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By Brooke Staggs
Orange County Register
With schools across California closed to slow the spread of the coronavirus, State Sen. Ling Ling Chang on Monday announced a bill intended to help parents who miss work to care for kids recoup a portion of their lost wages.
“There are so many people who have followed the rules; they pay taxes, they save money, they scrape by so their kids can go to college. And now this crisis has taken all of that away,” said Chang, a Republican from Diamond Bar whose 29th District includes portions of Orange, Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties.
“I hear from families that are limiting their meals per day to save money or make sure their children have enough food. The extraordinary moment calls for extraordinary responses. And we need to use every tool we have right now.”
Chang’s Senate Bill 943 would tap the state’s general fund to expand California’s Paid Family Leave program, which already covers people who miss work to care for a sick family member, have a new child, or are under quarantine for the coronavirus. Her plan would expand the benefits at least to the end of 2020 for parents caring for children dismissed from school due to the pandemic. ...
Click here to read more about how SB 943 would work as reported in the Orange County Register.