AP: Virginia Senate panel kills paid sick leave COVID-19 bill

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A Virginia Senate committee has killed legislation that would have required employers to provide up to two weeks of paid sick leave for workers who have to quarantine because of COVID-19.

The vote by the Senate Commerce and Labor Committee effectively closes the possibility of passing a sick leave requirement during a special legislative session called in part to address the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The same committee killed a similar bill earlier in the session.

The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports that only Sen. Adam Ebbin, D-Alexandria, voted against the motion to kill the bill.

The bill would have applied to businesses with more than 25 employees, but not to state employees unless federal emergency funding were available to pay for it.

Business groups praised the decision to kill the bill.

“Small businesses are already facing pandemic-related financial burdens and restrictions on their operations, so the last thing they needed is another government mandate that would add costs and reduce their flexibility,” said Nicole Riley, state director of the National Federation of Independent Business, representing 6,000 small businesses across Virginia.