PRIA Logo™
LouisianaSB 1572026 Regular SessionSenateWALLET

SCHOOLS: Provides for paid parental leave for eligible employees. (gov sig) (EN INCREASE GF EX See Note)

Sponsored By: Sam Jenkins (Democratic)

Signed by Governor

Education

Personalized for You

How does this bill affect your finances?

Personalize government policy and PRIA will tell you what this bill means for your household, plus every other piece of legislation we track. PRIA reads each provision against your financial profile to show you exactly what matters to your wallet.

Free to download

Bill Overview

Analyzed Economic Effects

3 provisions identified: 2 benefits, 0 costs, 1 mixed.

Paid parental leave for Louisiana school employees

The law creates paid parental leave for covered Louisiana public school employees, including charter school employees. Employees must have worked for their school agency for at least 12 months when the qualifying event occurs. Full-time employees get up to six weeks, or 240 hours, at 100% of base pay. Part-time employees get six weeks at full base pay for their normally scheduled hours. Leave covers childbirth, prenatal and postnatal periods, pregnancy loss, stillbirth, adoption, foster placement, and related adoption or foster proceedings. A child is under 18 or someone for whom the employee acts as a parent. Leave can be continuous or taken in separate blocks, but must be used within 12 weeks of the event. Employees keep their other leave balances and cannot be required to use them first or during parental leave. Both eligible parents can take leave together or separately; it overlaps with federal Family and Medical Leave Act leave when applicable. Another leave period requires a new qualifying event at least 12 months after the previous leave period began. Unused parental leave cannot be saved for another event or donated to a leave pool. Program implementation depends on legislative funding.

School leave protections with new notice duties

School agencies and other people cannot deny or interfere with employees’ parental-leave rights. Agencies cannot count protected leave as an absence that leads to discipline or other adverse action. The law preserves tenure and more generous leave rights under agreements, policies, contracts, or other laws; waivers are invalid. Agencies must offer a grievance process. Employees have 24 months after a violation, or when they reasonably should have learned of it, to file a grievance. Employees generally must request leave 30 days before the event. If they learn of the event less than 30 days ahead, they must give written notice as soon as reasonably possible. Agencies must set leave policies and request forms and can require supporting birth, placement, adoption, or court documents. They cannot require medical records or scientific evidence to prove paternity. Agencies must explain leave rights when employees are hired and annually afterward. They must also post an approved notice, using electronic notices when there is no physical workplace or employees work remotely.

State helps schools cover parental leave substitutes

The law creates a state fund to help school agencies pay substitutes during paid parental leave. The Louisiana Department of Education administers the program and reimburses substitute costs for up to six weeks per qualifying event. Reimbursement depends on legislative appropriations and money available in the fund that fiscal year; employees do not receive this payment directly. The fund can receive donations, gifts, grants, appropriations, designated state revenues, and other lawful deposits. Interest can stay in the fund, and unused money remains available to the department for substitute costs. Schools can hire temporary substitutes, but that service alone does not give substitutes tenure unless they later fill a qualifying regular vacancy. Required program rules must be adopted by November 1, 2026. The act took effect upon the governor’s signature, while program implementation depends on legislative funding.

Sponsors & Cosponsors

Sponsor

  • Sam Jenkins

    Democratic • Senate

Cosponsors

  • Adrian Fisher

    Democratic • House

  • Aimee Adatto Freeman

    Democratic • House

  • Alonzo L. Knox

    Democratic • House

  • Barbara Carpenter

    Democratic • House

  • Barbara Reich Freiberg

    Republican • House

  • Bryan Fontenot

    Republican • House

  • Dana Henry

    Democratic • House

  • Roy Daryl Adams

    Democratic • House

  • Ken Brass

    Democratic • House

  • Kimberly Landry Coates

    Republican • House

  • Kyle M. Green Jr.

    Democratic • House

  • R. Dewith Carrier

    Republican • House

  • Reese "Skip" Broussard

    Republican • House

  • Rodney Lyons

    Democratic • House

  • Shane Mack

    Republican • House

  • Steven Jackson

    Democratic • House

  • Tehmi Jahi Chassion

    Democratic • House

  • Terry Landry Jr.

    Democratic • House

  • Vanessa Caston LaFleur

    Democratic • House

Roll Call Votes

All Roll Calls

Yes: 142 • No: 13

House vote • 5/29/2026

Read third time by title, roll called on final passage, yeas 78, nays 13. Finally passed, ordered to the Senate.

Yes: 78 • No: 13

House vote • 5/26/2026

Reported with amendments

Yes: 19 • No: 0

House vote • 5/19/2026

Reported with amendments

Yes: 13 • No: 0

Senate vote • 5/7/2026

Rules suspended. Senate floor amendments read and adopted. Read by title and passed by a vote of 32 yeas and 0 nays; ordered re-reengrossed and sent to the House. Motion to reconsider tabled.

Yes: 32 • No: 0

Actions Timeline

  1. Signed by the Governor. Becomes Act No. 744.

    6/2/2026Senate

  2. Effective date 6/2/2026.

    6/2/2026Senate

  3. Enrolled. Signed by the President of the Senate.

    6/1/2026Senate

  4. Signed by the Speaker of the House.

    6/1/2026House

  5. Sent to the Governor by the Secretary of the Senate.

    6/1/2026Senate

  6. Scheduled for floor debate on 05/29/2026.

    5/29/2026House

  7. Read third time by title, roll called on final passage, yeas 78, nays 13. Finally passed, ordered to the Senate.

    5/29/2026House

  8. Received from the House with amendments.

    5/29/2026Senate

  9. Read by title, amended, passed to 3rd reading.

    5/28/2026House

  10. Reported without Legislative Bureau amendments.

    5/27/2026House

  11. Reported with amendments (19-0). Referred to the Legislative Bureau.

    5/26/2026House

  12. Read by title, amended, recommitted to the Committee on Appropriations.

    5/20/2026House

  13. Reported with amendments (13-0). To be recommitted to the Committee on Appropriations.

    5/19/2026House

  14. Read by title, under the rules, referred to the Committee on Education.

    5/12/2026House

  15. Received in the House from the Senate, read by title, lies over under the rules.

    5/11/2026House

  16. Rules suspended. Senate floor amendments read and adopted. Read by title and passed by a vote of 32 yeas and 0 nays; ordered re-reengrossed and sent to the House. Motion to reconsider tabled.

    5/7/2026Senate

  17. Read by title; Committee amendments read and adopted. Ordered reengrossed and passed to third reading and final passage.

    5/6/2026Senate

  18. Reported with amendments.

    5/5/2026Senate

  19. Read by title. Committee amendments read and adopted; ordered engrossed and recommitted to the Committee on Finance.

    4/20/2026Senate

  20. Reported with amendments.

    4/15/2026Senate

  21. Introduced in the Senate; read by title. Rules suspended. Read second time and referred to the Committee on Education.

    3/9/2026Senate

  22. Prefiled and under the rules provisionally referred to the Committee on Education.

    2/25/2026Senate

Bill Text

Related Bills

Back to State Legislation