Two bills were introduced this week that seek to amend the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and its regulations. On Wednesday, Rep. Carol Shea-Porter (D-NH) introduced legislation that would reverse Department of Labor (DOL) regulations on the FMLA that were issued in November 2008.  The Family and Medical Leave Restoration Act (H.R. 2161) would essentially nullify the new DOL regulations, restore prior ones, and direct the Secretary of Labor to revise additional regulations under this Act.

According to a press release issued by Rep. Shea-Porter, the Family and Medical Leave Restoration Act would do the following:

• “Restore protections that prevent an employer from forcing an employee from using more incremental FMLA leave than is medically necessary;
• Reverse limitations placed on the use of accrued paid leave while on FMLA;
• Restore the prohibition on denying attendance bonuses as a consequence for taking FMLA leave;
• Restore protections that prohibit the waiving of an employee’s FMLA rights without review and approval by the Department of Labor or the courts;
• Restore protections that prohibit an employer from approving or denying FMLA leave based on compliance or non-compliance with employer leave request policies;
• Restore employee privacy by reversing regulations that would allow an employer to directly contact an employee’s medical provider;
• Restore previous ‘fitness-for-duty’ certification rules for employees who take intermittent leave;
• Direct the Secretary to revise the Bush regulations to revisit the new, burdensome treatment and recertification timelines imposed by the previous Department of Labor; and
• Direct the Secretary to revise the provided medical certification template to include the definition of a ‘serious health condition.'"

This bill, which was co-sponsored by 21 others, has been referred to the House Committees on Education and Labor, Oversight and Government Reform, and House Administration.

Earlier in the week, Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) reintroduced a bill that would amend the FMLA to permit eligible employees to take up to twelve weeks of unpaid leave to care for a same-sex spouse, domestic partner, parent-in-law, adult child, sibling or grandparent who has a serious health condition. The Family and Medical Leave Inclusion Act (H.R. 2132) had been introduced in 2007 without success. The bill does not change the terms of the FMLA, but rather expands coverage to include the aforementioned individuals, as defined by the bill.

This Family and Medical Leave Inclusion Act has been referred to the House Committees on Education and Labor, House Administration, and Oversight and Government Reform.