I 
109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3192 
To provide for a paid family and medical leave insurance program, and 
for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 30, 2005 
Mr. STARK (for himself, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, Mr. OWENS, Ms. 
WOOLSEY, and Mr. LANTOS) introduced the following bill; which was re-
ferred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition 
to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently 
determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provi-
sions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To provide for a paid family and medical leave insurance 
program, 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 ‘‘Paid Family and Med-
ical Leave Act of 2005’’. 
SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following:
(1) Although family and medical leave laws 
have assisted employees to balance the demands of 
the workplace with their family responsibilities, more 
needs to be done to achieve the goals of workforce 
stability and economic security. 
(2) All working Americans need to be able to 
take leave from work, at times, to recover from their 
own serious illness, to take care of a seriously ill 
family member, or to care for a newborn or newly 
adopted child. 
(3) Americans who provide direct care for their 
family members prevent the worsening of illnesses 
and promote strong recovery. For example, when 
parents are able to attend to their child in a hos-
pital, the child’s stay decreases by 31 percent, ena-
bling parents to make an expedited return to work. 
(4) For many workers, the promise of family or 
medical leave is meaningless because they cannot af-
ford to take leave without pay. 
(5) Seventy-eight percent of eligible employees 
who need but do not take family or medical leave do 
not take it because they cannot afford to. 
(6) One in ten employees who receive less than 
full pay while on leave are forced onto public assist-
ance.
(7) Forty-seven percent of women and men 
working in the private sector lack any access to paid 
sick leave to help compensate them if they become 
seriously ill. For those workers who do have access 
to paid sick leave, few can use it to receive a pay-
check while caring for family members. 
(8) Family and medical leave benefits strength-
en and support the business sector through health 
care savings and increased employee retention and 
productivity. 
(9) Organizations struggling to weather the 
current economic downturn will have a bottom-line 
interest in maintaining a stable workforce and re-
taining experienced employees in whom they have al-
ready invested. 
(10) Demographic changes over the past few 
decades have altered the face and needs of the work 
force. It is now common for both parents to be in 
the workforce and many men and women also find 
themselves as the primary caregiver for an elderly 
spouse or parent. 
(11) Fifty-five percent of women with babies 
younger than one are in the workforce, while 73 per-
cent of women with children one year or older are 
in the workforce.
(12) Nearly two-thirds of Americans under the 
age of 60 expect to be responsible for the care of an 
elder relative in the next ten years. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 
(b) of this Act, the definitions provided by section 101 of 
the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 
2611) shall apply for purposes of this Act. 
(b) ADDITIONAL DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this 
Act, the following additional definitions shall apply: 
(1) BOARD OF TRUSTEES.—The term ‘‘Board 
of Trustees’’ means the Board of Trustees of the 
Family and Medical Leave Trust Fund. 
(2) CALENDAR QUARTER AND QUARTER.—The 
terms ‘‘calendar quarter’’ and ‘‘quarter’’ mean a pe-
riod of three calendar months ending on March 31, 
June 30, September 30, or December 31. 
(3) COVERED
AGENCY.—The term ‘‘covered 
agency’’, when used with respect to a State, means 
the State agency referred to in paragraph (1) of sec-
tion 101(b), or the Commissioner of the Social Secu-
rity Administration if the Commissioner is carrying 
out the State Family and Medical Insurance Pro-
gram in the State under paragraph (2) of such sec-
tion.
(4) 
COMMISSIONER.—The 
term 
‘‘Commis-
sioner’’ means the Commissioner of the Social Secu-
rity Administration. 
(5) ELIGIBLE EMPLOYEES.—Section 101(2) of 
the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 
U.S.C. 2611(2)) shall not apply for purposes of this 
Act, and the term ‘‘eligible employee’’ means any of 
the following: 
(A) An employee who has earned at least 
$250 in each of the four calendar quarters prior 
to filing an application for benefits under this 
title. 
(B) A self-employed individual who has— 
(i) elected to participate in the pro-
gram under this title in accordance with 
such regulations as the Secretary of Labor 
shall prescribe; 
(ii) earned at least $250 of self-em-
ployment income in each of the four cal-
endar quarters prior to filing an applica-
tion for benefits under this title; and 
(iii) paid tax under section 1401(c) of 
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 with 
respect to such self-employment income.
(C) An employee who was covered by a vol-
untary employer plan under section 101(d)(3) 
that has been terminated or whose employer 
has eliminated such a plan. 
(D) A Federal officer or employee covered 
under subchapter V of chapter 63 of title 5, 
United States Code. 
(6) EMPLOYER.—For purposes of this title, 
subparagraph (A) of section 101(4) of the Family 
and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2611(4)) 
shall be applied by substituting ‘‘one’’ for ‘‘50’’. 
(7) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘Program’’ means a 
State Family and Medical Insurance Program estab-
lished under section 101. 
(8) MANAGING
TRUSTEE.—The term ‘‘Man-
aging Trustee’’ means the Managing Trustee of the 
the Board of Trustees of the Family and Medical 
Leave Trust Fund. 
(9) TRUST
FUND.—The term ‘‘Trust Fund’’ 
means the Family and Medical Leave Trust Fund 
established under section 201. 
(10) QUARTER
OF
COVERAGE.—The term 
‘‘quarter of coverage’’ means a period in which an 
individual earned wages or self-employment income 
of at least $250 in a quarter and paid taxes on that