Bills › 89th General Assembly
Where it is now
- Done: IntroducedJanuary 12, 2021
- Done: SubcommitteeJanuary 12, 2021
- Done: Senate committeeMarch 1, 2021
- Skipped: Passes the SenateContinued as SF 485
- Next: House committee
- Next: Passes the House
- Next: To the Governor
- Next: Signed into law
Became SF 485 → Its progress continues under the new number. Go to SF 485 What’s a funnel?
What’s in it
This bill requires an employer to provide reasonable accommodations to an employee based on medical conditions related to the employee’s pregnancy or childbirth if the employee requests reasonable accommodations with the advice of the employee’s health care provider. Penalty provisions for discriminatory employment practices are made applicable to a failure to provide such reasonable accommodations to an employee. _____ modified work schedule. The bill provides that “reasonable accommodations” does not mean any action that would impose an undue hardship on the business of the employer from whom the action is requested.
Senate subcommittee
Named January 21, 2021. On January 21, 2021 it recommended passage.
Three legislators hear a bill first and recommend what the committee should do; it’s the best time to weigh in. How to take part
Fiscal note
AI summary This bill requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations for employees based on pregnancy or childbirth and tasks the Labor Commissioner with enforcing these rules. It is estimated to increase costs to the Iowa Department of Workforce Development by $135,000 in fiscal year 2022 and $166,000 in fiscal year 2023 and subsequent fiscal years. These costs will be funded by the state's General Fund.2
Read the fiscal note
Description
Senate File 485 requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations to employees based on pregnancy or childbirth and tasks the Labor Commissioner with adopting rules to administer employment inspections and enforce the Bill. An employer who violates the Bill is subject to a civil penalty of up to $750. The Bill is effective July 1, 2021.
Background
The office of the Labor Commissioner, created in Iowa Code section 91.1, controls the Division of Labor Services under the Iowa Department of Workforce Development (IWD) and is responsible for the activities of the Division, including disseminating safety and wage information to businesses and employees, administering education programs on worker safety, licensing businesses and equipment, and enforcing wage and child labor standards. State employment policies regarding pregnancy and childbirth are covered under Iowa Code section 216.6, which received a hearing through the Iowa Supreme Court in McQuistion v. City of Clinton. The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), detailed in 29 U.S.C. 28, outlines federal policies regarding pregnancy and childbirth and received a hearing through the U.S. Supreme Court in Young v. United Parcel Serv., Inc.
Assumptions
- The Bill will require the Division of Labor to implement and enforce a new program to write rules, perform inspections, and assess civil penalties.
- The Bill will require 2.0 additional full-time equivalent (FTE) positions to administer the program beginning in FY 2022. These positions include an Attorney 2 and an Investigator 2.
- Hiring of FTE positions will not take place, on average, until October 1, 2021. The estimated cost for salaries and benefits for FY 2022 is $118,000 and $161,000 for FY 2023.
- Operating costs are estimated at $10,000 annually, including travel, postage, and other administrative costs.
- Capital outlay includes desks, computers, chairs, and other costs of creating two new positions within the IWD.
- At $750 per citation, the IWD expects to collect $5,000 annually in penalty fees. The fiscal impact is shown in Table 1 below.
- Inflation is calculated at 2.1% in FY 2023 for salary and benefits.
- There will be seven penalty citations collected each fiscal year by the Division of Labor.
Fiscal Impact
Senate File 485 is estimated to increase the cost to the IWD by $135,000 in FY 2022, and $166,000 in FY 2023 and subsequent fiscal years. The cost for salaries and benefits will grow at 2.1% in the out-years. Funding is expected to come from the General Fund.
Sources
- Legislative Services Agency
- Iowa Department of Workforce Development
- Iowa Civil Rights Commission
- Pregnancy and Childbirth, Reasonable Employment Accommodations · March 3, 2021 · $166,000
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Study bill
89th General Assembly
Earlier and later bills are matched by wording or an identical title.
Tried before
This idea has been filed in an earlier General Assembly. None got through a chamber.
- HSB 608 HSB 60888th General Assembly · Subcommittee recommends passage · nearly identicalCleared committee
- HF 109 Requiring employers to provide reasonable accommodations to employees based on pregnancy o…88th General Assembly · In committee · nearly identicalCleared committee
Similar bills this General Assembly
- HSB 603 HSB 60389th General Assembly · Renumbered as HF 2257Nearly identical
- HF 676 Requiring employers to provide reasonable accommodations to employees based on pregnancy o…91st General Assembly · In committeeNearly identical
- HF 124 Requiring employers to provide reasonable accommodations to employees based on pregnancy o…89th General Assembly · In committeeNearly identical
- SF 435 Requiring employers to provide reasonable accommodations to employees based on pregnancy o…90th General Assembly · In committeeNearly identical
- SF 134 Requiring employers to provide reasonable accommodations to employees based on pregnancy o…91st General Assembly · In committeeNearly identical
Matched by wording or an identical title.