II 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 497 

To allow Americans to earn paid sick time so that they can address their 

own health needs and the health needs of their families. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 12, 2015 

Mrs. MURRAY (for herself, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, Mr. SANDERS, Mr. COONS, Ms. 

MIKULSKI, Ms. WARREN, Mr. MURPHY, Mr. CASEY, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, 

Mr. FRANKEN, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. BROWN, Mr. HEINRICH, Ms. BALDWIN, 

Mr. BOOKER, Ms. HIRONO, Mr. MERKLEY, Mr. PETERS, Mr. 

BLUMENTHAL, Mr. MARKEY, and Mr. LEAHY) introduced the following 

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

A BILL 

To allow Americans to earn paid sick time so that they 

can address their own health needs and the health needs 

of their families. 

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 ‘‘Healthy Families Act’’. 

5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

6 Congress makes the following findings: 


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1 (1) Working Americans need time to meet their 

2 own health care needs and to care for family mem3 bers. The absence of paid sick time has forced 

4 Americans to make untenable choices between need5 ed income and jobs on the one hand and caring for 

6 their own and their family’s health on the other. It 

7 is in the national interest to ensure that all Ameri8 cans can care for their own health and the health of 

9 their families while prospering at work. 

10 (2) Nearly 40 percent of the private sector 

11 workforce, and 11 percent of the public sector work12 force, lacks paid sick time. Another 4,000,000 theo13 retically have access to sick time, but have not been 

14 on the job long enough to use it. Millions more lack 

15 sick time they can use to care for a sick child or ill 

16 family member. 

17 (3) A 2012 study published by BioMed Central 

18 Public Health of results of the National Health 

19 Interview Survey found that lack of paid sick leave 

20 is a barrier to receiving cancer screenings and pre21 ventive care. 

22 (4) When parents cannot afford to miss work 

23 and must send children with contagious illnesses to 

24 child care centers or schools, infection can spread 

25 rapidly through child care centers and schools. 


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1 (5) A 2012 study published in the American 

2 Journal of Public Health found that a lack of work3 place policies like paid sick days contributed to an 

4 additional 5,000,000 cases of influenza-like illness 

5 during the H1N1 pandemic of 2009. 

6 (6) A 2011 study by the Institute for Women’s 

7 Policy Research found that a universal paid sick 

8 days policy would reduce preventable visits to the 

9 emergency room and result in cost savings of 

10 $1,100,000,000 per year, including $500,000,000 in 

11 savings for public health insurance like Medicaid. 

12 (7) A 2009 study by the Center for Economic 

13 and Policy Research found that, of 22 countries with 

14 comparable economies, the United States was 1 of 

15 only 3 countries that did not provide any paid time 

16 off for workers with short-term illnesses. 

17 (8) The American Productivity Audit completed 

18 in 2003 found that lost productivity due to illness 

19 costs $226,000,000,000 annually, and that 71 per20 cent of that cost stems from presenteeism, the prac21 tice of employees coming to work despite illness. 

22 Studies in the Journal of Occupational and Environ23 mental Medicine, the Employee Benefit News, and 

24 the Harvard Business Review show that 


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1 presenteeism is a larger productivity drain than ei2 ther absenteeism or short-term disability. 

3 (9) Working while sick also increases a worker’s 

4 probability of suffering an injury on the job. A 2012 

5 study published by the American Journal of Public 

6 Health found that workers with access to paid sick 

7 leave were 28 percent less likely than workers with8 out paid sick leave to suffer nonfatal occupational 

9 injuries. 

10 (10)(A) Workers’ access to paid sick time varies 

11 dramatically by wage level. 

12 (B) For private sector workers— 

13 (i) for workers in the lowest quartile of 

14 earners, 70 percent lack paid sick time; 

15 (ii) for workers in the next 2 quartiles, 36 

16 and 27 percent, respectively, lack paid sick 

17 time; and 

18 (iii) even for workers in the highest quar19 tile, 13 percent lack paid sick time. 

20 (C) For public sector workers— 

21 (i) for workers in the lowest quartile of 

22 earners, 26 percent lack paid sick time; 

23 (ii) for workers in the next 2 quartiles, 7 

24 percent lack paid sick time; and 


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1 (iii) for workers in the highest quartile, 2 

2 percent lack paid sick time. 

3 (11) Nearly 1 in 3 American women report physical 

4 or sexual abuse by a husband or boyfriend at some point 

5 in their lives. Domestic violence also affects men. Women 

6 account for about 85 percent of the victims of domestic 

7 violence and men account for approximately 15 percent 

8 of the victims. Therefore, women disproportionately need 

9 time off to care for their health or to find solutions, such 

10 as obtaining a restraining order or finding housing, to 

11 avoid or prevent physical or sexual abuse. 

12 (12) Without paid sick days that can be used to ad13 dress the effects of domestic violence, these victims are 

14 in grave danger of losing their jobs. One survey found that 

15 96 percent of employed domestic violence victims experi16 enced problems at work related to the violence. The Gov17 ernment Accountability Office similarly found that 24 to 

18 52 percent of victims report losing a job due, at least in 

19 part, to domestic violence. The loss of employment can be 

20 particularly devastating for victims of domestic violence, 

21 who often need economic security to ensure safety. 

22 (13) The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 

23 has estimated that domestic violence costs over 

24 $700,000,000 annually due to the victims’ lost produc25 tivity in employment. 


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1 (14) Efforts to assist abused employees result in posi2 tive outcomes for employers as well as employees because 

3 employers can retain workers who might otherwise be 

4 compelled to leave. 

5 SEC. 3. PURPOSES. 

6 The purposes of this Act are— 

7 (1) to ensure that working Americans can ad8 dress their own health needs and the health needs 

9 of their families by requiring employers to permit 

10 employees to earn up to 56 hours of paid sick time 

11 including paid time for family care; 

12 (2) to diminish public and private health care 

13 costs by enabling workers to seek early and routine 

14 medical care for themselves and their family mem15 bers; 

16 (3) to assist employees who are, or whose fam17 ily members are, victims of domestic violence, sexual 

18 assault, or stalking, by providing the employees with 

19 paid time away from work to allow the victims to re20 ceive treatment and to take the necessary steps to 

21 ensure their protection; 

22 (4) to address the historical and persistent 

23 widespread pattern of employment discrimination on 

24 the basis of gender by both private and public sector 

25 employers; 


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1 (5) to accomplish the purposes described in 

2 paragraphs (1) through (4) in a manner that is fea3 sible for employers; and 

4 (6) consistent with the provision of the 14th 

5 Amendment to the Constitution relating to equal 

6 protection of the laws, and pursuant to Congress’ 

7 power to enforce that provision under section 5 of 

8 that Amendment— 

9 (A) to accomplish the purposes described 

10 in paragraphs (1) through (4) in a manner that 

11 minimizes the potential for employment dis12 crimination on the basis of sex by ensuring gen13 erally that paid sick time is available for eligible 

14 medical reasons on a gender-neutral basis; and 

15 (B) to promote the goal of equal employ16 ment opportunity for women and men. 

17 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 

18 In this Act: 

19 (1) CHILD.—The term ‘‘child’’ means a biologi20 cal, foster, or adopted child, a stepchild, a child of 

21 a domestic partner, a legal ward, or a child of a per22 son standing in loco parentis, who is— 

23 (A) under 18 years of age; or 


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1 (B) 18 years of age or older and incapable 

2 of self-care because of a mental or physical dis3 ability. 

4 (2) DOMESTIC PARTNER.— 

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘domestic 

6 partner’’, with respect to an individual, means 

7 another individual with whom the individual is 

8 in a committed relationship. 

9 (B) COMMITTED RELATIONSHIP DE10 FINED.—The term ‘‘committed relationship’’ 

11 means a relationship between two individuals, 

12 each at least 18 years of age, in which each in13 dividual is the other individual’s sole domestic 

14 partner and both individuals share responsi15 bility for a significant measure of each other’s 

16 common welfare. The term includes any such 

17 relationship between two individuals, including 

18 individuals of the same sex, that is granted 

19 legal recognition by a State or political subdivi20 sion of a State as a marriage or analogous rela21 tionship, including a civil union or domestic 

22 partnership. 

23 (3) DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.—The term ‘‘domestic 

24 violence’’ has the meaning given the term in section 

25 40002(a) of the Violence Against Women Act of 


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1 1994 (42 U.S.C. 13925(a)), except that the ref2 erence in such section to the term ‘‘jurisdiction re3 ceiving grant monies’’ shall be deemed to mean the 

4 jurisdiction in which the victim lives or the jurisdic5 tion in which the employer involved is located. Such 

6 term also includes dating violence, as that term is 

7 defined in such section. 

8 (4) EMPLOYEE.—The term ‘‘employee’’ means 

9 an individual who is— 

10 (A)(i) an employee, as defined in section 

11 3(e) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 

12 (29 U.S.C. 203(e)), who is not covered under 

13 subparagraph (E), including such an employee 

14 of the Library of Congress, except that a ref15 erence in such section to an employer shall be 

16 considered to be a reference to an employer de17 scribed in clauses (i)(I) and (ii) of paragraph 

18 (5)(A); or 

19 (ii) an employee of the Government Ac20 countability Office; 

21 (B) a State employee described in section 

22 304(a) of the Government Employee Rights Act 

23 of 1991 (42 U.S.C. 2000e–16c(a)); 

24 (C) a covered employee, as defined in sec25 tion 101 of the Congressional Accountability 


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1 Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1301), other than an ap2 plicant for employment; 

3 (D) a covered employee, as defined in sec4 tion 411(c) of title 3, United States Code; or 

5 (E) a Federal officer or employee covered 

6 under subchapter V of chapter 63 of title 5, 

7 United States Code. 

8 (5) EMPLOYER.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘employer’’ 

10 means a person who is— 

11 (i)(I) a covered employer, as defined 

12 in subparagraph (B), who is not covered 

13 under subclause (V); 

14 (II) an entity employing a State em15 ployee described in section 304(a) of the 

16 Government Employee Rights Act of 1991; 

17 (III) an employing office, as defined 

18 in section 101 of the Congressional Ac19 countability Act of 1995; 

20 (IV) an employing office, as defined in 

21 section 411(c) of title 3, United States 

22 Code; or 

23 (V) an employing agency covered 

24 under subchapter V of chapter 63 of title 

25 5, United States Code; and 


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1 (ii) is engaged in commerce (including 

2 government), or an industry or activity af3 fecting commerce (including government), 

4 as defined in subparagraph (B)(iii). 

5 (B) COVERED EMPLOYER.— 

6 (i) IN GENERAL.—In subparagraph 

7 (A)(i)(I), the term ‘‘covered employer’’— 

8 (I) means any person engaged in 

9 commerce or in any industry or activ10 ity affecting commerce who employs 

11 15 or more employees for each work12 ing day during each of 20 or more 

13 calendar workweeks in the current or 

14 preceding year; 

15 (II) means a smaller employer, as 

16 defined in subparagraph (C), to which 

17 the special rule in paragraph (3) of 

18 section 5(a) applies; 

19 (III) includes— 

20 (aa) any person who acts, 

21 directly or indirectly, in the inter22 est of an employer to any of the 

23 employees of such employer; and 

24 (bb) any successor in inter25 est of an employer; 


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1 (IV) includes any ‘‘public agen2 cy’’, as defined in section 3(x) of the 

3 Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 

4 (29 U.S.C. 203(x)); and 

5 (V) includes the Government Ac6 countability Office and the Library of 

7 Congress. 

8 (ii) PUBLIC AGENCY.—For purposes 

9 of clause (i)(IV), a public agency shall be 

10 considered to be a person engaged in com11 merce or in an industry or activity affect12 ing commerce. 

13 (iii) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of 

14 this subparagraph: 

15 (I) COMMERCE.—The terms 

16 ‘‘commerce’’ and ‘‘industry or activity 

17 affecting commerce’’ mean any activ18 ity, business, or industry in commerce 

19 or in which a labor dispute would 

20 hinder or obstruct commerce or the 

21 free flow of commerce, and include 

22 ‘‘commerce’’ and any ‘‘industry affect23 ing commerce’’, as defined in para24 graphs (1) and (3) of section 501 of 


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1 the Labor Management Relations Act, 

2 1947 (29 U.S.C. 142 (1) and (3)). 

3 (II) EMPLOYEE.—The term ‘‘em4 ployee’’ has the same meaning given 

5 such term in section 3(e) of the Fair 

6 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 

7 U.S.C. 203(e)). 

8 (III) PERSON.—The term ‘‘per9 son’’ has the same meaning given 

10 such term in section 3(a) of the Fair 

11 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 

12 U.S.C. 203(a)). 

13 (C) SMALLER EMPLOYER.—The term 

14 ‘‘smaller employer’’ means any person engaged 

15 in commerce or in any industry or activity af16 fecting commerce who employs fewer than 15 

17 employees for each working day during each of 

18 20 or more calendar workweeks in the pre19 ceding year. 

20 (D) PREDECESSORS.—Any reference in 

21 this paragraph to an employer shall include a 

22 reference to any predecessor of such employer. 

23 (6) EMPLOYMENT BENEFITS.—The term ‘‘em24 ployment benefits’’ means all benefits provided or 

25 made available to employees by an employer, includVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:18 Feb 24, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S497.IS S497

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1 ing group life insurance, health insurance, disability 

2 insurance, sick leave, annual leave, educational bene3 fits, and pensions, regardless of whether such bene4 fits are provided by a practice or written policy of 

5 an employer or through an ‘‘employee benefit plan’’, 

6 as defined in section 3(3) of the Employee Retire7 ment Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 

8 1002(3)). 

9 (7) HEALTH CARE PROVIDER.—The term 

10 ‘‘health care provider’’ means a provider who— 

11 (A)(i) is a doctor of medicine or osteopathy 

12 who is authorized to practice medicine or sur13 gery (as appropriate) by the State in which the 

14 doctor practices; or 

15 (ii) is any other person determined by the 

16 Secretary to be capable of providing health care 

17 services; and 

18 (B) is not employed by an employer for 

19 whom the provider issues certification under 

20 this Act. 

21 (8) PAID SICK TIME.—The term ‘‘paid sick 

22 time’’ means an increment of compensated leave that 

23 can be earned by an employee for use during an ab24 sence from employment for any of the reasons deVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:18 Feb 24, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S497.IS S497

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1 scribed in paragraphs (1) through (4) of section 

2 5(b). 

3 (9) PARENT.—The term ‘‘parent’’ means a bio4 logical, foster, or adoptive parent of an employee, a 

5 stepparent of an employee, parent-in-law, parent of 

6 a domestic partner, or a legal guardian or other per7 son who stood in loco parentis to an employee when 

8 the employee was a child. 

9 (10) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 

10 means the Secretary of Labor. 

11 (11) SEXUAL ASSAULT.—The term ‘‘sexual as12 sault’’ has the meaning given the term in section 

13 40002(a) of the Violence Against Women Act of 

14 1994 (42 U.S.C. 13925(a)). 

15 (12) SPOUSE.—The term ‘‘spouse’’, with re16 spect to an employee, has the meaning given such 

17 term by the marriage laws of the State in which the 

18 marriage was celebrated. 

19 (13) STALKING.—The term ‘‘stalking’’ has the 

20 meaning given the term in section 40002(a) of the 

21 Violence Against Women Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 

22 13925(a)). 

23 (14) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ has the mean24 ing given the term in section 3 of the Fair Labor 

25 Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203). 


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1 (15) UNPAID SICK TIME.—The term ‘‘unpaid 

2 sick time’’ means the leave earned and used in the 

3 same manner and under the same conditions as paid 

4 sick time for the purposes of this Act, except that 

5 no compensation shall be paid. 

6 (16) VICTIM SERVICES ORGANIZATION.—The 

7 term ‘‘victim services organization’’ means a non8 profit, nongovernmental organization that provides 

9 assistance to victims of domestic violence, sexual as10 sault, or stalking or advocates for such victims, in11 cluding a rape crisis center, an organization carrying 

12 out a domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking 

13 prevention or treatment program, an organization 

14 operating a shelter or providing counseling services, 

15 or a legal services organization or other organization 

16 providing assistance through the legal process. 

17 SEC. 5. EARNED PAID SICK TIME. 

18 (a) EARNING OF PAID SICK TIME.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—An employer shall provide 

20 each employee employed by the employer not less 

21 than 1 hour of earned paid sick time for every 30 

22 hours worked, to be used as described in subsection 

23 (b). An employer shall not be required to permit an 

24 employee to earn, under this section, more than 56 


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1 hours of paid sick time in a year, unless the em2 ployer chooses to set a higher limit. 

3 (2) EXEMPT EMPLOYEES.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

5 paragraph (4), for purposes of this section, an 

6 employee who is exempt from overtime require7 ments under section 13(a)(1) of the Fair Labor 

8 Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 213(a)(1)) 

9 shall be assumed to work 40 hours in each 

10 workweek. 

11 (B) SHORTER NORMAL WORKWEEK.—If 

12 the normal workweek of such an employee is 

13 less than 40 hours, the employee shall earn 

14 paid sick time based upon that normal work15 week. 

16 (3) SPECIAL RULE FOR SMALLER EMPLOY17 ERS.—A smaller employer may provide paid sick 

18 time as provided under paragraph (1) but if such 

19 smaller employer opts not to do so, the smaller em20 ployer shall provide not fewer than 56 hours of un21 paid sick time to each employee per year to be used 

22 for the same purposes and under the same condi23 tions as set out in this Act. The provision and earn24 ing of unpaid sick time shall be treated in all re25 spects the same as the provision and earning of paid 


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1 sick time under this Act. References in this Act to 

2 paid sick time shall, with respect to smaller employ3 ers, be deemed to be references to unpaid sick time. 

4 (4) DATES FOR BEGINNING TO EARN PAID SICK

5 TIME AND USE.—Employees shall begin to earn paid 

6 sick time under this section at the commencement of 

7 their employment. An employee shall be entitled to 

8 use the earned paid sick time beginning on the 60th 

9 calendar day following commencement of the em10 ployee’s employment. After that 60th calendar day, 

11 the employee may use the paid sick time as the time 

12 is earned. An employer may, at the discretion of the 

13 employer, loan paid sick time to an employee for use 

14 by such employee in advance of the employee earn15 ing such sick time as provided in this subsection and 

16 may permit use before the 60th day of employment. 

17 (5) CARRYOVER.— 

18 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

19 subparagraph (B), paid sick time earned under 

20 this section shall carry over from 1 year to the 

21 next. 

22 (B) CONSTRUCTION.—This Act shall not 

23 be construed to require an employer to permit 

24 an employee to earn more than 56 hours of 

25 earned paid sick time at a given time. 


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1 (6) EMPLOYERS WITH EXISTING POLICIES.— 

2 Any employer with a paid leave policy who makes 

3 available an amount of paid leave that is sufficient 

4 to meet the requirements of this section and that 

5 may be used for the same purposes and under the 

6 same conditions as the purposes and conditions out7 lined in subsection (b) shall not be required to per8 mit an employee to earn additional paid sick time 

9 under this section. 

10 (7) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section 

11 shall be construed as requiring financial or other re12 imbursement to an employee from an employer upon 

13 the employee’s termination, resignation, retirement, 

14 or other separation from employment for earned 

15 paid sick time that has not been used. 

16 (8) REINSTATEMENT.—If an employee is sepa17 rated from employment with an employer and is re18 hired, within 12 months after that separation, by the 

19 same employer, the employer shall reinstate the em20 ployee’s previously earned paid sick time. The em21 ployee shall be entitled to use the earned paid sick 

22 time and earn additional paid sick time at the re23 commencement of employment with the employer. 

24 (9) PROHIBITION.—An employer may not re25 quire, as a condition of providing paid sick time 


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1 under this Act, that the employee involved search for 

2 or find a replacement employee to cover the hours 

3 during which the employee is using paid sick time. 

4 (b) USES.—Paid sick time earned under this section 

5 may be used by an employee for any of the following: 

6 (1) An absence resulting from a physical or 

7 mental illness, injury, or medical condition of the 

8 employee. 

9 (2) An absence resulting from obtaining profes10 sional medical diagnosis or care, or preventive med11 ical care, for the employee. 

12 (3) An absence for the purpose of caring for a 

13 child, a parent, a spouse, a domestic partner, or any 

14 other individual related by blood or affinity whose 

15 close association with the employee is the equivalent 

16 of a family relationship, who— 

17 (A) has any of the conditions or needs for 

18 diagnosis or care described in paragraph (1) or 

19 (2); 

20 (B) in the case of someone who is a child, 

21 is required to attend a school meeting or a 

22 meeting at a place where the child is receiving 

23 care necessitated by the child’s health condition 

24 or disability; or 

25 (C) is otherwise in need of care. 


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1 (4) An absence resulting from domestic vio2 lence, sexual assault, or stalking, if the time is to— 

3 (A) seek medical attention for the em4 ployee or the employee’s child, parent, spouse, 

5 domestic partner, or an individual related to the 

6 employee as described in paragraph (3), to re7 cover from physical or psychological injury or 

8 disability caused by domestic violence, sexual 

9 assault, or stalking; 

10 (B) obtain or assist a related person de11 scribed in paragraph (3) in obtaining services 

12 from a victim services organization; 

13 (C) obtain or assist a related person de14 scribed in paragraph (3) in obtaining psycho15 logical or other counseling; 

16 (D) seek relocation; or 

17 (E) take legal action, including preparing 

18 for or participating in any civil or criminal legal 

19 proceeding related to or resulting from domestic 

20 violence, sexual assault, or stalking. 

21 (c) SCHEDULING.—An employee shall make a reason22 able effort to schedule a period of paid sick time under 

23 this Act in a manner that does not unduly disrupt the 

24 operations of the employer. 

25 (d) PROCEDURES.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Paid sick time shall be pro2 vided upon the oral or written request of an em3 ployee. Such request shall— 

4 (A) include the expected duration of the 

5 period of such time; 

6 (B) in a case in which the need for such 

7 period of time is foreseeable at least 7 days in 

8 advance of such period, be provided at least 7 

9 days in advance of such period; and 

10 (C) otherwise, be provided as soon as prac11 ticable after the employee is aware of the need 

12 for such period. 

13 (2) CERTIFICATION IN GENERAL.— 

14 (A) PROVISION.— 

15 (i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara16 graph (C), an employer may require that a 

17 request for paid sick time under this sec18 tion for a purpose described in paragraph 

19 (1), (2), or (3) of subsection (b) be sup20 ported by a certification issued by the 

21 health care provider of the eligible em22 ployee or of an individual described in sub23 section (b)(3), as appropriate, if the period 

24 of such time covers more than 3 consecu25 tive workdays. 


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1 (ii) TIMELINESS.—The employee shall 

2 provide a copy of such certification to the 

3 employer in a timely manner, not later 

4 than 30 days after the first day of the pe5 riod of time. The employer shall not delay 

6 the commencement of the period of time on 

7 the basis that the employer has not yet re8 ceived the certification. 

9 (B) SUFFICIENT CERTIFICATION.— 

10 (i) IN GENERAL.—A certification pro11 vided under subparagraph (A) shall be suf12 ficient if it states— 

13 (I) the date on which the period 

14 of time will be needed; 

15 (II) the probable duration of the 

16 period of time; 

17 (III) the appropriate medical 

18 facts within the knowledge of the 

19 health care provider regarding the 

20 condition involved, subject to clause 

21 (ii); and 

22 (IV)(aa) for purposes of paid sick 

23 time under subsection (b)(1), a state24 ment that absence from work is medi25 cally necessary; 


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1 (bb) for purposes of such time 

2 under subsection (b)(2), the dates on 

3 which testing for a medical diagnosis 

4 or care is expected to be given and the 

5 duration of such testing or care; and 

6 (cc) for purposes of such time 

7 under subsection (b)(3), in the case of 

8 time to care for someone who is not a 

9 child, a statement that care is needed 

10 for an individual described in such 

11 subsection, and an estimate of the 

12 amount of time that such care is 

13 needed for such individual. 

14 (ii) LIMITATION.—In issuing a certifi15 cation under subparagraph (A), a health 

16 care provider shall make reasonable efforts 

17 to limit the medical facts described in 

18 clause (i)(III) that are disclosed in the cer19 tification to the minimum necessary to es20 tablish a need for the employee to utilize 

21 paid sick time. 

22 (C) REGULATIONS.—Regulations pre23 scribed under section 14 shall specify the man24 ner in which an employee who does not have 


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1 health insurance shall provide a certification for 

2 purposes of this paragraph. 

3 (D) CONFIDENTIALITY AND NONDISCLO4 SURE.— 

5 (i) PROTECTED HEALTH INFORMA6 TION.—Nothing in this Act shall be con7 strued to require a health care provider to 

8 disclose information in violation of section 

9 1177 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

10 1320d–6) or the regulations promulgated 

11 pursuant to section 264(c) of the Health 

12 Insurance Portability and Accountability 

13 Act of 1996 (42 U.S.C. 1320d–2 note). 

14 (ii) HEALTH INFORMATION

15 RECORDS.—If an employer possesses 

16 health information about an employee or 

17 an employee’s child, parent, spouse, domes18 tic partner, or an individual related to the 

19 employee as described in subsection (b)(3), 

20 such information shall— 

21 (I) be maintained on a separate 

22 form and in a separate file from other 

23 personnel information; 

24 (II) be treated as a confidential 

25 medical record; and 


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1 (III) not be disclosed except to 

2 the affected employee or with the per3 mission of the affected employee. 

4 (3) CERTIFICATION IN THE CASE OF DOMESTIC

5 VIOLENCE, SEXUAL ASSAULT, OR STALKING.— 

6 (A) IN GENERAL.—An employer may re7 quire that a request for paid sick time under 

8 this section for a purpose described in sub9 section (b)(4) be supported by any 1 of the fol10 lowing forms of documentation, but the em11 ployer may not specify the particular form of 

12 documentation to be provided: 

13 (i) A police report indicating that the 

14 employee, or a member of the employee’s 

15 family described in subsection (b)(4), was 

16 a victim of domestic violence, sexual as17 sault, or stalking. 

18 (ii) A court order protecting or sepa19 rating the employee or a member of the 

20 employee’s family described in subsection 

21 (b)(4) from the perpetrator of an act of 

22 domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalk23 ing, or other evidence from the court or 

24 prosecuting attorney that the employee or 

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1 scribed in subsection (b)(4) has appeared 

2 in court or is scheduled to appear in court 

3 in a proceeding related to domestic vio4 lence, sexual assault, or stalking. 

5 (iii) Other documentation signed by 

6 an employee or volunteer working for a vic7 tim services organization, an attorney, a 

8 police officer, a medical professional, a so9 cial worker, an antiviolence counselor, or a 

10 member of the clergy, affirming that the 

11 employee or a member of the employee’s 

12 family described in subsection (b)(4) is a 

13 victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, 

14 or stalking. 

15 (B) REQUIREMENTS.—The requirements 

16 of paragraph (2) shall apply to certifications 

17 under this paragraph, except that— 

18 (i) subclauses (III) and (IV) of sub19 paragraph (B)(i) and subparagraph (B)(ii) 

20 of such paragraph shall not apply; 

21 (ii) the certification shall state the 

22 reason that the leave is required with the 

23 facts to be disclosed limited to the min24 imum necessary to establish a need for the 

25 employee to be absent from work, and the 


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1 employee shall not be required to explain 

2 the details of the domestic violence, sexual 

3 assault, or stalking involved; and 

4 (iii) with respect to confidentiality 

5 under subparagraph (D) of such para6 graph, any information provided to the em7 ployer under this paragraph shall be con8 fidential, except to the extent that any dis9 closure of such information is— 

10 (I) requested or consented to in 

11 writing by the employee; or 

12 (II) otherwise required by appli13 cable Federal or State law. 

14 SEC. 6. NOTICE REQUIREMENT. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Each employer shall notify each 

16 employee and include in any employee handbook the infor17 mation described in paragraphs (1) through (4). Each em18 ployer shall post and keep posted a notice, to be prepared 

19 or approved in accordance with procedures specified in 

20 regulations prescribed under section 14, setting forth ex21 cerpts from, or summaries of, the pertinent provisions of 

22 this Act including— 

23 (1) information describing paid sick time avail24 able to employees under this Act; 


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1 (2) information pertaining to the filing of an 

2 action under this Act; 

3 (3) the details of the notice requirement for a 

4 foreseeable period of time under section 5(d)(1)(B); 

5 and 

6 (4) information that describes— 

7 (A) the protections that an employee has 

8 in exercising rights under this Act; and 

9 (B) how the employee can contact the Sec10 retary (or other appropriate authority as de11 scribed in section 8) if any of the rights are vio12 lated. 

13 (b) LOCATION.—The notice described under sub14 section (a) shall be posted— 

15 (1) in conspicuous places on the premises of the 

16 employer, where notices to employees (including ap17 plicants) are customarily posted; or 

18 (2) in employee handbooks. 

19 (c) VIOLATION; PENALTY.—Any employer who will20 fully violates the posting requirements of this section shall 

21 be subject to a civil fine in an amount not to exceed $100 

22 for each separate offense. 

23 SEC. 7. PROHIBITED ACTS. 

24 (a) INTERFERENCE WITH RIGHTS.— 


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1 (1) EXERCISE OF RIGHTS.—It shall be unlawful 

2 for any employer to interfere with, restrain, or deny 

3 the exercise of, or the attempt to exercise, any right 

4 provided under this Act, including— 

5 (A) discharging or discriminating against 

6 (including retaliating against) any individual, 

7 including a job applicant, for exercising, or at8 tempting to exercise, any right provided under 

9 this Act; 

10 (B) using the taking of paid sick time or 

11 unpaid sick time under this Act as a negative 

12 factor in an employment action, such as hiring, 

13 promotion, reducing hours or number of shifts, 

14 or a disciplinary action; or 

15 (C) counting the paid sick time or unpaid 

16 sick time under a no-fault attendance policy or 

17 any other absence control policy. 

18 (2) DISCRIMINATION.—It shall be unlawful for 

19 any employer to discharge or in any other manner 

20 discriminate against (including retaliating against) 

21 any individual, including a job applicant, for oppos22 ing any practice made unlawful by this Act. 

23 (b) INTERFERENCE WITH PROCEEDINGS OR INQUIR24 IES.—It shall be unlawful for any person to discharge or 

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1 ating against) any individual, including a job applicant, 

2 because such individual— 

3 (1) has filed an action, or has instituted or 

4 caused to be instituted any proceeding, under or re5 lated to this Act; 

6 (2) has given, or is about to give, any informa7 tion in connection with any inquiry or proceeding re8 lating to any right provided under this Act; or 

9 (3) has testified, or is about to testify, in any 

10 inquiry or proceeding relating to any right provided 

11 under this Act. 

12 (c) CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section shall be 

13 construed to state or imply that the scope of the activities 

14 prohibited by section 105 of the Family and Medical Leave 

15 Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2615) is less than the scope of 

16 the activities prohibited by this section. 

17 SEC. 8. ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITY. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

19 (1) DEFINITION.—In this subsection— 

20 (A) the term ‘‘employee’’ means an em21 ployee described in subparagraph (A) or (B) of 

22 section 4(4); and 

23 (B) the term ‘‘employer’’ means an em24 ployer described in subclause (I) or (II) of sec25 tion 4(5)(A)(i). 


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1 (2) INVESTIGATIVE AUTHORITY.— 

2 (A) IN GENERAL.—To ensure compliance 

3 with the provisions of this Act, or any regula4 tion or order issued under this Act, the Sec5 retary shall have, subject to subparagraph (C), 

6 the investigative authority provided under sec7 tion 11(a) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 

8 1938 (29 U.S.C. 211(a)), with respect to em9 ployers, employees, and other individuals af10 fected. 

11 (B) OBLIGATION TO KEEP AND PRESERVE

12 RECORDS.—An employer shall make, keep, and 

13 preserve records pertaining to compliance with 

14 this Act in accordance with section 11(c) of the 

15 Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 

16 211(c)) and in accordance with regulations pre17 scribed by the Secretary. 

18 (C) REQUIRED SUBMISSIONS GENERALLY

19 LIMITED TO AN ANNUAL BASIS.—The Secretary 

20 shall not require, under the authority of this 

21 paragraph, an employer to submit to the Sec22 retary any books or records more than once 

23 during any 12-month period, unless the Sec24 retary has reasonable cause to believe there 

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1 tion or order issued pursuant to this Act, or is 

2 investigating a charge pursuant to paragraph 

3 (4). 

4 (D) SUBPOENA AUTHORITY.—For the pur5 poses of any investigation provided for in this 

6 paragraph, the Secretary shall have the sub7 poena authority provided for under section 9 of 

8 the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 

9 U.S.C. 209). 

10 (3) CIVIL ACTION BY EMPLOYEES OR INDIVID11 UALS.— 

12 (A) RIGHT OF ACTION.—An action to re13 cover the damages or equitable relief prescribed 

14 in subparagraph (B) may be maintained 

15 against any employer in any Federal or State 

16 court of competent jurisdiction by one or more 

17 employees or individuals or their representative 

18 for and on behalf of— 

19 (i) the employees or individuals; or 

20 (ii) the employees or individuals and 

21 others similarly situated. 

22 (B) LIABILITY.—Any employer who vio23 lates section 7 (including a violation relating to 

24 rights provided under section 5) shall be liable 

25 to any employee or individual affected— 


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1 (i) for damages equal to— 

2 (I) the amount of— 

3 (aa) any wages, salary, em4 ployment benefits, or other com5 pensation denied or lost by rea6 son of the violation; or 

7 (bb) in a case in which 

8 wages, salary, employment bene9 fits, or other compensation have 

10 not been denied or lost, any ac11 tual monetary losses sustained as 

12 a direct result of the violation up 

13 to a sum equal to 56 hours of 

14 wages or salary for the employee 

15 or individual; 

16 (II) the interest on the amount 

17 described in subclause (I) calculated 

18 at the prevailing rate; and 

19 (III) an additional amount as liq20 uidated damages; and 

21 (ii) for such equitable relief as may be 

22 appropriate, including employment, rein23 statement, and promotion. 

24 (C) FEES AND COSTS.—The court in an 

25 action under this paragraph shall, in addition to 


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1 any judgment awarded to the plaintiff, allow a 

2 reasonable attorney’s fee, reasonable expert wit3 ness fees, and other costs of the action to be 

4 paid by the defendant. 

5 (4) ACTION BY THE SECRETARY.— 

6 (A) ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION.—The Sec7 retary shall receive, investigate, and attempt to 

8 resolve complaints of violations of section 7 (in9 cluding a violation relating to rights provided 

10 under section 5) in the same manner that the 

11 Secretary receives, investigates, and attempts to 

12 resolve complaints of violations of sections 6 

13 and 7 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 

14 (29 U.S.C. 206 and 207). 

15 (B) CIVIL ACTION.—The Secretary may 

16 bring an action in any court of competent juris17 diction to recover the damages described in 

18 paragraph (3)(B)(i). 

19 (C) SUMS RECOVERED.—Any sums recov20 ered by the Secretary pursuant to subparagraph 

21 (B) shall be held in a special deposit account 

22 and shall be paid, on order of the Secretary, di23 rectly to each employee or individual affected. 

24 Any such sums not paid to an employee or indi25 vidual affected because of inability to do so 


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1 within a period of 3 years shall be deposited 

2 into the Treasury of the United States as mis3 cellaneous receipts. 

4 (5) LIMITATION.— 

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

6 subparagraph (B), an action may be brought 

7 under paragraph (3), (4), or (6) not later than 

8 2 years after the date of the last event consti9 tuting the alleged violation for which the action 

10 is brought. 

11 (B) WILLFUL VIOLATION.—In the case of 

12 an action brought for a willful violation of sec13 tion 7 (including a willful violation relating to 

14 rights provided under section 5), such action 

15 may be brought within 3 years of the date of 

16 the last event constituting the alleged violation 

17 for which such action is brought. 

18 (C) COMMENCEMENT.—In determining 

19 when an action is commenced under paragraph 

20 (3), (4), or (6) for the purposes of this para21 graph, it shall be considered to be commenced 

22 on the date when the complaint is filed. 

23 (6) ACTION FOR INJUNCTION BY SECRETARY.— 

24 The district courts of the United States shall have 


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1 jurisdiction, for cause shown, in an action brought 

2 by the Secretary— 

3 (A) to restrain violations of section 7 (in4 cluding a violation relating to rights provided 

5 under section 5), including the restraint of any 

6 withholding of payment of wages, salary, em7 ployment benefits, or other compensation, plus 

8 interest, found by the court to be due to em9 ployees or individuals eligible under this Act; or 

10 (B) to award such other equitable relief as 

11 may be appropriate, including employment, re12 instatement, and promotion. 

13 (7) SOLICITOR OF LABOR.—The Solicitor of 

14 Labor may appear for and represent the Secretary 

15 on any litigation brought under paragraph (4) or 

16 (6). 

17 (8) GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE

18 AND LIBRARY OF CONGRESS.—Notwithstanding any 

19 other provision of this subsection, in the case of the 

20 Government Accountability Office and the Library of 

21 Congress, the authority of the Secretary of Labor 

22 under this subsection shall be exercised respectively 

23 by the Comptroller General of the United States and 

24 the Librarian of Congress. 


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1 (b) EMPLOYEES COVERED BY CONGRESSIONAL AC2 COUNTABILITY ACT OF 1995.—The powers, remedies, and 

3 procedures provided in the Congressional Accountability 

4 Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1301 et seq.) to the Board (as de5 fined in section 101 of that Act (2 U.S.C. 1301)), or any 

6 person, alleging a violation of section 202(a)(1) of that 

7 Act (2 U.S.C. 1312(a)(1)) shall be the powers, remedies, 

8 and procedures this Act provides to that Board, or any 

9 person, alleging an unlawful employment practice in viola10 tion of this Act against an employee described in section 

11 4(4)(C). 

12 (c) EMPLOYEES COVERED BY CHAPTER 5 OF TITLE

13 3, UNITED STATES CODE.—The powers, remedies, and 

14 procedures provided in chapter 5 of title 3, United States 

15 Code, to the President, the Merit Systems Protection 

16 Board, or any person, alleging a violation of section 

17 412(a)(1) of that title, shall be the powers, remedies, and 

18 procedures this Act provides to the President, that Board, 

19 or any person, respectively, alleging an unlawful employ20 ment practice in violation of this Act against an employee 

21 described in section 4(4)(D). 

22 (d) EMPLOYEES COVERED BY CHAPTER 63 OF TITLE

23 5, UNITED STATES CODE.—The powers, remedies, and 

24 procedures provided in title 5, United States Code, to an 

25 employing agency, provided in chapter 12 of that title to 


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1 the Merit Systems Protection Board, or provided in that 

2 title to any person, alleging a violation of chapter 63 of 

3 that title, shall be the powers, remedies, and procedures 

4 this Act provides to that agency, that Board, or any per5 son, respectively, alleging an unlawful employment prac6 tice in violation of this Act against an employee described 

7 in section 4(4)(E). 

8 (e) REMEDIES FOR STATE EMPLOYEES.— 

9 (1) WAIVER OF SOVEREIGN IMMUNITY.—A 

10 State’s receipt or use of Federal financial assistance 

11 for any program or activity of a State shall con12 stitute a waiver of sovereign immunity, under the 

13 11th Amendment to the Constitution or otherwise, 

14 to a suit brought by an employee of that program 

15 or activity under this Act for equitable, legal, or 

16 other relief authorized under this Act. 

17 (2) OFFICIAL CAPACITY.—An official of a State 

18 may be sued in the official capacity of the official by 

19 any employee who has complied with the procedures 

20 under subsection (a)(3), for injunctive relief that is 

21 authorized under this Act. In such a suit the court 

22 may award to the prevailing party those costs au23 thorized by section 722 of the Revised Statutes (42 

24 U.S.C. 1988). 


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1 (3) APPLICABILITY.—With respect to a par2 ticular program or activity, paragraph (1) applies to 

3 conduct occurring on or after the day, after the date 

4 of enactment of this Act, on which a State first re5 ceives or uses Federal financial assistance for that 

6 program or activity. 

7 (4) DEFINITION OF PROGRAM OR ACTIVITY.—In 

8 this subsection, the term ‘‘program or activity’’ has 

9 the meaning given the term in section 606 of the 

10 Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d–4a). 

11 SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR EDU12 CATION AND OUTREACH. 

13 There is authorized to be appropriated to the Sec14 retary of Labor such sums as may be necessary in order 

15 that the Secretary may conduct a public awareness cam16 paign to educate and inform the public of the require17 ments for paid sick time required by this Act. 

18 SEC. 10. COLLECTION OF DATA ON PAID SICK TIME AND 

19 FURTHER STUDY. 

20 (a) COMPILATION OF INFORMATION.—The Commis21 sioner of Labor Statistics shall annually compile informa22 tion on the following: 

23 (1) The amount of paid and unpaid sick time 

24 available to employees by occupation and type of em25 ployment establishment. 


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1 (2) An estimate of the average sick time used 

2 by employees according to occupation and the type 

3 of employment establishment. 

4 (b) GAO STUDY.—Not later than 5 years after the 

5 date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General 

6 of the United States shall conduct a study to evaluate the 

7 implementation of this Act. Such study shall include an 

8 estimation of employees’ access to paid sick time, employ9 ees’ awareness of their rights under this Act, and employ10 ers’ experiences complying with this Act. Such study shall 

11 take into account access, awareness and experiences of 

12 employees by race, ethnicity, gender, and occupation. 

13 (c) REPORT.—Upon completion of the study required 

14 by subsection (b), the Comptroller General of the United 

15 States shall prepare and submit a report to the appro16 priate committees of Congress concerning the results of 

17 the study and the information compiled pursuant to sub18 section (a). 

19 SEC. 11. EFFECT ON OTHER LAWS. 

20 (a) FEDERAL AND STATE ANTIDISCRIMINATION

21 LAWS.—Nothing in this Act shall be construed to modify 

22 or affect any Federal or State law prohibiting discrimina23 tion on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, 

24 sex, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, 


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1 marital status, familial status, or any other protected sta2 tus. 

3 (b) STATE AND LOCAL LAWS.—Nothing in this Act 

4 shall be construed to supersede (including preempting) 

5 any provision of any State or local law that provides great6 er paid sick time or leave rights (including greater 

7 amounts of paid sick time or leave, or greater coverage 

8 of those eligible for paid sick time or leave) than the rights 

9 established under this Act. 

10 SEC. 12. EFFECT ON EXISTING EMPLOYMENT BENEFITS. 

11 (a) MORE PROTECTIVE.—Nothing in this Act shall 

12 be construed to diminish the obligation of an employer to 

13 comply with any contract, collective bargaining agreement, 

14 or any employment benefit program or plan that provides 

15 greater paid sick leave or other leave rights to employees 

16 or individuals than the rights established under this Act. 

17 (b) LESS PROTECTIVE.—The rights established for 

18 employees under this Act shall not be diminished by any 

19 contract, collective bargaining agreement, or any employ20 ment benefit program or plan. 

21 SEC. 13. ENCOURAGEMENT OF MORE GENEROUS LEAVE 

22 POLICIES. 

23 Nothing in this Act shall be construed to discourage 

24 employers from adopting or retaining leave policies more 


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1 generous than policies that comply with the requirements 

2 of this Act. 

3 SEC. 14. REGULATIONS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

5 (1) AUTHORITY.—Except as provided in para6 graph (2), not later than 180 days after the date of 

7 enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall prescribe 

8 such regulations as are necessary to carry out this 

9 Act with respect to employees described in subpara10 graph (A) or (B) of section 4(4) and other individ11 uals affected by employers described in subclause (I) 

12 or (II) of section 4(5)(A)(i). 

13 (2) GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE; LI14 BRARY OF CONGRESS.—The Comptroller General of 

15 the United States and the Librarian of Congress 

16 shall prescribe the regulations with respect to em17 ployees of the Government Accountability Office and 

18 the Library of Congress, respectively, and other indi19 viduals affected by the Comptroller General of the 

20 United States and the Librarian of Congress, re21 spectively. 

22 (b) EMPLOYEES COVERED BY CONGRESSIONAL AC23 COUNTABILITY ACT OF 1995.— 

24 (1) AUTHORITY.—Not later than 90 days after 

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1 section (a), the Board of Directors of the Office of 

2 Compliance shall prescribe (in accordance with sec3 tion 304 of the Congressional Accountability Act of 

4 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1384)) such regulations as are nec5 essary to carry out this Act with respect to employ6 ees described in section 4(4)(C) and other individ7 uals affected by employers described in section 

8 4(5)(A)(i)(III). 

9 (2) AGENCY REGULATIONS.—The regulations 

10 prescribed under paragraph (1) shall be the same as 

11 substantive regulations promulgated by the Sec12 retary to carry out this Act except insofar as the 

13 Board may determine, for good cause shown and 

14 stated together with the regulations prescribed 

15 under paragraph (1), that a modification of such 

16 regulations would be more effective for the imple17 mentation of the rights and protections involved 

18 under this section. 

19 (c) EMPLOYEES COVERED BY CHAPTER 5 OF TITLE

20 3, UNITED STATES CODE.— 

21 (1) AUTHORITY.—Not later than 90 days after 

22 the Secretary prescribes regulations under sub23 section (a), the President (or the designee of the 

24 President) shall prescribe such regulations as are 

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1 ployees described in section 4(4)(D) and other indi2 viduals affected by employers described in section 

3 4(5)(A)(i)(IV). 

4 (2) AGENCY REGULATIONS.—The regulations 

5 prescribed under paragraph (1) shall be the same as 

6 substantive regulations promulgated by the Sec7 retary to carry out this Act except insofar as the 

8 President (or designee) may determine, for good 

9 cause shown and stated together with the regula10 tions prescribed under paragraph (1), that a modi11 fication of such regulations would be more effective 

12 for the implementation of the rights and protections 

13 involved under this section. 

14 (d) EMPLOYEES COVERED BY CHAPTER 63 OF TITLE

15 5, UNITED STATES CODE.— 

16 (1) AUTHORITY.—Not later than 90 days after 

17 the Secretary prescribes regulations under sub18 section (a), the Director of the Office of Personnel 

19 Management shall prescribe such regulations as are 

20 necessary to carry out this Act with respect to em21 ployees described in section 4(4)(E) and other indi22 viduals affected by employers described in section 

23 4(5)(A)(i)(V). 

24 (2) AGENCY REGULATIONS.—The regulations 

25 prescribed under paragraph (1) shall be the same as 


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1 substantive regulations promulgated by the Sec2 retary to carry out this Act except insofar as the Di3 rector may determine, for good cause shown and 

4 stated together with the regulations prescribed 

5 under paragraph (1), that a modification of such 

6 regulations would be more effective for the imple7 mentation of the rights and protections involved 

8 under this section. 

9 SEC. 15. EFFECTIVE DATES. 

10 (a) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This Act shall take effect 6 

11 months after the date of issuance of regulations under sec12 tion 14(a)(1). 

13 (b) COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS.—In the 

14 case of a collective bargaining agreement in effect on the 

15 effective date prescribed by subsection (a), this Act shall 

16 take effect on the earlier of— 

17 (1) the date of the termination of such agree18 ment; or 

19 (2) the date that occurs 18 months after the 

20 date of issuance of regulations under section 

21 14(a)(1). 

Æ 


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