2023 -- S 0569

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LC001683

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2023

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY -- COVID-19 VACCINATION MANDATE

PROHIBITED

     

     Introduced By: Senators DeLuca, E Morgan, Rogers, and de la Cruz

     Date Introduced: March 07, 2023

     Referred To: Senate Health & Human Services

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

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     SECTION 1. Title 23 of the General Laws entitled "HEALTH AND SAFETY" is hereby

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amended by adding thereto the following chapter:

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CHAPTER 99

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COVID-19 VACCINATION MANDATE PROHIBITED

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     23-99-1. Title.

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     This chapter shall be known and cited as the “COVID-19 Vaccination Mandate

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Prohibited”.

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     23-99-2. Private employer COVID-19 vaccination mandates prohibited.

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     (a) A private employer may not impose a COVID-19 vaccination mandate for any full-

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time, part-time, or contract employee without providing individual exemptions that allow an

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employee to opt out of such requirement on the basis of medical reasons, including, but not limited

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to, pregnancy or anticipated pregnancy, religious reasons, COVID-19 immunity, periodic testing,

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and the use of employer-provided personal protective equipment.

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     (b) If an employer receives a completed exemption statement pursuant to this chapter, the

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employer shall allow the employee to opt out of the employer’s COVID-19 vaccination mandate.

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     (c) For purposes of this chapter, the term “COVID-19” means the novel coronavirus

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identified as SARS-CoV-2, any disease caused by SARS-CoV-2, its viral fragments, or a virus

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mutating therefrom; and all conditions associated with the disease which are caused by SARS-

 

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CoV-2, its viral fragments, or a virus mutating therefrom.

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     23-99-3. Exemptions.

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     (a) To claim an exemption based on medical reasons, including, but not limited to,

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pregnancy or anticipated pregnancy, the employee shall present to the employer an exemption

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statement, dated and signed by a physician or a physician assistant, licensed by the department of

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health, or an advanced practice registered nurse, licensed by the department of health, who has

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examined the employee. The statement shall provide that, in the professional opinion of the

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physician, physician assistant, or advanced practice registered nurse, COVID-19 vaccination is not

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in the best medical interest of the employee. The department of health shall adopt rules specifying

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circumstances that are considered an anticipated pregnancy, including, but not limited to, a

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maximum timeframe within which one anticipates pregnancy for the purpose of claiming an

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exemption under this section.

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     (b) To claim an exemption based on religious reasons, the employee shall present to the

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employer an exemption statement indicating that the employee declines COVID-19 vaccination

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because of a sincerely held religious belief.

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     (c) To claim an exemption based on COVID-19 immunity, the employee shall present to

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the employer an exemption statement demonstrating competent medical evidence that the employee

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has immunity to COVID-19, documented by the results of a valid laboratory test performed on the

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employee. The department of health shall adopt a standard for demonstrating competent medical

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evidence of such immunity.

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     (d) To claim an exemption based on periodic testing, the employee shall present to the

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employer an exemption statement indicating that the employee agrees to comply with regular

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testing for the presence of COVID-19 at no cost to the employee.

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     (e) To claim an exemption based on employer-provided personal protective equipment, the

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employee shall present to the employer an exemption statement indicating that the employee agrees

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to comply with the employer’s reasonable written requirement to use employer-provided personal

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protective equipment when in the presence of other employees or other persons.

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     (f) Employers shall use forms adopted by the department of health, or substantially similar

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forms, for employees to submit exemption statements.

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     23-99-4. Complaint.

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     (a) Any employee may file a complaint with the attorney general alleging that an exemption

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has not been offered or has been improperly applied or denied in violation of the provisions of this

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chapter. If the office of the attorney general investigates and finds that the exemption was not

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offered or was improperly applied or denied, the attorney general shall notify the employer of the

 

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attorney general's determination and allow the employer the opportunity to cure the noncompliance.

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     (b) If an employer fails to comply with the provisions of this chapter and terminates an

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employee based on a COVID-19 vaccination mandate, the terminated employee may file a

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complaint with the office of the attorney general alleging that an exemption has not been offered

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or has been improperly applied or denied, resulting in the employee’s termination. The office of

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the attorney general shall conduct an investigation of the complaint filed by a terminated employee.

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The investigation, at a minimum, shall determine whether the employer has imposed a COVID-19

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vaccination mandate. If the attorney general finds that an employee has been improperly

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terminated, the attorney general shall impose an administrative fine not to exceed:

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     (1) For an employer with fewer than one hundred (100) employees, ten thousand dollars

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($10,000) per violation of this chapter.

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     (2) For an employer with one hundred (100) or more employees, fifty thousand dollars

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($50,000) per violation of this chapter.

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     (3) The attorney general shall not impose a fine on an employer that reinstates, prior to the

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issuance of a final order, a terminated employee with back pay to the date that the complaint was

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received by the office of the attorney general.

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     23-99-5. Penalties.

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     (a) In determining the amount of fine to be levied for a violation, the attorney general may

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consider any of the following factors:

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     (1) Whether the employer knowingly and willfully violated this chapter;

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     (2) Whether the employer has shown good faith in attempting to comply with the

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requirements of this chapter;

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     (3) Whether the employer has taken any action to correct the violation;

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     (4) Whether the employer has previously been assessed a fine for violating the provisions

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of this chapter; and

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     (5) Any other mitigating or aggravating factor that fairness and due process requires.

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     (b) All fines collected pursuant to this chapter shall be deposited into the general revenue

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fund.

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     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY -- COVID-19 VACCINATION MANDATE

PROHIBITED

***

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     This act would prohibit a private employer from mandating a COVID-19 vaccination upon

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any full-time, part-time, or contract employee without providing individual exemptions that allow

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an employee to opt out of such mandate on the basis of medical reasons, religious reasons, COVID-

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19 immunity, periodic testing, or the use of employer-provided person protective equipment. An

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employer who violates this requirement, following an investigation by the attorney general’s office,

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may be subject to fines of ten thousand dollars ($10,000) per violation of employers employing

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fewer than one hundred (100) employees, and fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) per violation of

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employers employing one hundred (100) or more employees.

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     This act would take effect upon passage.

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