A few minutes ago, the Senate Finance Committee tabled House Bill 11, this session’s version of PFMLA, by a vote of 8-3. “This bill, which is fraught with financial uncertainty, finally got a hard look from one of the Legislature’s finance committees,” said Terri Cole, president and CEO of the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce. “And they revealed what many of us have been saying all session: Despite a payroll tax increase of over $200 million, there is huge fiscal uncertainty.”
On top of 6 weeks of paid leave for family medical care, funded by the new payroll tax, there is also 12 weeks of “welcome child” unpaid leave and a $9,000 per child “refund.” This costs over $190 million per year with no funding sources, thus placing a burden on the general fund, paid for by all taxpayers in the state or by raiding the Early Childhood Trust Fund. “This bill would have made New Mexico less competitive in so many ways,” noted Cole. “There’s the taxes, there’s the cost of replacement employees, if they can be found, or overtime. There’ the chance for abuse and overutilization of leave because the definitions are so loose. We are thankful the Senate Finance Committee put the brakes on this onerous plan.” We will have more details in tonight’s Legislative RoundUp.