The Interstate Paid Leave Action Network Act of 2025, or I-PLAN Act, establishes the Interstate Paid Leave Action Network (I-PLAN) to facilitate the development and adoption of an interstate agreement. This agreement aims to benefit employees, states, and employers by streamlining benefit delivery, reducing administrative burdens, and coordinating and harmonizing State paid family and medical leave programs. The I-PLAN will comprise State focals from each participating state and is tasked with creating a roadmap for the agreement's development and implementation. The core duty of the I-PLAN is to produce an interstate agreement that states with paid leave programs can join, with periodic updates to improve clarity and scope. This agreement must establish a single policy standard across participating states, defining terms such as benefit day, employee eligibility, and waiting periods. It also requires a single administrative standard to simplify compliance, covering processes like employer responses to information requests, notice requirements, payroll contributions, and coordination with other types of paid time off. Crucially, the administrative standard includes facilitating employer-provided paid family and medical leave plans that meet or exceed state program requirements, establishing a single equivalency standard for evaluation. The agreement will also create a unified process for states to handle claims from individuals with work history across multiple participating states, allowing a single state program to provide benefits based on all relevant work history. The bill authorizes a grant for a national intermediary to support the I-PLAN's activities, including convening state focals, producing an annual report comparing state programs, and engaging with various stakeholders. This intermediary will also provide a standardized, interoperable technology system for wage data, designed to facilitate interstate claims processing and enhance program integrity while ensuring data privacy and security. Furthermore, the Act authorizes conforming grants for states that establish a State focal and participate in the I-PLAN in good faith, ranging from $1.5 million to $8 million annually. Implementation grants , of similar amounts, are available for states that have entered into the I-PLAN Agreement. States can utilize these funds for administrative costs, such as customer service, technology, and data sharing, and to assist small businesses with payroll contributions or technical support. Appropriations are authorized for the national intermediary and both grant types for fiscal years 2026 through 2028.
The Interstate Paid Leave Action Network Act of 2025, or I-PLAN Act, establishes the Interstate Paid Leave Action Network (I-PLAN) to facilitate the development and adoption of an interstate agreement. This agreement aims to benefit employees, states, and employers by streamlining benefit delivery, reducing administrative burdens, and coordinating and harmonizing State paid family and medical leave programs. The I-PLAN will comprise State focals from each participating state and is tasked with creating a roadmap for the agreement's development and implementation. The core duty of the I-PLAN is to produce an interstate agreement that states with paid leave programs can join, with periodic updates to improve clarity and scope. This agreement must establish a single policy standard across participating states, defining terms such as benefit day, employee eligibility, and waiting periods. It also requires a single administrative standard to simplify compliance, covering processes like employer responses to information requests, notice requirements, payroll contributions, and coordination with other types of paid time off. Crucially, the administrative standard includes facilitating employer-provided paid family and medical leave plans that meet or exceed state program requirements, establishing a single equivalency standard for evaluation. The agreement will also create a unified process for states to handle claims from individuals with work history across multiple participating states, allowing a single state program to provide benefits based on all relevant work history. The bill authorizes a grant for a national intermediary to support the I-PLAN's activities, including convening state focals, producing an annual report comparing state programs, and engaging with various stakeholders. This intermediary will also provide a standardized, interoperable technology system for wage data, designed to facilitate interstate claims processing and enhance program integrity while ensuring data privacy and security. Furthermore, the Act authorizes conforming grants for states that establish a State focal and participate in the I-PLAN in good faith, ranging from $1.5 million to $8 million annually. Implementation grants , of similar amounts, are available for states that have entered into the I-PLAN Agreement. States can utilize these funds for administrative costs, such as customer service, technology, and data sharing, and to assist small businesses with payroll contributions or technical support. Appropriations are authorized for the national intermediary and both grant types for fiscal years 2026 through 2028.