The Families First Coronavirus Response Act: H.R. 6201

UPDATE: Coronavirus Compliance

As always, know that Servant HR stands ready to help our clients with every step of this process, from updating you on these new changes, consulting on your business decision-making, and calculating and processing these potential new benefits and credits.

UPDATE:

On March 18th, President Trump signed H.R. 6201:The Families First Coronavirus Response Act.

Effective dates 4/2/2020-12/31/2020
Each employer must post a notice of the requirements by April 2nd. The Secretary of Labor shall make publicly available a model of the notice no later than 3/25/2020

The Families First Coronavirus Response Act

Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act

An employee can receive paid sick leave for the following reasons:

The employee is subject to a Federal, State, or local quarantine or isolation order related to COVID–19.
The employee has been advised by a health care provider to self-quarantine due to concerns related to COVID–19.
The employee is experiencing symptoms of COVID–19 and seeking a medical diagnosis.
The employee is caring for an individual who has been advised by a healthcare provider to self-quarantine or who is subject to a Federal, State, or Local quarantine or isolation order related to COVID-19.
The employee is caring for a son or daughter of such employee if the school or place of care of the son or daughter has been closed, or the childcare provider of such son or daughter is unavailable, due to COVID–19 precautions.
The employee is experiencing any other substantially similar condition specified by the Secretary of Health and Human Services in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of Labor.

Notes

Reasons 1-3: Employee receives their regular rate of pay up to $511 per day and $5,110 in the aggregate
Reasons 4-6: Employee receives 2/3 regular rate of pay or the applicable minimum wage rate but capped at $200 per day and $2,000 in the aggregate.
Full-Time employees receive 80 hours of paid time. Part-time employees receive paid time equal to the number of hours that the employee works, on average, over a two-week period.

Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act

An employee can receive the benefits of Emergency Family and Medical Leave if unable to work (or telework) due to a need for leave to care for a son or daughter under 18 if the school or place of care has been closed or the child care provider of such son or daughter is unavailable, due to a public health emergency. To qualify, an employee must have been employed for at least 30 calendar days.
12 weeks of job-protected leave (Employers with fewer than 25 employees do not have to reinstate an employee if they are experiencing significant economic hardship)
The first 2 weeks of the 12 weeks can be unpaid, although an employee may choose to substitute accrued vacation leave, personal leave or other medical or sick leave. An employer cannot require an employee to substitute such leave.
Employee receives 2/3 regular rate of pay or the applicable minimum wage rate but capped at $200 per day and $10,000 in the aggregate.
The Secretary of Labor has the regulatory authority to exempt employers with fewer than 50 employees if the provision of paid leave would jeopardize the viability of the business as a going concern.

Refundable Tax Credits to Pay for Leave

H.R. 6201 provides a series of tax credits to employers subject to Emergency Family and Medical Leave and Emergency Paid Sick Leave.
The refundable tax credit is equal to 100% of the “qualified family leave wages” and “qualified sick leave wages” that the employer is required to pay for a given quarter.

Free Coronavirus Testing

The requirement to cover COVID-19 testing costs started from the date of enactment until the Secretary of HHS determines that the public health emergency has expired.