Governor Abigail Spanberger is about to consider legislation that would create a system of paid family and medical leave.
Senator Jennifer Boysko is a Democrat from Herndon who doesn't just think about paid family and medical leave from a policy perspective or even a political perspective. During a speech on the Senate floor this week, she explained the difficult circumstance of having a second child when her husband could not take extended time off work.
"And so, somehow I had to handle my toddler and somehow get to 20 miles away to where my daughter was in the hospital for six weeks while I was still sick with no family around," Boysko says.
That's why she introduced legislation to create a new insurance program that will take money out of paychecks in Virginia for a new system of paid family and medical leave. Republican Senate Minority Leader Ryan McDougle says this is not part of an affordability agenda.
"This is a tax on employees. Make no mistake, they are going to have to pay this tax," McDougle says. "The program indicates that it's going to cost about $1.4 billion a year. Well, that $1.4 billion doesn't come out of the air. It comes from two places: employees and employers."
The last time Democrats were in power a few years ago, they didn't have the votes to make this happen. Now, Governor Abigail Spanberger says this is a top priority.
