Texas HB 2127 (2023) preempted local paid sick leave mandates, voiding the Austin paid sick leave ordinance previously enjoined by the Texas Third Court of Appeals, leaving paid leave a voluntary employer benefit in Travis County.
Austin passed a paid sick leave ordinance in 2018 requiring private employers to provide accrued sick time, but the Texas Third Court of Appeals enjoined it in 2018 as preempted by the Texas Minimum Wage Act. HB 2127, the Texas Regulatory Consistency Act effective September 2024, broadly preempts local labor regulations under Local Government Code Chapter 229 and Labor Code provisions. Federal FMLA still applies to employers with fifty or more employees for unpaid leave. Travis County provides paid leave to its own workers as employer policy.
Employers cannot be compelled to follow local paid leave ordinances; any city or county attempt to enforce a private-sector paid leave mandate is preempted and unenforceable, exposing the locality to Texas Attorney General lawsuits.
See how Travis County's paid leave preemption rules stack up against other locations.
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