Rep. Summer Lee Backs Paid Parental Leave Push, Says Families Shouldn't Have to Choose Between Care and a Paycheck

Photos (Dropbox)

PITTSBURGH, PA - SEPTEMBER 24, 2026 - Today, Congresswoman Summer L. Lee (PA-12) joined Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato, Congressman Chris Deluzio (PA-17), members of the Allegheny County state legislative delegation, and family advocates at the Western Pennsylvania Diaper Bank to voice her support for Allegheny County's proposed paid parental leave policy and call for stronger federal investments in working families.

The revised county proposal would provide eligible workers with up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave during the first year following the birth or adoption of a child. The proposal would cover employers with 15 or more eligible employees and comes after months of public input from workers, families, public health experts, employers, and community members.

"No parent should have to choose between the time it takes to care for a new baby and the paycheck it takes to provide for one," said Rep. Summer Lee. "We cannot keep treating those as competing responsibilities. And if the system keeps forcing those responsibilities apart, then it is our job to build one that lets families hold them together. Paid leave gives families the time and financial stability to do both. And that is exactly what Allegheny County is working to do here, and I am proud to support this effort."

The proposal builds on growing efforts to treat paid parental leave as both an economic security and public health issue. Allegheny County health officials have pointed to the weeks immediately following birth as a medically vulnerable period for babies and birthing parents and say paid leave can support maternal recovery, infant health, and family stability.

Rep. Lee has made supporting working families a central part of her work in Congress. She is a cosponsor of the FAMILY Act, which would establish a national paid family and medical leave program providing up to 12 weeks of paid leave for workers welcoming a new child, caring for a loved one, or dealing with a serious health condition. She also cosponsors theAmerican Family Act to expand the Child Tax Credit and provide families with more consistent financial support, has pushed for her Child Care for Working Families Act to bring down childcare costs, and also co-leads the Head Start for America's Children Act to expand Head Start to more than 11 million eligible young children nationwide.

Rep. Lee also highlighted the unequal burden created by the lack of guaranteed paid leave, particularly for Black women and families already stretched by rising costs. Nearly 7 in 10 Black mothers are the sole or primary breadwinners for their families, yet research has found that 55 percent of parental leaves taken by Black women are unpaid. That gap carries real financial consequences as Black women lose an estimated $866 million in wages each year while taking parental leave, putting families who depend on that income at even greater risk of falling behind at the exact moment they need stability most.

Thursday's press conference was held at the Western Pennsylvania Diaper Bank, which provides diapers and other essential hygiene products to families across the region and works to address the financial and health consequences of diaper needs.

Congresswoman Summer Lee serves on the House Committee on Judiciary and the Committee on Education and Workforce. Since taking office in January 2023, shehas delivered historic levels of federal investment totaling over $2.7 Billion brought back to Western PA, including over $580 million for infrastructure, over $110 million for affordable transit, over $500 million to keep clean energy manufacturing at home in Pennsylvania, and over $55 million on clean energy efforts in and around schools to help keep our kids and communities safe. These investments will help improve Western Pennsylvania's infrastructure and transit, ensure cleaner air and drinking water, lower housing costs, fund research institutions, fuel clean manufacturing, fund STEM innovation and entrepreneurship, boost workforce development, and create thousands of good paying union jobs.  Lee and her team have also delivered casework and constituent services to over 4,000 constituents with issues ranging from helping our seniors and disabled community access Medicare and social security to helping folks secure housing and helping families with immigration support and passports.