SCOOP: "This is a pro-family administration": Rep. Stephanie Bice unveils nationwide paid family leave legislation, believes Trump can help get it passed

After years of work, Rep. Stephanie Bice (R., Okla.) unveiled a bipartisan bill, which would establish the first nationwide paid family leave framework.

Bice told the Washington Reporter that she thinks that President Donald Trump can finally make this policy happen.

“The Trump administration had already been working on this in Trump 45,” Bice said, adding that Ivanka Trump had been particularly involved.

“I’m excited to pick up the mantle on this and support it,” Bice continued. “This is a pro-family administration, it is one that wants to see us raise families, to help moms and dads who are thinking about having a family or expanding their family.”

“We’ve seen some conversations about other programs that they are looking at to consider incentivizing families to grow,” she added.

Bice called the move “another step in that process” and that she is “excited to work with the Trump administration on this.”

“JD Vance has also mentioned that he’s very interesting in seeing something done. As the dad of three kids, he knows what it’s like to juggle that family life,” she said. “This is a great day for America.”

Bice’s More Paid Leave for More Americans Act would do exactly what its subject says: “this legislation establishes a competitive grant program to be run by the U.S. Department of Labor,” her office noted.

“Specifically, this would be a three-year pilot program that creates a modest incentive for states to establish their own paid family leave programs that use a public-private partnership model,” they said.

“This bill is not a mandate,” Bice explained. “It is an incentive that recognizes that states are already leading the way in this space.”

The bill, Bice explained, costs taxpayers $0, because it is funded entirely by 9 different pay-fors that total $500.5 million. One source of funds was cutting back funds from golf courses funded by the Department of Defense.

“The first title in this bill would provide a modest incentive for states to establish their own paid family leave programs using a Public-Private Partnership model. In order to qualify, state programs would need to provide at least six weeks of paid leave for the birth or adoption of a child and replace between 50 percent and 67 percent of a worker’s wages, depending on income.”

Bice’s work on the issue with Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D., Pa.) started under the Biden administration, but Bice told the Reporter that the leadership of President Donald Trump, his family members, and others in the administration like Vice President Vance will help her get it across the finish line.

Bice and Houlahan were joined by Reps. Jimmy Gomez (D., Calif) — who noted in his remarks at their press conference that this might have been his first-ever bipartisan press conference — and Julia Letlow (R., La.), Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R., Iowa), and Don Beyer (D., Va.).

“In Iowa, where family, work ethic, and small business go hand in hand, we need solutions that support working parents and caregivers without creating one-size-fits-all mandates,” Miller-Meeks told the Reporter.

“The More Paid Leave for More Americans Act gives families, states and employers, small or large, the flexibility to design paid leave programs that work for their unique needs. This bipartisan bill is about helping Iowa families stay strong and Iowa businesses stay competitive,” she continued.

Gomez, who successfully passed paid family leave in California, added that the legislation is both “good politics and good policy.”

While the Senate has not yet released its companion bill, it is likely to do so in the near future. Both Bice and Houlahan said that they would like it passed as soon as possible.