Workers in Maine will get paid family and medical leave starting in 2026

abcnews.go.com:

Maine Gov. Janet Mills has signed into law a supplemental budget that includes establishment of a paid family and medical leave program

PORTLAND, Maine — Most Maine workers will get up to 12 weeks of paid time off for family or medical reasons as part of a supplemental budget Democratic Gov. Janet Mills signed into law on Tuesday.

The spending bill included $25 million in startup costs for the state program which allows workers — starting in 2026 — to receive paid leave to deal with illness, to care for a relative, or for the birth of a child.

Maine joins a dozen other states that have paid family and medical leave programs. The focus of legislation has been at the state level after failure to gain traction in Congress.

The program caught the attention of the White House, where press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre applauded the state’s action.

“Paid family and medical leave improves the lives of working families and strengthens our workforce and economy,” she said, adding that the Biden administration has worked to make the federal government a model by supporting federal workers in accessing needed leave.

Putting it in personal terms, Mills said that she deeply understood the need for the program — having dealt with the loss of a husband following a debilitating stroke, the realities of raising five stepdaughters on her own and caring for her own aging parents, all while working full time.

“I know firsthand the challenges of providing care to loved ones while trying to manage all the unexpected ups and downs that are simply facts of life," she previously wrote in a newspaper op-ed.

The Democratic-led Legislature already approved a nearly $10 billion essential services budget that went into effect on July 1. That