Bucking Manchin, House puts paid leave back in budget bill

Democrats WASHINGTON — in the House said Wednesday that paid family and medical leave will be placed back into their $1.75 trillion social and environmental spending bill, reviving a key element of Pres- ident Joe Biden’s agenda and setting up a showdown with a key Senate Democrat who has opposed it.

Biden had reluctantly dropped a scaled-back paid leave proposal from last week’s White House framework after Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., balked at the cost. But Demo- crats who have lobbied for the leave for decades continued to push for it, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced Wednesday it would be part of the House’s massive social spending package.

Bill text set to be released Wednesday is expected to include four weeks of paid time off for people to recover from major illness, childbirth or to care for family mem- bers, according to three peo- ple familiar with the legislation who requested ano- nymity to discuss it.

Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal said in a statement the committee had agreed on a com- promise that fully pays for the program.

“The Ways and Means Committee crafted a pol- icy that will finally give work- ers and their families the peace of mind of knowing that when disaster strikes,

they can rely on paid leave to avoid total crisis,” Neal said.

The last-minute reinstate- ment of paid family leave comes as Democrats attempt to craft a final package that can pass both chambers, and as every Democratic vote is needed in the 50-50 Senate. Pelosi wrote in a letter to colleagues that bill text with changes to the overall package is being prepared for a hearing later in the day. House votes could come as soon as this week.

“The hearing will take place today, so that we can bring up the legislation,” Pelosi wrote. “Today is another momentous day in our historic effort to make the future better for the American people”

Manchin, who has said Democrats need to take more time in negotiations,

said after the paid leave announcement that he “had no idea about that, they just told me.”