DeLauro Testifies on FAMILY Act at Oversight and Reform Committee Hearing on Paid Family and Medical Leave

WASHINGTON, D.C. — (December 10, 2019) Today, Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-03) testified at the House Oversight and Reform Committee hearing on "Examining the Need for Comprehensive National Paid Family and Medical Leave" to discuss the FAMILY ACT, her legislation that would create a universal, gender-neutral, national paid family and medical leave program. A full video of her testimony can be found here, and below are her remarks as delivered:

Thank you very, very much for your kind words. This morning we honor the memory of our colleague Elijah Cummings and we offer our sincere congratulations to you, Madam Chair on ascending to this position and I am delighted to be here. I want to recognize and thank the Ranking Member, Mr. Jordan, for welcoming me here today and all the members of the committee.

As Members of Congress, I believe it is our duty to level the playing field for middle-class families and working people. Especially now. Why now? People's pay is a serious economic challenge that people have in their lives and their pay does not keep up with the costs, skyrocketing costs, that they face every day. So, it is sadly no surprise, that very few can afford to lose several weeks of wages, whether for an ill loved one or the birth of a child. It would push them over the edge. In fact, 62 percent of working people cannot access unpaid leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act, according to researchers from Brandeis University, Either because they are ineligible or they cannot afford to.

But, those moments come regardless.

In 1986, I was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Went to my employer and told him that I was going to be hospitalized and that I did not really know whether or not that I would be returning. My employer was Senator Christopher Dodd. Senator Dodd introduced what became the Family and Medical Leave Act that same year. But what he said to me on that day when I went into his office was "Rosa, go get yourself well. Your job is here, your salary is here, just take care of yourself." With the support of my family and friends, and by the grace of God and biomedical research, I recovered, and have been cancer-free 30 years.

Two years ago, my mother, at age 103—happy to tell you she served on the city council in New Haven for 35 years. She was dying and I got to spend every day and every night with her for six weeks. No one told me as a Member of Congress, that I would not receive a salary, no one told me that my job would not be waiting for me.

That was such a blessing in both cases. A blessing that cannot just be for Senate staffers or for Members of Congress. The United States needs a national paid leave policy—to provide paid time off for working people who are welcoming a new child, caring for a seriously ill or injured family member, or recovering personally from a serious illness. For everyone.

So, after three years of careful deliberation and coalition building, I introduced the FAMILY Act with my partner in the Senate, Senator Gillibrand and we did that in 2013: it is the gold standard. We have reintroduced it in every Congress since as we did earlier this year, with 700 groups in virtually every state endorsing it.

• The FAMILY Act allows employees to receive up to 60 days, or 12 weeks, of partial income, 66% of their income, for a health condition; injury or sickness to a child, parent, spouse, or domestic partner; the birth or adoption of a child; the injury of a family member in the military; or exigencies arising from a service member's deployment.
• It creates an independent and self-sustaining national insurance fund by having employees and employers pitch in together, with payroll contributions of two cents for every $10 in wages. It is equivalent to less than $2.00 per week for a typical worker.
• It would be managed under a new Office of Paid Family and Medical Leave within the Social Security Administration. But, it is separate and independent from the Social Security Trust Fund so it does not impact the solvency of Social Security.

It has a record 201 cosponsors in the House and 34 in the Senate. And, it is bipartisan, as were similar proposals in the states.

So far, nine states, including the District of Columbia have passed paid leave programs. They go even further in terms of leave duration, family members covered, wage replacement offered or employment protections. We can learn from these innovations.

And, we can learn from the businesses who support paid leave. From the Main Street Alliance to the American Sustainable Business Council, close to 100 businesses or business leaders nationwide support the FAMILY Act.

It is no surprise that a 2017 study by the Boston Consulting Group found that 250 companies offering paid family and medical leave reported better ability to attract and retain talent, higher productivity, more diverse company leadership teams, and increased profitability.

Considering the benefits of paid leave for families and for businesses, I am so glad to that my colleagues on the other side of the aisle support this in some form. But, proposals need to be, not deal with harm, because that would be unacceptable. And, many of the programs as currently written force trade-offs between a worker's current self and their future self. They are being asked to dip into their social security funds, and most only provide income support for new parents. But, we applaud, and should provide support for new parents-the birth of a child is glorious. But income support for new parents is not enough. 75 percent of workers who take FMLA, Family and Medical Leave currently do so to address the serious health condition of their own or of a loved one.

So, let us provide the paid leave that families and workers need and deserve. Not only for Senate staffers and House staffers, and not only for Members of Congress, but for everyone in this country to provide them with economic security. We need to alleviate economic insecurity of middle-class families, of working people. We must not only celebrate them, we must elevate them. And, we can do that with the FAMILY Act. Thank you so much for allowing me to come before the committee this morning.