I 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6198 
To provide emergency paid leave benefits to certain individuals affected by 
COVID-19, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 11, 2020 
Mrs. MURPHY of Florida (for herself, Mr. CUNNINGHAM, Ms. KENDRA S. 
HORN of Oklahoma, and Ms. TORRES SMALL of New Mexico) introduced 
the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and 
Means 
A BILL 
To provide emergency paid leave benefits to certain 
individuals affected by COVID-19, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Emergency Paid Leave 
Act of 2020’’. 
SEC. 2. EMERGENCY PAID LEAVE BENEFITS. 
The Social Security Act is amended by inserting after 
title V the following: 
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‘‘TITLE VI—EMERGENCY PAID 
LEAVE BENEFITS 
‘‘SEC. 601. DEFINITIONS. 
‘‘In this title, the following definitions apply: 
‘‘(1) EMERGENCY LEAVE DAY.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘emergency 
leave day’ means, with respect to an individual, 
a calendar day in which the individual is not 
able to engage in employment due to any of the 
following reasons: 
‘‘(i) The individual has a current di-
agnosis of COVID-19. 
‘‘(ii) The individual is under quar-
antine (including self-imposed quarantine), 
at the instruction of a health care provider, 
employer, or a local, State, or Federal offi-
cial, in order to prevent the spread of 
COVID-19. 
‘‘(iii) The individual is engaged in 
caregiving for an individual who has a cur-
rent diagnosis of COVID-19 or is under 
quarantine as described in clause (ii). 
‘‘(iv) The individual is engaged in 
caregiving, because of the COVID-19-re-
lated closing of a school or other care facil-
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ity or care program, for a child or other in-
dividual unable to provide self-care. 
‘‘(B) LIMITATION.—No calendar day may 
be treated as an emergency leave day with re-
spect to an individual if the individual— 
‘‘(i) received any form of compensa-
tion from an employer (other than State or 
private paid leave), including wages or any 
form of accrued paid leave, for such day; 
or 
‘‘(ii) was eligible for unemployment 
compensation for the week in which such 
day occurs. 
‘‘(2) 
COMMISSIONER.—The 
term 
‘Commis-
sioner’ means the Commissioner of Social Security. 
‘‘(3) ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUAL.—The term ‘eligible 
individual’ means an individual who had wages or 
self-employment income during the 30-day period 
ending on the first emergency leave day with respect 
to such individual. 
‘‘(4) SELF-EMPLOYMENT
INCOME.—The term 
‘self-employment income’ has the meaning given the 
term in section 1402(b) of the Internal Revenue 
Code of 1986 for purposes of the taxes imposed by 
section 1401(b) of such Code. 
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‘‘(5) STATE.—The term ‘State’ means any 
State of the United States or the District of Colum-
bia or any territory or possession of the United 
States. 
‘‘(6) STATE
OR
PRIVATE
PAID
LEAVE.—The 
term ‘State or private paid leave’ means a benefit 
which provides full or partial wage replacement to 
employees on the basis of specifically defined quali-
fying events described in section 102 of the Family 
and Medical Leave Act of 1993 or defined by a writ-
ten employer policy or State law and which ends ei-
ther when the qualifying event is no longer applica-
ble or a set period of benefits is exhausted. 
‘‘(7) UNEMPLOYMENT
COMPENSATION.—The 
term ‘unemployment compensation’ means— 
‘‘(A) ‘regular compensation’, ‘extended 
compensation’, and ‘additional compensation’ 
(as such terms are defined by section 205 of 
the Federal-State Extended Unemployment 
Compensation Act (26 U.S.C. 3304 note)); and 
‘‘(B) assistance under section 410 of the 
Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emer-
gency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5177). 
‘‘(8) WAGES.—The term ‘wages’ has the mean-
ing given such term in section 3121(a) of the Inter-
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nal Revenue Code of 1986 for purposes of the taxes 
imposed by sections 3101(b) and 3111(b) of such 
Code. 
‘‘SEC. 602. EMERGENCY PAID LEAVE BENEFITS. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Commissioner shall pay an 
emergency paid leave benefit, to be paid electronically or, 
if necessary, by mail, to each eligible individual for each 
30-day period beginning and ending in the benefit period 
(not to exceed 3) for which the eligible individual has filed 
an application containing such certifications as required 
under subsection (e). 
‘‘(b) BENEFIT AMOUNT.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 
the amount of the emergency paid leave benefit to 
which an individual is entitled under subsection (a) 
for a 30-day period shall be an amount (not to ex-
ceed $4,000) equal to 2⁄3 of the individual’s average 
monthly earnings. 
‘‘(2) REDUCTION BASED ON RECEIPT OF STATE 
OR PRIVATE PAID LEAVE.—The amount of an emer-
gency paid leave benefit to which an individual is en-
titled under subsection (a) for a 30-day period shall 
be reduced by $1 for each dollar of State or private 
paid leave received by the individual for such period. 
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‘‘(3) AVERAGE MONTHLY EARNINGS.—For pur-
poses of this subsection, an individual’s average 
monthly earnings shall be equal to the quotient ob-
tained by dividing— 
‘‘(A) the total of the wages and self-em-
ployment income received by the individual dur-
ing the most recent calendar year preceding an 
application for an emergency paid leave benefit 
under this section for which data is available to 
the Commissioner; by 
‘‘(B) 12. 
‘‘(c) BENEFIT PERIOD.—For purposes of this sec-
tion, the benefit period begins on January 19, 2020, and 
ends on the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment 
of this title. 
‘‘(d) RETROACTIVE BENEFITS.—An application for 
benefits for any month beginning and ending in the benefit 
period may be filed at any time prior to the date that is 
180 days after the end of such benefit period. 
‘‘(e) APPLICATION.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An application for an emer-
gency paid leave benefit under this section for a 30- 
day period shall include— 
‘‘(A) an attestation by the individual— 
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‘‘(i) that he or she is an eligible indi-
vidual; 
‘‘(ii) that at least 14 emergency leave 
days with respect to the individual oc-
curred, or are expected to occur, during 
such period; and 
‘‘(iii) that the individual has informed 
his or her employer of the individual’s need 
to take emergency leave, if the individual 
has an employer. 
‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY.—The Commissioner shall 
accept applications online, by telephone, and by 
mail. 
‘‘(3) AUTHENTICATION
OF
IDENTITY.—The 
Commissioner is authorized to take such steps as are 
necessary to authenticate the identity of applicants. 
‘‘(4) PENALTIES
FOR
FRAUD.—Any fraud or 
misrepresentation relating to an application for ben-
efits under this title shall be treated as a violation 
of section 208. 
‘‘(f) INELIGIBILITY BASED ON FRAUD AND CRIMINAL 
ACTIVITY.— 
‘‘(1) INELIGIBILITY FOLLOWING CERTAIN CON-
VICTIONS.—An individual who has been convicted of 
a violation under section 208 or who has been found 
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to have used false statements to secure benefits 
under this section shall be ineligible for benefits 
under this section. 
‘‘(2) INELIGIBILITY OF PRISONERS.—An indi-
vidual shall be ineligible for a benefit under this sec-
tion for any 30-day period with respect to which the 
individual is an individual described in clause (i), 
(ii), or (iii) of section 202(x)(1)(A). 
‘‘(g) REVIEW OF ELIGIBILITY AND BENEFIT PAY-
MENT DETERMINATIONS.— 
‘‘(1) BURDEN OF PROOF.—An application for 
benefits under this section shall be presumed to be 
true and accurate, unless the Commissioner dem-
onstrates by a preponderance of the evidence that 
information contained in the application is false. 
‘‘(2) REVIEW.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An individual may re-
quest review of an adverse determination with 
respect to such application or of a benefit pay-
ment determination and shall have the same ap-
peals rights as provided under title II. 
‘‘(B) FINAL DETERMINATIONS.—All final 
determinations of the Commissioner under this 
subsection shall be reviewable according to the 
procedures set out in section 205. 
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‘‘(3) PROGRAM INTEGRITY.—The Commissioner 
shall have the authority to conduct random sample 
audits of benefits provided under this title to ensure 
compliance with the eligibility requirements for such 
benefits. 
‘‘(h) PROTECTION OF EXISTING BENEFIT RIGHTS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—This title does not preempt 
or supercede any provision of State or local law that 
authorizes a State or local municipality to provide 
paid leave benefits similar to the benefits provided 
under this title. 
‘‘(2) GREATER BENEFITS ALLOWED.—Nothing 
in this title shall be construed to diminish the obli-
gation of an employer to comply with any contract, 
collective bargaining agreement, or any employment 
benefit program or plan that provides greater paid 
leave or other leave rights to employees than the 
rights established under this title. 
‘‘(i) REIMBURSEMENT GRANTS
TO STATES.—Not 
later than July 1, 2021, the Secretary of the Treasury, 
in consultation with the Commissioner of Social Security, 
shall make a grant to each State in an amount equal to 
the total amount, for all 30-day periods beginning and 
ending in the benefit period, by which benefits under this 
title were reduced under subsection (b)(2) as a result of 
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State and private paid leave paid by such State or under 
the law of such State. 
‘‘(j) APPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN TITLE II PROVI-
SIONS.—The provisions of sections 204, 205, 206, and 
208 shall apply to benefit payments made under this sec-
tion in the same way that such provisions apply to benefit 
payments made under title II. 
‘‘(k) NO EFFECT ON ELIGIBILITY FOR SSI.—Any 
benefit paid to an individual under this title shall not be 
regarded as income or resources for any month, for pur-
poses of determining the eligibility of the recipient (or the 
recipient’s spouse or family) for benefits or assistance, or 
the amount or extent of benefits or assistance, under the 
Supplemental Security Income program. 
‘‘SEC. 603. FUNDING AND EXPEDITED IMPLEMENTATION 
AUTHORITY. 
‘‘(a) FUNDING.—There are appropriated such sums 
as necessary to the Commissioner of Social Security to ad-
minister and pay benefits under the program established 
under this title, and to the Secretary of the Treasury for 
reimbursement grants under section 602(i). 
‘‘(b) EXPEDITED IMPLEMENTATION AUTHORITY.— 
In order to expedite the implementation of the emergency 
paid leave program under this title, the Commissioner is 
authorized to waive existing Federal requirements regard-
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ing paperwork reduction, system of records notices, con-
tracting and acquisitions, and hiring. 
‘‘(c) 
PROTECTION
OF
EXISTING
EMPLOYEE 
RIGHTS.—This title does not preempt or supersede exist-
ing collective bargaining agreements. 
‘‘SEC. 604. PROTECTION OF SOCIAL SECURITY TRUST 
FUNDS. 
‘‘No funds from the Federal Old-Age and Survivors 
Insurance Trust Fund or the Federal Disability Insurance 
Trust Fund, or appropriated to the Social Security Ad-
ministration for the administration of titles II or XVI, 
may be used for any purpose under this title. 
‘‘SEC. 605. TAXATION OF EMERGENCY LEAVE BENEFITS. 
‘‘No amount received by an individual under this title 
shall be included in gross income for purposes of the Inter-
nal Revenue Code of 1986.’’. 
Æ 
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