Middleburg’s Communit Community Newspaper Middleburg’s y Newspaper Volume 17 Issue 11
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Spicy Roasted Cauliflower Steaks with Capers Page 17 February 24 ~ March 25, 2021
Foxes on the Fences
Page 11
Middleburg Town Council Report Jay Hubbard
facebo ok .c om/MiddleburgEc cen tric
Continued page 11
POSTAL CUSTOMER
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Photo By DeeDee Hubbard
Special Recognition Jamie Gaucher was recognized by Council for his service as Middleburg’s Business & Economic Development Director from July 10, 2017, through February 12, 2021. - https://bit. ly/3pJ8Y4w Paid Parental Leave The Town is currently updating the Employee Handbook. Town Manager Danny Davis presented Council with the following document for further discussion. - https://bit. ly/3slFRG2 The Town Council has requested recommendations on adding paid parental leave (maternity/ paternity leave) to the Town’s Employee Handbook. The Commonwealth of Virginia recently enacted new policies for paid parental leave, which is the basis for the recommendations below. Paid Parental Leave • Eight (8) weeks of paid leave for any employee for the birth of a child o To give birth to, care for, and bond with a newborn child, and to provide for time for physical and medical recovery o Employee is a legally recognized biological parent. • Four (4) weeks of paid leave for any employee for the placement or adoption of a child o To care for and bond with a child placed with the employee through adoption or foster care or a legal custodial arrangement. o employee is a legally recognized adoptive, foster, or custodial parent • Requires same qualifications as Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) o Must be employed for at least one year o Must have worked at least 1,250 hours in the prior 12 months
• Will coincide with FMLA, which provides up to 12 weeks of leave o At the end of paid parental leave, the parent can choose to use annual leave, sick leave, or unpaid leave for the remainder of the FMLA period • May be used in a continuous period or intermittently, with approval, within first six (6) months of the birth or placement of a child • Unused parental leave is forfeited FISCAL IMPACT There will be limited fiscal impact by implementing this policy. Generally, employees are already paid while on maternity/paternity leave, as they have sufficient annual or sick leave to cover the period of time. Nonetheless, there have been situations where employees have exhausted all of their leave, and the addition of paid paternity leave would keep them in a paid status. Actual fiscal impact is situational and dependent on a number of factors. Nonetheless, it is not expected that the cost (on an annualized basis) would be more than $2,000-$5,000 per year. Proposed FY 2022 Budget The Town Manager Danny Davis presented Council with the Proposed FY 2022 Budget. https://bit.ly/3aNrt3P Highlights of the Proposed FY22 Budget General Fund An assumption that revenues will decrease 9.4% ($393,521) due to COVID-19 impacts Primary reductions are in Meals Tax (-20%), Occupancy Tax (-10%), and Business License Tax (-6.2%) A “worst case” COVID-19 scenario is also provided that assumes revenues will decrease ap-