Maryland has recently enacted the Time to Care Act of 2022, which establishes a statewide paid leave akin to a paid sick leave program. This leave is meant to take inspiration from (and heavily mirror) the provisions of the FMLA, although leave under this law has a paid component.

Employees may take leave under this new Maryland leave law for the following reasons:

To care for a child, for up to one year after birth, adoption, or placement in foster care;

For the serious health condition of the employee or a family member;

For the serious health condition of a covered service member who is the employee’s next of kin; or

Other qualifying exigencies arising from the military deployment of an employee’s family member

Employees who work at least 680 hours over a 12-month period will be eligible for paid leave benefits. Benefits will be paid by the state through a fund that will be contributed to by all employees within the state and all employers within the state that employ at least 15 employees. This new leave will run concurrently with FMLA leave.

This new leave law is set to take effect beginning October 1, 2023, giving employers plenty of time to begin making internal preparations for the additional administrative burdens.