- The new law, which takes effect January 1, 2026, provides six weeks of paid leave for a newborn’s primary caregiver.
State employees will now be eligible for paid parental leave with the passage of HB 1063, which was signed into law by Governor Tate Reeves (R) this week.
The bill, as amended in the Senate, will provide a state employee who is the primary caregiver of a newborn with six weeks of paid leave.
As previously reported, the House’s version of the bill would have provided eight weeks of paid leave to the primary caregiver and two weeks of paid leave for a state employee who is the secondary caregiver.
In presenting the bill, State Senator Brice Wiggins (R) told the chamber that more than 20 states in the nation offer their respective state employees varying levels of paid parental leave, 15 of which, voted for President Donald Trump (R).
“There have been 21 states that have adopted a paid parental leave policy since the Dobbs decision,” Wiggins said, referring to the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Dobbs vs Jackson Women’s Health in 2022 that sent abortion regulation back to the states.
Wiggins added that no additional appropriation will be needed for the passage of the measure, as determined by a fiscal note performed by the House.
The timeframe of paid parental leave approved by the Legislature this session for primary caregivers mirrors the time offered by other states such as Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana and Tennessee. However, some states in the region do offer more time for parental leave.
Senator Wiggins said two states offer 12 weeks of paid parental leave – South Dakota and West Virginia – while North Carolina offers eight weeks.
“So, we are surrounded by states that have adopted the paid parental leave,” Wiggins said.
The bill passed in the Senate on March 11 by a vote of 34 to 16, while the House concurred on the Senate’s version of the bill days later in a vote of 118 to 2.
Governor Reeves added his signature to the bill on Tuesday. It takes effect January 1, 2026.
Jeremy Pittari
