Legislation co-sponsored by Rep. Jeff Jackson, D-N.C., providing Coast Guard reservists the same parental leave as other armed forces reserves passed the House Tuesday. Tom Williams / GETTY IMAGES
House-passed bill would bring parental leave parity to Coast Guard reservists
Members of the Coast Guard reserve currently don’t get the same parental leave benefits as reservists for other armed forces.
Coast Guard reservists would receive the same amount of parental leave as their counterparts in the other military branches under Coast Guard reauthorization legislation that the House passed on Tuesday.
The bill would provide Coast Guard reservists with parental leave for up to 12 inactive-duty training periods during the year following the birth or adoption of a member’s child or the placement of a minor child with the member for adoption or long-term foster care.
It also would authorize the Homeland Security secretary, who oversees the Coast Guard, to permit parental leave after the one-year period for reservists who missed out on taking the leave due to operational requirements or other appropriate circumstances.
Reservists in the armed forces under the Defense Department’s jurisdiction received these parental leave benefits in the fiscal 2024 National Defense Authorization Act, which was enacted in December 2023.
Reps. Jeff Jackson, D-N.C., and Zachary Nunn, R-Iowa, in April introduced a standalone measure to bring the Coast Guard Reserve’s parental leave policy in line with the rest of the military reserve.
Jackson, who serves in the Army National Guard, and Nunn, who is in the Air Force Reserve, also spearheaded the reservist parental leave expansion in the fiscal 2024 NDAA.
Jackson’s office said that birth mothers in the Coast Guard Reserve currently can take leave for up to 12 inactive-duty training periods, which is equivalent to three months, within the first year after birth. But this leaves out fathers and adoptive parents.
“I’m proud to have my bill to expand parental leave in the Coast Guard Reserve included in the Coast Guard Authorization Act. We need to support all of our service members and allow new parents in the Coast Guard Reserve to take parental leave,” Jackson said in an e-mailed statement. “This will complete the leave expansion across our service branches I secured in last year’s defense authorization bill.”
Since December 2022, active duty military members and reservists who are on active duty for more than 12 months have been eligible for 12 weeks of parental leave.
The Coast Guard Authorization Act, passed 376-16, would authorize $14.8 billion to the branch for fiscal 2025 and $15.6 billion for fiscal 2026.