by inserting ‘‘or under subsection 

13 (a)(3)’’ after ‘‘subsection (a)(1)’’; and 

14 (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘or 

15 under subsection (a)(3)’’ after ‘‘subsection 

16 (a)(1)’’. 

17 (3) SUBSTITUTION OF PAID LEAVE.—Section 

18 102(d) of such Act (29 U.S.C. 2612(d)) is amend19 ed— 

20 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

21 (i) by inserting ‘‘(or 26 workweeks in 

22 the case of leave provided under subsection 

23 (a)(3))’’ after ‘‘12 workweeks’’ the first 

24 place it appears; and 


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1 (ii) by inserting ‘‘(or 26 workweeks, 

2 as appropriate)’’ after ‘‘12 workweeks’’ the 

3 second place it appears; and 

4 (B) in paragraph (2)— 

5 (i) in subparagraph (A), by adding at 

6 the end the following: ‘‘An eligible em7 ployee may elect, or an employer may re8 quire the employee, to substitute any of 

9 the accrued paid vacation leave, personal 

10 leave, or family leave of the employee for 

11 leave provided under subsection (a)(3) for 

12 any part of the 26-week period of such 

13 leave under such subsection.’’; and 

14 (ii) in subparagraph (B), by adding at 

15 the end the following: ‘‘An eligible em16 ployee may elect, or an employer may re17 quire the employee, to substitute any of 

18 the accrued paid vacation leave, personal 

19 leave, or medical or sick leave of the em20 ployee for leave provided under subsection 

21 (a)(3) for any part of the 26-week period 

22 of such leave under such subsection.’’. 

23 (4) NOTICE.—Section 102(e)(2) of such Act 

24 (29 U.S.C. 2612(e)(2)) is amended by inserting ‘‘or 

25 under subsection (a)(3)’’ after ‘‘subsection (a)(1)’’. 


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1 (5) SPOUSES EMPLOYED BY SAME EM2 PLOYER.—Section 102(f) of such Act (29 U.S.C. 

3 2612(f)) is amended— 

4 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and 

5 (2) as subparagraphs (A) and (B), and aligning 

6 the margins of the subparagraphs with the 

7 margins of section 102(e)(2)(A); 

8 (B) by striking ‘‘In any’’ and inserting the 

9 following: 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In any’’; and 

11 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(2) MILITARY FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The aggregate num14 ber of workweeks of leave to which both that 

15 husband and wife may be entitled under sub16 section (a) may be limited to 26 workweeks 

17 during the single 12-month period described in 

18 subsection (a)(3) if the leave is— 

19 ‘‘(i) leave under subsection (a)(3); or 

20 ‘‘(ii) a combination of leave under 

21 subsection (a)(3) and leave described in 

22 paragraph (1). 

23 ‘‘(B) BOTH LIMITATIONS APPLICABLE.—If 

24 the leave taken by the husband and wife in25 cludes leave described in paragraph (1), the 


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1 limitation in paragraph (1) shall apply to the 

2 leave described in paragraph (1).’’. 

3 (c) CERTIFICATION.—Section 103 of such Act (29 

4 U.S.C. 2613) is amended by adding at the end the fol5 lowing: 

6 ‘‘(f) CERTIFICATION FOR MILITARY FAMILY AND

7 MEDICAL LEAVE.—An employer may require that a re8 quest for leave under section 102(a)(3) be supported by 

9 a certification issued at such time and in such manner 

10 as the Secretary may by regulation prescribe.’’. 

11 (d) FAILURE TO RETURN.—Section 104(c) of such 

12 Act (29 U.S.C. 2614(c)) is amended— 

13 (1) in paragraph (2)(B)(i), by inserting ‘‘or 

14 under section 102(a)(3)’’ before the semicolon; and 

15 (2) in paragraph (3)(A)— 

16 (A) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘or’’ at the 

17 end; 

18 (B) in clause (ii), by striking the period 

19 and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

20 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(iii) a certification issued by the 

22 health care provider of the son, daughter, 

23 spouse, or parent of the employee, as ap24 propriate, in the case of an employee unVerDate Aug 31 2005 05:34 Jul 31, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1898.IS S1898

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1 able to return to work because of a condi2 tion specified in section 102(a)(3).’’. 

3 (e) ENFORCEMENT.—Section 107 of such Act (29 

4 U.S.C. 2617) is amended, in subsection (a)(1)(A)(i)(II), 

5 by inserting ‘‘(or 26 weeks, in a case involving leave under 

6 section 102(a)(3))’’ after ‘‘12 weeks’’. 

7 (f) INSTRUCTIONAL EMPLOYEES.—Section 108 of 

8 such Act (29 U.S.C. 2618) is amended, in subsections 

9 (c)(1), (d)(2), and (d)(3), by inserting ‘‘or under section 

10 102(a)(3)’’ after ‘‘section 102(a)(1)’’. 

Æ 


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