This article is reproduced with permission from Spidell Publishing, Inc.
Beginning July 1, 2014, California workers may be eligible to receive paid family leave (PFL) benefits when taking time off of work to care for a seriously ill parent, parent-in-law, grandparent, grandchild, or sibling.
Since 2004, the PFL program has provided up to six weeks of benefits for individuals who take time off of work to care for a seriously ill child, spouse, parent, or registered domestic partner, or to bond with a new child. The PFL program is also known as the Family Temporary Disability Insurance program.
Benefits range from $50 to a maximum of $1,075 per week. To qualify for the maximum benefit, an individual must earn at least $25,385.46 in a calendar quarter during the base period.
The program is administered by the State Disability Insurance (SDI) program for California workers covered by SDI, and the premiums are paid as part of the SDI payment. For federal purposes, the amount paid is deductible as a state tax, but because the payments come from the unemployment insurance fund, benefits are taxable for federal purposes, but not state purposes.
There is no limit on the number of qualified individuals who can collect PFL, but no more than one family member at a time is eligible to collect PFL.
Example: Joan has a new baby, Jackson. Joan collects SDI after Jackson is born. After her SDI runs out, she can collect PFL to care for Jackson for another six weeks. When she returns to work, Jim, Jackson’s father collects PFL to stay home and care for his child. When Jim goes back to work, beginning July 1, 2014, Matilda, Joan’s mother can take leave from work to care for Jackson for another six weeks.
For more information about this article, please contact our tax professionals at taxalerts@windes.com or toll free at 844.4WINDES (844.494.6337).