GOP Governors Chris Sununu of New Hampshire and Phil Scott of Vermont continue to show bold leadership as they fight to make life better for working families across their states.
On Wednesday, the two governors unveiled the Twin State Voluntary Leave Program, a new joint paid family and medical leave initiative that would cover residents in both states, allowing 18,500 public and private sector employees from both Vermont and New Hampshire to opt in to the program.
Thanks to Governor Scott and Sununu’s cooperative efforts to embrace innovative solutions to their states’ challenges, working families across Vermont and New Hampshire will gain access to paid family and medical leave, greatly improving their quality of life.
U.S. News & World Report has more:
Vermont Gov. Phil Scott and New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu proposed a plan Wednesday to create a voluntary paid family and medical leave program that would cover residents in both states.
The two Republican governors unveiled the Twin State Voluntary Leave Plan, which would be administered by a private insurer, at a joint press conference in Littleton, New Hampshire.
‘(The program is) an incredible opportunity to create a work-life balance for many workers in our states struggling to meet the demands of the workplace while also meeting the needs of their families and their own health,’ Sununu said at the press conference.
Vermont and New Hampshire’s 18,500 combined private- and public-sector employees would be able to opt in to the program, which the governors say would require no startup or ongoing costs to taxpayers.
Sununu said the Twin State Voluntary Leave Program would offer participants 60 percent of their weekly wage for a maximum of six weeks for events such as the birth of a child or caring for a family member with a serious medical condition. Employers can implement the program in one of two ways: They can provide it at no additional cost to employees, or they can provide it as an elective benefit within their traditional open enrollment period.
If an individual’s employer doesn’t offer a paid leave plan, they can still purchase coverage.
But Sununu said Wednesday that combining the two states increases the risk pool, making pricing “more predictable and stable.”
‘By leveraging the economies of scale of each state’s employment base, insurance carriers will be able to write a competitively priced family leave plan,’ he said.”