PAID PARENTAL LEAVE FOR SCHOOL EMPLOYEES

SB0188

SENATE BILL 188

57th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2026

INTRODUCED BY

Mimi Stewart

AN ACT

RELATING TO PUBLIC SCHOOLS; ENACTING THE PAID PARENTAL LEAVE
FOR QUALIFIED SCHOOL EMPLOYEES ACT; PROVIDING UP TO TWELVE
WEEKS OF PAID PARENTAL LEAVE TO QUALIFIED EMPLOYEES OF SCHOOL
DISTRICTS OR CHARTER SCHOOLS; PROVIDING FOR REIMBURSEMENTS TO
SCHOOL DISTRICTS OR CHARTER SCHOOLS THAT PROVIDE PARENTAL
LEAVE; PROVIDING FOR RULES; MAKING AN APPROPRIATION.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

SECTION 1.
A new section of the Public School Code is
enacted to read:

"[
NEW MATERIAL
] SHORT TITLE.--This act may be cited as the
"Paid Parental Leave for Qualified School Employees Act"."

SECTION 2.
A new section of the Public School Code is
enacted to read:

"[
NEW MATERIAL
] DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Paid Parental
Leave for Qualified School Employees Act:

A. "employer" means a school district or charter
school;

B. "parental leave" means the paid leave that may
be used by a qualified employee;

C. "period of parental leave" means the time frame
during which a qualified employee uses parental leave received
pursuant to the Paid Parental Leave for Qualified School
Employees Act;

D. "qualified employee" means a full-time employee

of a school district or charter school who has been employed
for at least fifty-two consecutive weeks immediately preceding
the commencement of parental leave and who meets the
eligibility requirements established by department rule; and

E. "qualifying event" means the occurrence of:

(1) the birth or adoption of a qualified
employee's child; or

(2) the foster care placement of a child in
the custody of a qualified employee."

SECTION 3.
A new section of the Public School Code is
enacted to read:

"[
NEW MATERIAL
] PARENTAL LEAVE--QUALIFIED EMPLOYEE--USE--NO ACCRUAL--NO VALUE--NO PAYOUT.--

A. A qualified employee may receive up to twelve
weeks of parental leave within a consecutive fifty-two-week
period that begins on the date of the occurrence of the
qualified employee's first qualifying event, and the parental
leave shall be used:

(1) within that fifty-two-week period; and

(2) consecutively by week; except that if the
qualified employee is a foster parent, the qualified employee
may request and receive approval to use parental leave in non-consecutive one-week periods.

B. Parental leave is paid leave, and the time
accrued during a period of parental leave shall count toward a
qualified employee's years of service.

C. Parental leave has no cash value, and a
qualified employee's unused parental leave shall not be:

(1) paid out to the qualified employee upon
the employee's separation from employment;

(2) used in the calculation of the qualified
employee's retirement benefits; or

(3) reserved or saved for future qualifying
events, except for a qualified employee who is a foster parent
who may have multiple qualifying events within a fifty-two-week
period.

D. A holiday or vacation day provided on an
employer's calendar that occurs during a qualified employee's
period of parental leave shall not be included as part of the
parental leave.

E. If the approved period of parental leave extends
beyond a qualified employee's contractual term of employment,
the employer of the qualified employee shall allow use of the
parental leave to continue under the qualified employee's
subsequent contractual term, if any, or until separation of
employment.

F. A qualified employee shall not be required to
exhaust any other accrued leave before requesting or using
parental leave, and parental leave shall not be counted to
reduce the total amount of leave to which the qualified
employee is otherwise entitled pursuant to contract, policy,
collective bargaining agreement or other law; provided,
however, that an employer subject to the federal Family and
Medical Leave Act of 1993 may require the employee's parental
leave to run concurrently with leave used under that act.

G. A qualified employee who uses parental leave
shall be paid in full for regular pay during the period of
parental leave.

H. During a period of parental leave, the employer
of a qualified employee shall maintain health insurance
coverage for the qualified employee and pay the employer's
share of the health insurance premiums under the same terms
that would apply if the qualified employee was not using
parental leave, and the qualified employee shall remain
responsible for paying the employee's share of the health
insurance premiums.

I. Nothing in the Paid Parental Leave for
Qualified School Employees Act shall be construed to prohibit
an employer from providing other benefits to a qualified
employee."

SECTION 4.
A new section of the Public School Code is
enacted to read:

"[
NEW MATERIAL
] RETURN TO WORK AFTER LEAVE.--

A. After a period of parental leave, a qualified
employee shall be:

(1) restored to the position held when the
parental leave was commenced; or

(2) placed in an equivalent position with the
same or greater benefits, wages and other terms and conditions
of employment.

B. Nothing in this section shall be construed to
entitle a restored qualified employee to a right to any benefit
or position of employment other than the benefit or position
the qualified employee would have been entitled to had the
qualified employee not used parental leave.

C. Certification or training required by an
employer as a condition of employment may remain in place and
applicable to a qualified employee who uses parental leave;
provided that nothing in this subsection shall supersede
another provision of law or a collective bargaining agreement
that governs the qualified employee's return to work after
using parental leave."

SECTION 5.
A new section of the Public School Code is
enacted to read:

"[
NEW MATERIAL
] DEPARTMENT--EMPLOYER--REIMBURSEMENT
PROCESS.--The department shall develop and administer a
reimbursement process for employers that provide parental leave
pursuant to the Paid Parental Leave for Qualified School
Employees Act. The department shall fully reimburse an
employer for eligible costs incurred in providing parental
leave to qualified employees. Eligible costs shall be
determined by rule of the department and shall, at a minimum,
include the costs of substitute educators or others required to
perform the duties of a qualified employee during a period of
parental leave."

SECTION 6.
A new section of the Public School Code is
enacted to read:

"[
NEW MATERIAL
] EMPLOYERS--SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND CHARTER
SCHOOLS--DEPARTMENT GUIDANCE.--

A. With guidance from the department, each employer
shall establish and distribute written guidelines governing
application for and approval and administration of parental
leave, including notice and documentation requirements.

B. Each employer shall annually submit to the
department a report containing information on the parental
leave awarded to and used by the employer's qualified
employees. In the report, the employer shall provide:

(1) for each qualified employee who received
parental leave, the demographic characteristics of the
qualified employee, including age, gender, race and ethnicity,
and the duration of parental leave used;

(2) a description of the employer's outreach
and communication efforts to inform employees about the
availability of parental leave for qualified employees; and

(3) any feedback received related to parental
leave that could improve employee recruitment or retention."

SECTION 7.
A new section of the Public School Code is
enacted to read:

"[
NEW MATERIAL
] ANNUAL REPORT.--

A. The department shall compile and submit an
annual report that includes:

(1) the projected and actual participation of
qualified employees requesting or using parental leave;

(2) the demographics, characteristics and
duration of periods of parental leave as reported by employers
pursuant to Section 6 of the Paid Parental Leave for Qualified
School Employees Act;

(3) any survey results from employees or
employers regarding the impact of parental leave;

(4) administrative costs incurred and
reimbursement costs paid by the department for providing
parental leave; and

(5) analysis of the impact on employee
recruitment or retention directly associated with providing
parental leave.

B. The report required pursuant to this section
shall be transmitted to the governor, the secretary and the
legislative finance committee and shall promptly be made
publicly available on the department's website."

SECTION 8.
A new section of the Public School Code is
enacted to read:

"[
NEW MATERIAL
] RULE ADOPTION.--By August 1, 2026, the
department shall adopt rules necessary to establish eligibility
requirements for parental leave, to develop and administer a
reimbursement process for employers that provide parental leave
and to implement and administer all other provisions of the
Paid Parental Leave for Qualified School Employees Act."

SECTION 9.
APPROPRIATION.--Seven million five hundred
thousand dollars ($7,500,000) is appropriated from the general
fund to the public education department for expenditure in
fiscal year 2027 and subsequent fiscal years to carry out the
provisions of the Paid Parental Leave for Qualified School
Employees Act, including reimbursing school districts or
charter schools for eligible costs for substitutes for
educators or other qualified employees. Any unexpended balance
remaining at the end of a fiscal year shall not revert to the
general fund.

SECTION 10.
EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the
provisions of this act is July 1, 2026.

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