This bill amends existing law (RCW 50A.24.010) to expand which employers may apply for family and medical leave-related grants. New eligible employers include those with 51 to 150 employees, employers with 50 or fewer employees who are “assessed all premiums” under RCW 50A.10.030(5)(b), and employers classified as school districts of the second class under RCW 28A.300.065. Employers with approved voluntary plans are explicitly excluded. The bill also says the term “number of employees” and the school district classification are to be determined by the cited RCWs. The amendment creates specific grant types and application limits. It authorizes a $3,000 grant when an employer hires a temporary worker to replace an employee on family or medical leave for seven days or more, and an up-to-$1,000 reimbursement for significant additional wage-related costs caused by an employee’s leave. An employer may receive either the $3,000 grant or the up-to-$1,000 payment but not both, except that an employer who first received the up-to-$1,000 reimbursement may later receive the difference up to $3,000 if the leave is extended and a temporary worker is hired. Employers may apply no more than ten times per calendar year and no more than once for each employee on leave, must provide written documentation linking the temporary hire or wage costs to the employee’s family or medical leave, and grants are paid from the family and medical leave insurance account. The bill also creates a procedural/financial condition for small employers and a rulemaking directive. Employers with fewer than 50 employees who receive a grant will be assessed all premiums for three years from the date they receive the grant. The commissioner is directed to adopt rules necessary to implement the section. The text does not identify which specific department or which commissioner is meant, and it relies on other RCWs (50A.10.030 and 28A.300.065) for key definitions and premium-assessment details that are not included here.

If enacted, more employers will be able to claim state grants to help cover costs when employees take family or medical leave: employers with 51–150 workers, certain small employers who are required to pay all premiums, and school districts of the second class can apply for either a $3,000 payment when they hire a temporary replacement for a leave of seven days or more, or up to $1,000 to reimburse significant extra wage-related costs. Grants are limited to ten awards per employer per year and one per employee on leave, require written proof that the costs were caused by leave, are paid from the family and medical leave insurance account, and are not available to employers running approved voluntary leave plans. The groups most affected are mid-sized employers (51–150 employees) who gain a new funding option to reduce the immediate cost of covering leaves, and small employers who can access grants but face a new tradeoff: if an employer with fewer than 50 employees accepts a grant they will be reassessed for all premiums for three years, increasing their future costs. It’s unclear which state department or commissioner will run the program, exactly how employee counts and “assessed all premiums” are calculated, and how the funding account is composed, so some administrative details and longer-term budget effects remain uncertain.