AN ACT to amend and reenact section 54-06-14.7 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to shared leave for state employees.
Summary
HB 1599 amends North Dakota’s state leave sharing law for permanent state employees. It directs the Human Resource Management Services Division of the Office of Management and Budget to maintain a program that allows employees to donate accrued annual or sick leave to another employee who has exhausted leave and is dealing with a severe, extreme, or life-threatening medical condition, or who is caring for an immediate family or household member with such a condition.
The bill also specifies who may participate and how the program must operate. Temporary employees and limited-term contracted employees are excluded. A recipient may use no more than four months of donated leave in any 12-month period, and donated leave may not be retained beyond the event that created the need. The division must require medical certification from an authorized health professional, track leave usage, and adopt administrative rules to implement the program.
Impact
HB 1599 updates Section 54-06-14.7 of the North Dakota Century Code by refining the state employee leave-sharing program and clarifying eligibility, limits, documentation requirements, and rulemaking authority. Its practical effect is to preserve and formalize a mechanism for permanent state employees to support coworkers facing serious medical hardship, while placing administrative controls on the use of donated leave. The bill affects state employees, the Office of Management and Budget’s human resource division, and the state’s leave administration policies.
Sentiment
The bill appears to have been broadly supported and noncontroversial. It passed the House unanimously, 92-0, and the Senate by a wide margin, 45-1, indicating strong bipartisan approval for the leave-sharing program and its administrative updates. The absence of committee transcript discussion suggests there was little public or legislative dispute over the measure.
Contention
There is little evidence of major contention in the available record. The only apparent areas where disagreement could arise are the eligibility restrictions excluding temporary and limited-term contracted employees, the cap of four months of donated leave in a 12-month period, and the requirement for medical certification. However, the overwhelming vote totals suggest these provisions were accepted as reasonable safeguards rather than points of significant conflict.
AN ACT to amend and reenact section 54-06-14 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to state employee annual leave; and to provide an effective date.
A BILL for an Act to amend and reenact section 54-03-27 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to leaves of absence from employment for members of the legislative assembly.
AN ACT to amend and reenact sections 54-52-01, 54-52-02.1, 54-52-02.15, 54-52-06.3, 54-52-06.4, and 54-52-17 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to the public employees retirement system public safety retirement plan.