SB125 By Senator Jones RFD Children, Youth and Human Services Rd 1 04-FEB-20

SYNOPSIS: Existing law provides a mother offering a consent or relinquishment of parental rights for purposes of offering a child for adoption with up to five days to withdraw the consent or relinquishment in all cases, and up to 14 days to withdraw the consent or relinquishment in cases where a court finds the withdrawal to be reasonable under the circumstances and consistent with the best interest of the child.

This bill would limit the time period allowable for a mother offering a consent or relinquishment of parental rights for purposes of offering a child for adoption to four days in all cases.

This bill would, concurrently with federal law, require employers to offer 12 weeks of family leave to eligible employees for the birth and care of a child during the first year after the birth of the child and for an adopted child within one year of placement.

This bill also would require employers that provide certain additional maternity benefits to female employees to offer equivalent benefits to adoptive parents.

This bill would allow state employees and members of the Teachers' Retirement System to purchase service credit for a period of time up to one year for time spent on family leave.

This bill would revise existing law applying to the donation of accrued and unused annual, sick, or compensatory leave to an employee qualifying for maternity leave to extend that option to an employee qualifying for leave for adoptive parents.

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT

Relating to family leave and adoption; to amend Sections 16-25-11.12, 26-10A-13, 36-26-35.2, and 36-26-36.2, Code of Alabama 1975, to limit the time period allowable for a mother offering a consent or relinquishment of parental rights for purposes of offering a child for adoption to four days in all cases; to require employers to offer 12 weeks of family leave to eligible employees for the birth and care of a child, during the first year after the birth of the child and for an adopted child within one year of placement; to require employers that provide certain additional maternity benefits to female employees to offer equivalent benefits to adoptive parents; to allow state employees and members of the Teachers' Retirement System to purchase service credit for a period of time up to one year for time spent on family leave; and to update existing law applying to the donation of accrued and unused annual, sick, or compensatory leave to an employee qualifying for maternity leave in order to extend that option to an employee qualifying for leave for adoptive parents.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:

Section 1. This bill shall be known and may be cited as the "Adoption Promotion Act."Section 2. Sections 16-25-11.12, 26-10A-13, 36-26-35.2, and 36-26-36.2, Code of Alabama 1975, are amended to read as follows:

§16-25-11.12.

"(a) Any provision of this chapter, to the contrary notwithstanding, active and contributing members of the Teachers' Retirement System may purchase service credit in the system not to exceed one year for any period of time while they were on maternity family leave from service without pay. The Board of Control of the Teachers' Retirement System shall adopt rules and regulations for the administration of this section including verification of the service that the member desires to purchase credit for in the system. The member shall receive credit for the service when he or she remits to the system the contributions required by subsection (b). Notwithstanding the foregoing language, no member of the Teachers' Retirement System shall be eligible to receive credit for any period of time that the member is already credited with in the system or in any other retirement plan, with the exception of the federal Social Security program.

"(b) Any member who is eligible to purchase service credit in the Teachers' Retirement System under subsection (a) shall pay to the Secretary-Treasurer of the system, prior to October 1, 2001, for the claimed service, a sum equal to the full actuarially determined cost for each year of service credit purchased as determined by the system's actuary.

"(c) Subsequent to October 1, 2001, any member claiming service credit under the provisions of this section shall claim and purchase the service credit no later than June 30 of the year immediately following the expiration of the maternity leave.

§26-10A-13.

"(a) A consent or relinquishment may be taken at any time, except that once signed or confirmed, may be withdrawn within five four days after birth or within five four days after signing of the consent or relinquishment, whichever comes last.

"(b) Consent or relinquishment can be withdrawn if the court finds that the withdrawal is reasonable under the circumstances and consistent with the best interest of the child within 14 days after the birth of the child or within 14 days after signing of the consent or relinquishment, whichever comes last.

"(c)(b) All consents or relinquishments required by this act chapter shall be filed with the court in which the petition for adoption is pending before the final decree of adoption is entered.

§36-26-35.2.

"Notwithstanding any other laws to the contrary, a state employee employed in any branch of state government may donate his or her accrued and unused annual, sick, or compensatory leave to another state employee who has qualified for catastrophic sick leave or maternity family leave. The donation shall be subject to the approval of the appointing authority of the employee making the donation and, if the donating employee is in a position with a lower pay grade than the position of the employee receiving the donation, the approval of the State Personnel Board. The appointing authority of the employee receiving the donation may limit the number of hours an employee may receive per catastrophic illness or maternity leave. No employee may receive more than 480 hours of donated leave throughout his or her career with the state without the approval of the State Personnel Board.

§36-26-36.2.

"(a) Annual leave, compensatory leave, and sick leave donation programs for catastrophic illnesses or maternity family leave of qualified state employees shall provide for donations of leave to occur between all state employees employed in the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial Branches of state government.

"(b) The personnel departments of all branches of state government shall coordinate efforts to promulgate adopt and implement the administrative rules and procedures necessary to implement this section."

Section 3. (a) For purposes of this section, the terms "eligible employee" and "employer" have the same meaning as in 29 U.S.C. §2611.

(b)(1) An employer shall provide 12 weeks of unpaid family leave to an eligible employee for the birth and care of a child born to that employee during the first year after the child's birth, or for the care of a child placed with the employee in connection with adoption within one year of the placement of the child with the employee. Requests for additional family leave due to the adoption of an ill child or a child with a disability shall be considered on the same basis as comparable cases of complications accompanying the birth of a child to an employee.

(2) In any case in which the necessity for leave pursuant to this subsection is foreseeable based on an expected placement of a child with an employee in connection with adoption, the employee shall provide the employer with at least 30 days' notice, before the date the leave is to begin, of the employee's intention to take the leave, except that if the date of placement requires leave to begin in less than 30 days, the employee shall provide notice as is practicable.

(c)(1) An employer providing paid leave to an employee for the birth and care of a child born to that employee shall also provide equivalent paid leave to an employee for the care of a child placed with the employee in connection with adoption during the first year after the placement of the child with the employee.

(2) An employer is only required to provide paid leave benefits described in subdivision (1) to one of two different eligible employees if both employees would be using the benefits for the care of a child placed for adoption with both employees.

(d) An employer may not penalize an employee for exercising the rights provided by this section.

(e) Leave benefits pursuant to this section may not be taken by an employee intermittently unless the employee and the employer agree otherwise.

Section 4. This act shall become effective on the first day of the third month following its passage and approval by the Governor, or its otherwise becoming law.

Adoption

Maternity Leave

Family Leave Time

Code Amended