Existing law allows employees that are covered by State Disability Insurance (SDI) to take six weeks of leave within any 12 month period. This leave, known as Family Temporary Disability Insurance program (FTDI), or Paid Family Leave (PFL) is paid leave and the benefits are 55% of an employee's weekly earnings, with the minimum benefit of $50 per week and the maximum benefit of $882 per week. The funds for the employee's benefits are covered by SDI. This leave is available for employees who wish to bond with their newly-born child, their domestic partner's child, or a child placed through adoption or foster care, and to take care of a serious ill child, spouse, domestic partner, or parent. PFL must be taken concurrently with CFRA and FMLA. Employers are not required to grant this leave, nor are they required to reinstate the employee at the conclusion of his or her leave. If, however, the employee's leave is running concurrently with CFRA or FMLA, then the employee has a right to be reinstated. SB 727 would expand the number of seriously ill family members that would allow an employee to qualify for PFL to include grandparents, grandchildren, siblings, and parents-in-law, which are defined as the parents of a spouse or a domestic partner.

California's diverse population includes a variety of familial arrangements with unique care-giving needs, and studies show that over half of employed Californians expect to need to take a family or medical leave from work in the next five years. California also has the second highest percentage of multi-generational households in the country. Additionally, almost half of Californians are single, and their closest relative may be a sibling. Through expanding PFL to include siblings, grandparents, grandchildren, and parents-in-law, SB 727 will allow more California families the opportunity to care for one another without jeopardizing their economic well-being.