Bill
LD 406
The bill repeals Maine’s Paid Family and Medical Leave program and Insurance Fund, deallocates funds, and redirects unspent monies to the General Fund after refunds.
Status: Placed in Legislative Files (DEAD)
Introduced: February 4, 2025
Committee: Labor
Purpose and Intent
- The bill aims to repeal Maine’s Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) program and associated funding mechanisms, effectively ending the PFML Insurance Fund and the program’s administration.
- It includes a provision to reimburse taxpayers by deallocating remaining PFML funds and transferring unspent balances to the General Fund once refunds to employers and self-employed individuals are completed.
Key Provisions
- Repeal of PFML Laws: Repeals the laws that establish and govern the Paid Family and Medical Leave program and its Insurance Fund.
- Fund Deallocations: Requires deallocation from the Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance Fund:
- FY 2025-26: $13,701,288
- FY 2026-27: $13,545,861
- (Projections for subsequent years are indicated as similar annual deallocations.)
- Refunds to Contributors: After processing refunds to employers and self-employed individuals who contributed to the PFML system, any unspent funds would be transferred to the General Fund’s unappropriated surplus. The bill notes that the exact amount available depends on refund costs and closeout expenses.
- Revenue and General Fund Impact: The fiscal notes indicate a potential increase in General Fund revenue from transferring unspent PFML funds, but the exact amount cannot be determined in advance.
Financial Impact (as indicated by fiscal notes)
- Immediate impact: Deallocations totaling approximately $13.7 million in FY 2025-26 and $13.5 million in FY 2026-27 from the PFML Insurance Fund.
- Possible General Fund effect: Unspent funds, after refunds, could augment the General Fund’s unappropriated surplus; exact figures depend on refunds and closeout costs.
- The notes emphasize that costs to close out the program and refund processing will influence the final balance available to the General Fund.
Affected Parties
- Employers and self-employed individuals who contribute to or benefit from PFML (repercussions include cessation of contributions and benefits under PFML).
- Department of Labor (administrator of the PFML Insurance Fund) would manage the deallocation and closeout.
- General Fund (potentially benefits from any unspent funds after refunds).
Procedural History and Timeline
- 2025-02-04: Referred to the Committee on Labor.
- 2025-05-07 to 2025-05-29: Various committee actions (work session, reports as ONTP/OTP-AM, etc.).
- 2025-06-02: Final roll-call and concurrence actions in the chamber.
- 2025-06-03: Majority Ought Not to Pass report accepted; placed in Legislative Files (DEAD). Roll call: Yeas 19 - Nays 14.
- The bill did not advance beyond committee/lawmakers and is considered dead for the 132nd Legislature.
Notes
- There are two identical fiscal notes (LR 702(01) and LR 702(02)) accompanying the bill, both outlining the same deallocation and general-fund impact assumptions.
Overall Impact
- LD 406 would terminate Maine’s PFML program, unwind related funding, and provide a mechanism to reimburse taxpayers through unspent PFML funds redirected to the General Fund after refunds. The measure is now inactive, but the fiscal notes highlight substantial near-term deallocations from the PFML Insurance Fund and potential General Fund impacts.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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