Bill
HB 2490
Establishes six weeks of state paid family leave for firefighters to bond with a newborn, care for a new child or a family member with a serious health condition, with job protecti
Status / Key dates
- Introduced Feb. 4–5, 2025 (Rep. Katie Stuart); companion bill SB 2376.
- Passed the Illinois House (vote recorded 85–22–5 on 4/8/2025); transmitted to the Senate and assigned to Senate committees/Assignments. As of 6/2/2025: Rule 3‑9(a) / Re‑referred to Assignments.
- Effective date: upon becoming law. Department of Labor authorized to adopt implementing rules.
Purpose
- Establish a state statutory paid family leave entitlement specifically for firefighters (including many paramedics/EMTs employed by municipalities or fire protection districts) to support bonding after birth/placement and caregiving for family members with serious health conditions.
Key provisions
- Leave amount: 6 weeks of paid family leave per qualifying event.
- Permitted uses:
1. Birth of a child and care of a newborn.
2. Care of a newly adopted child or newly placed foster child (under 18), or older child unable to self‑care due to disability.
3. Care of a family member who has a "serious health condition" (defined to include inpatient care or continuing medical treatment/supervision by a health care provider).
- Compensation: employer must pay the firefighter at their regular rate of pay for regular work hours missed, paid on the same pay interval as when working.
- Return-to-work accommodations: employers must reasonably accommodate additional physical recovery time after childbirth (examples include temporary light duty or reassignment until full duties resume).
- Employment protections: on return, the firefighter must be reinstated to the same or an equivalent position with equivalent pay and benefits; accrued benefits may not be lost.
- Anti‑retaliation: employers may not discharge, discipline, threaten, or otherwise discriminate against firefighters for exercising rights under the Act, filing complaints, or assisting in proceedings. Use of paid leave cannot be treated negatively in attendance/discipline, promotion, or other employment decisions.
- Eligibility timing: paid leave protections apply to firefighters employed by an employer for at least one year.
- Waiver: a firefighter may voluntarily waive the right to the full 6 weeks by returning to work earlier or by declining the leave in writing.
- Collective bargaining: the Act does not preempt or reduce leave or final compensation rights already promised under a collective bargaining agreement.
- Home rule limitation: local home rule units may not adopt regulations more restrictive than this Act with respect to firefighter paid family leave.
- Rulemaking: Illinois Department of Labor may adopt rules to implement the Act.
Who is affected
- Covered: full‑time firefighters (as defined consistent with Illinois Pension Code Section 4‑106), firefighter‑paramedics, and municipal or fire‑district employees performing fire/emergency medical duties. Employers: municipalities, fire protection districts, and other public employers that employ covered firefighters.
- Also impacts unions/collective bargaining parties and local budgets/staffing operations.
Potential impacts and considerations
- Financial: direct payroll cost to employers (municipalities/fire districts) for up to 6 weeks at full pay per eligible firefighter per qualifying event; potential offset if some leave already covered contractually.
- Operational: scheduling, overtime, and temporary staffing needs to cover absences.
- Workforce effects: could improve retention, recruitment, and wellbeing of firefighters and their families.
- Legal/administrative: employers must update policies, ensure non‑retaliation compliance, and coordinate with collective bargaining agreements and Department of Labor rules.
Notes
- The bill preserves collective‑bargained benefits and allows firefighters to decline the leave; it also clarifies that local governments cannot impose more restrictive rules on firefighter paid family leave than the State law.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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