Labor and Employment (GLE) — Title 8.3. Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program

is the sole owner of a sole proprietorship, limited liability company, C corporation, or S corporation; and

is the only individual employed by the sole proprietorship, limited liability company, C corporation, or S corporation.

is needed due to the active duty or call to active duty status of the eligible service member; and

is provided by an individual who is not a licensed health care provider;

inpatient care in a hospital, hospice, or residential health care facility;

continued treatment by a licensed health care provider; or

continued treatment or supervision at home by a licensed health care provider or other competent individual under the supervision of a licensed health care provider.

self–employment income, as defined in 26 U.S.C. § 1402(b); or

wages, as defined in § 8–101 of this article, earned from a C corporation or an S corporation if the income, pay, or leave is paid to the owner who is the sole employee of a C corporation or an S corporation.

a public employee in the performance of the public employee’s official duties;

the individual to whom the information relates;

if an authorized representative has the signed authorization of the individual to whom the information relates, the authorized representative; or

employers whose employees have filed claims with the Department for the purpose of claims administration.

an individual who has applied for or received benefits under this title;

an individual whose employment data has been submitted to the Department by the individual’s employer under this title; or

a self–employed individual who submitted data to the Department under this title.

procedures for notifying an employer within 5 business days after any of the following occurs:

notices of elections by self–employed individuals for benefits under § 8.3–201 of this title;

for the purpose of supporting the claim for benefit payments, the first date on which the covered individual took or intends to take leave from employment and whether the leave will or is intended to be taken for a continuous period of time or intermittently;

the date on which the serious health condition of the family member, covered individual, or service member commenced;

the probable duration of the serious health condition;

the appropriate facts related to the serious health condition within the knowledge of the licensed health care provider;

standards in regulation for the certification of claims for benefits under § 8.3–302(5) of this title;

standards for verifying the identity of a family member or next of kin for a claim for benefits under § 8.3–302(2), (4), or (5) of this title; and

procedures for an employer to provide evidence of suspected fraud to the Secretary.

Subject to subparagraph (ii) of this paragraph, a person may not be excused from complying with a subpoena issued under subsection (a)(5) of this section on the ground that the evidence or testimony required may tend to incriminate the person or subject the person to a forfeiture or penalty.

the number of claims for benefits submitted, both in total and for each category listed in § 8.3–302 of this title;

the number of claims included under item (i) of this item broken down by:

the number of claims for benefits approved, both in total and for each category listed in § 8.3–302 of this title;

the number of claims included under item (iii) of this item broken down by:

the total number of claims for benefits denied, both in total and by category listed in § 8.3–602 of this title; and

the number of claims included under item (v) of this item broken down by:

employers;

employees of employers;

self–employed individuals; and

the State;

§ 8.3–903(1) of this title for assessed contributions and interest for an employer’s or a self–employed individual’s failure to pay contributions; and

§ 8.3–906(a)(1)(iii) of this title for the Department’s costs of an appeal against an employer or insurer;

the public education program carried out under § 8.3–403(a)(4) of this title; and

any costs associated with the initial implementation and ongoing administration of this title.

Beginning January 1, 2027, each employee of an employer and each employer with 15 or more employees shall contribute to the Fund.

The total rate of contribution established under this section for employees and employers described in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph:

Except as otherwise provided in this section, each employer of 15 or more employees shall contribute an amount equal to 50% of the total rate of contribution for each employee.

Except as otherwise provided in this section, each employee of an employer shall contribute an amount equal to 50% of the total rate of contribution.

Except as provided in subparagraph (ii) of this paragraph, the employer of the employee shall deduct the employee’s required contribution from the wages of the employee.

community provider that is required to be licensed or certified under Title 7 of the Health – General Article for 100% of the employer contribution required under subsection (e) of this section for employees who manage or provide services under Title 7 of the Health – General Article;

community provider that is required to be licensed or certified under Title 7.5 of the Health – General Article for a percentage of the employer contribution required under subsection (e) of this section for employees who manage or provide services under Title 7.5 of the Health – General Article that is equal to the percentage of revenue that is attributable to federal and State Medicaid funding and any other State funding received by the community provider for the services during the period covered by the reimbursement; or

provider, as defined in § 16–201.4 of the Health – General Article, for a percentage of the employer contribution required under subsection (e) of this section for employees who manage or provide services described in § 16–201.4(a) of the Health – General Article that is equal to the percentage of revenue attributable to federal and State Medicaid funding and any other State funding received by the provider for the services during the period covered by the reimbursement.

to care for a family member with a serious health condition;

to attend to a serious health condition that results in the covered individual being unable to perform the functions of the covered individual’s position;

to care for a service member with a serious health condition resulting from service in the uniformed services for whom the covered individual is next of kin; or

to attend to a qualifying exigency arising out of the deployment of an eligible service member who is a family member of the covered individual.

Except as provided under subparagraph (ii) of this paragraph, if the need to use leave is foreseeable, an employer may require a covered employee taking leave under this title to provide the employer with written notice of the covered employee’s intention to take leave at least 30 days before commencing the leave.

If the need to use leave is not foreseeable, the covered employee shall:

The Department shall waive the filing deadline established under paragraph (1) of this subsection for good cause.

If the covered individual does not have good cause for the delay in completing the claim application, the Secretary may delay or deny benefits under this title.

make a reasonable effort to schedule the intermittent leave in a manner that does not unduly disrupt the operations of the employer; and

provide the employer with reasonable and practicable prior notice of the reason for which the intermittent leave is necessary.

if the covered employee’s average weekly wage is 65% or less of the State average weekly wage, 90% of the covered employee’s average weekly wage; or

if the covered employee’s average weekly wage is greater than 65% of the State average weekly wage, the sum of:

shall be at least $50; and

may not exceed:

In this paragraph, “Consumer Price Index” means the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers for the Washington–Arlington–Alexandria, DC–VA–MD–WV metropolitan area or a successor index published by the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Subject to subsection (e) of this section, for the 12–month period beginning January 1, 2029, and each subsequent 12–month period, the maximum weekly benefit amount shall be increased by the amount, rounded to the nearest cent, that equals the product of:

Beginning September 1, 2028, and on each subsequent September 1, the Secretary shall determine and announce:

Subject to paragraph (4) of this subsection, the Board may temporarily suspend an increase in the maximum weekly benefit specified under subsection (b)(3)(ii) of this section if the Board determined under paragraph (2) of this subsection that the seasonally adjusted total employment is negative.

If the seasonally adjusted total employment is negative, the Board may consider the performance of State revenues in the immediately preceding 6 months, as reported by the Office of the Comptroller, in determining whether to temporarily suspend an increase to the maximum weekly benefit specified under subsection (b)(3)(ii) of this section.

the maximum weekly benefit in effect for the period beginning the following January 1 shall remain the same as the rate that was in effect for the immediately preceding 12–month period; and

the Board shall notify the Secretary that the maximum weekly benefit increase for the period beginning the following January 1 is suspended for 1 year.

To determine the benefit amount under a private employer plan, the weekly benefit amount shall be based on the average weekly wage earned from the employer sponsoring the private employer plan.

Notwithstanding subparagraph (i) of this paragraph, if an individual has worked less than 680 hours for the employer sponsoring the private employer plan, the weekly benefit amount shall be based on the average weekly wage under § 8.3–703(a) of this subtitle.

This subsection may not be construed to prevent a private employer plan from providing a benefit that is greater than that provided in § 8.3–703(a) of this subtitle.

The Secretary shall establish reasonable criteria for determining which employers are authorized to meet the requirements of this title through employer–provided benefits.

The criteria established under subparagraph (i) of this paragraph may include the employer’s:

the denial is necessary to prevent substantial and grievous economic injury to the operations of the employer;

the employer notifies the covered individual of the intent of the employer to deny restoration of the covered individual’s position of employment at the time the employer determines the economic injury would occur; and

if the leave has already begun in a case of leave from work for which benefits may be paid under this title, the covered individual elects not to return to employment after receiving notice of the employer’s intention to deny restoration of the covered individual’s position of employment.

the right of a covered employee to receive Program benefits under this title;

the procedure for filing a claim for benefits;

a covered employee’s responsibilities with respect to providing notification prior to the commencement of leave and any penalties for failing to do so;

the right of an employee to file a complaint for alleged violations of this title;

the right of a covered employee to job protection; and

a description of the prohibited acts, penalties, and complaint procedures under Subtitle 9 of this title.

If the Secretary’s designee is unable to resolve an issue through mediation during the period stated in paragraph (1) of this subsection and the Secretary’s designee determines that an employer has violated this subtitle, the Secretary’s designee shall issue an order.

An order issued under subparagraph (i) of this paragraph:

the Secretary may:

within 3 years after the date of the order, an employee may bring a civil action to enforce the order in the county where the employer is located.

three times the value of the employee’s lost wages and damages equal to the amount of wages, salary, employment benefits, or other compensation denied or lost;

punitive damages in an amount to be determined by the court;

reasonable counsel fees and other costs;

injunctive relief, if appropriate; and

any other relief that the court deems appropriate.

The Secretary shall establish a system for appeals by covered individuals regarding determinations of benefit amounts, benefit durations, and denials of benefits under this title.

A covered individual must file an appeal under subparagraph (i) of this paragraph within 30 days after the determination is made or benefits are denied, unless good cause can be shown for the delay.

If a covered individual prevails in an appeal of an adverse decision of an employer or insurer, the Department may assess the Department’s costs of the appeal against the employer or insurer.