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There have been conversations in the Member Central Community on our website about Colorado’s Public Health Emergency leave that began with the Governor’s public health emergency declaration in March 2020 until July 2021. Everyone in the conversation is aware that there is still a federal emergency declaration that triggers the availability of Public Health Emergency Leave (PHEL) under the Colorado Healthy Families and Workplace Act enacted in July of 2020. The question is whether they provide another 80 hours of leave in 2022 if an employee used some of this leave in 2021.

Any remaining balance an employee has of their PHEL leave from 2021 can be used in 2022. Currently, there is no requirement to provide 80 hours of leave to an employee who has already used leave in 2021, as is stated in 7 CCR 1103-7 2.11 B:

Employees receive their supplement of up to 80 hours of leave usable as of January 1, 2021, under HFWA § 405 only once during the entirety of a public health emergency, even if such public health emergency is amended, extended, restated, or prolonged.

If this changes due to any action on the part of the Colorado governor, the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, or the legislature, we will let you know.

To explain fully, Colorado’s Governor public health emergency has been extended on a monthly basis so the leave continues to be available to employees so long as there is a state public health emergency. The current state declaration expires unless the Disaster Recovery order has been extended monthly, and the most recent extension was issued near the end of December and expires January 27, 2022 (thirty days from December 28, 2021) unless extended again. The Federal public health emergency was extended on January 14, 2022 and will go through mid-April and could be extended then. Meaning The PHE portion of HFWA will last until at least mid-May, unless the PHE is extended.