HB 5164

relating to parental leave for certain employees paid by employers
or insurance policies maintained by employers.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1.  Subtitle B, Title 4, Labor Code, is amended by
adding Chapter 320 to read as follows:
CHAPTER 320. PAID PARENTAL LEAVE FOR CERTAIN EMPLOYEES
Sec. 320.001.  DEFINITIONS.  In this chapter:
(1)  "Employee" means an individual who performs
services in this state for an employer for compensation under a
contract for hire, whether express or implied.  The term does not
include an independent contractor or a state employee to which
Section 661.9125, Government Code, applies.
(2)  "Employer" means a person that employs 50 or more
Sec. 320.002.  PAID PARENTAL LEAVE FOR CERTAIN EMPLOYEES.
(a) This section applies only to an employee who, during the
preceding 12 months, has worked for the employer on a full-time
(b)  Subject to Subsection (c), an employee to whom this
section applies is entitled, on request, to 60 days of paid leave
(1)  birth of a child by the employee;
(2)  birth of a child by the employee's spouse;
(3)  birth of a child by a gestational surrogate;
(5)  provision of foster care or kinship care to a child
younger than one year of age who is in the conservatorship of the
Department of Family and Protective Services.
(c)  The amount of paid leave to which an employee is
entitled under Subsection (b) for each week of leave taken under
that subsection is an amount equal to the employee's average weekly
wage during the 12-month period preceding the first day that the
employee takes leave under that subsection.
(d)  This section does not entitle an employee to leave in
addition to any leave the employee is entitled to under the federal
Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (29 U.S.C. Section 2601 et
seq.).  An employee is not entitled to paid leave under this section
for any period during which the employee is taking other paid leave.
(e)  An employee may not take leave under this section:
(1)  later than the first anniversary of the date of
birth or adoption of a child or placement of a child in foster care
(2)  more than one time during a 12-month period.
(f)  Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, an
employee who takes leave under this section for the purpose
described by Subsection (b)(1) may take the leave before the birth
(g)  An employer may not take an adverse employment action
against an employee because the employee has taken or plans to take
paid leave under this section. For purposes of this subsection,
"adverse employment action" includes termination or suspension of
the employee's employment, an action that affects the employee's
compensation, promotion, or performance evaluation, or any other
employment action that would dissuade a reasonable employee from
taking paid leave under this chapter.
Sec. 320.003.  PAYMENT OF PAID PARENTAL LEAVE COSTS.  (a) To
pay for the costs associated with paid leave required under Section
320.002, an employer may directly pay those costs or maintain an
insurance policy providing coverage for those costs in accordance
(b)  An employer electing to maintain an insurance policy
under Subsection (a) shall maintain a policy that provides
sufficient coverage for the employer's employees who are entitled
to paid leave under Section 320.002. To the extent the policy does
not cover the costs associated with paid leave required under
Section 320.002, the employer is liable for those costs.
(c)  The commissioner of insurance may adopt rules
prescribing sufficient coverage requirements and reasonable rates
for an insurance policy described by this section.
Sec. 320.004.  EXCEPTION.  Notwithstanding any other
provision of this chapter, an employee is not entitled to paid leave
under Section 320.002, and an employer is not required to pay costs
associated with that leave under Section 320.003, if no insurer
authorized to engage in the business of insurance in this state
offers an insurance policy described by Section 320.003 by October
1 of the year preceding the year in which the paid leave requirement
SECTION 2.  An employee is not entitled to paid leave under
Chapter 320, Labor Code, as added by this Act, before January 1,
SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.