Title: Time Off to Vote Act
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics

Summary:
Time Off to Vote Act
This bill entitles an employee to two hours of paid leave on the day of a federal election in order to vote.
The employer may determine the two-hour period, excluding any lunch break or other break.
Taking such leave shall not result in the employee losing accrued employment benefits.
The bill makes it unlawful for an employer to interfere with the right to take such leave or for an employer to discriminate against an employee for taking such leave.
The bill makes it unlawful for any employer to retaliate against an employee for (1) opposing any practice made unlawful by this bill; (2) filing a charge, or instituting or causing to be instituted any proceeding, under or related to this bill; or (3) testifying or preparing to testify in an inquiry or proceeding relating to such leave.
The bill specifies penalties for employers who violate these provisions.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 882 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 882

  To provide employees with 2 hours of paid leave in order to vote in 
                           Federal elections.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 30, 2019

 Mr. Cartwright (for himself, Mr. Blumenauer, Mr. Case, Ms. Clarke of 
New York, Mr. Cohen, Mr. Connolly, Ms. DeGette, Mr. Gonzalez of Texas, 
   Mr. Grijalva, Mr. Johnson of Georgia, Ms. Kelly of Illinois, Mrs. 
 Kirkpatrick, Ms. Kuster of New Hampshire, Mr. Loebsack, Mr. McGovern, 
Ms. Meng, Mr. McNerney, Ms. Moore, Ms. Mucarsel-Powell, Ms. Norton, Ms. 
Omar, Mr. Pocan, Ms. Porter, Ms. Roybal-Allard, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, 
Ms. Schakowsky, Mr. Gallego, and Mrs. McBath) introduced the following 
    bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To provide employees with 2 hours of paid leave in order to vote in 
                           Federal elections.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Time Off to Vote Act''.

SEC. 2. REQUIREMENT FOR 2 HOURS PAID LEAVE TO VOTE IN FEDERAL 
              ELECTIONS.

    (a) Entitlement to Leave.--An employee shall be entitled to 2 hours 
of paid leave on the day of any Federal election in order to vote.
    (b) Employer Right To Determine 2-Hour Period.--For each employee 
taking leave under subsection (a), the employer of such employee may 
designate the 2-hour period during which the employee may take leave. 
Any lunch break or other break period may not be included in the 2-hour 
period designated for leave.
    (c) No Loss of Benefits.--The taking of leave under this section 
shall not result in the loss of any employment benefit accrued prior to 
the date on which the leave was taken.
    (d) Prohibited Acts.--
            (1) Interference with rights under this act.--It shall be 
        unlawful for any employer to interfere with, restrain, or deny 
        the exercise of or the attempt to exercise, the right to take 
        leave under this Act, or to discriminate against an employee in 
        any manner for taking leave under this Act.
            (2) Retaliation.--It shall be unlawful for any employer to 
        discharge or in any other manner discriminate against any 
        individual for--
                    (A) opposing any practice made unlawful by this 
                section;
                    (B) filing any charge, or instituting or causing to 
                be instituted any proceeding, under or related to this 
                section;
                    (C) giving or preparing to give any information in 
                connection with any inquiry or proceeding relating to 
                any leave provided under this section; or
                    (D) testifying or preparing to testify in any 
                inquiry or proceeding relating to any leave provided 
                under this section.
    (e) Investigative Authority.--The Secretary of Labor shall have 
investigative authority with respect to the provisions of this 
subsection in the same manner and under the same terms and conditions 
as the investigative authority provided under section 106 of the Family 
and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. 2616), and the requirements of 
section 106 of such Act shall apply to employers under this subsection 
in the same manner as such requirements apply to employers under 
section 106 of such Act.
    (f) Enforcement.--
            (1) In general.--Any employer that violates this Act may be 
        subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $10,000 per violation. 
        Civil penalties shall be assessed by and paid to the Secretary 
        of Labor for deposit into the Treasury of the United States and 
        shall accrue to the United States and may be recovered in a 
        civil action in the name of the United States brought in the 
        United States district court for the district where the 
        violation is alleged to have occurred or where the employer has 
        its principal office.
            (2) Considerations.--In assessing a civil penalty under 
        this Act, the Secretary shall give due consideration to the 
        appropriateness of the penalty with respect to the size of the 
        business of the employer being charged, the gravity of the 
        violation, the good faith of the employer, and the history of 
        previous violations.
    (g) Definitions.--As used in this Act--
            (1) the term ``employee'' has the meaning given such term 
        in section 3 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 
        203); and
            (2) the term ``employer'' means any person engaged in 
        commerce or in any industry or activity affecting commerce who 
        employs 25 or more employees during a calendar year, and 
        includes any person who acts, directly or indirectly, in the 
        interest of an employer to any of the employees of such 
        employer and any successor in interest of an employer. In the 
        previous sentence, the terms ``commerce'' and ``industry or 
        activity affecting commerce'' have the meaning given such terms 
        in section 101(1) of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993.
    (h) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect beginning with 
the first Federal election held after the date of enactment of this 
Act.
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