The California Employment Development Department (EDD) has published the 2024 Voluntary Plan Employee Contribution and Benefit Rate. The law mandates that employers with employees in California withhold and send state disability contributions to the EDD. Senate Bill (SB) 951, which came into law in 2022, removed the Maximum Contribution and Taxable Wage Ceiling, taking effect from January 1, 2024. Employers can now disregard these aspects, though this is subject to possible future legislation.

Moving on to specific rates for 2024, the Employee Contribution Rate applies to the wages of employees who are enrolled in the Disability Insurance (DI) and Paid Family Leave (PFL) programs. Employers who are required to comply with San Francisco’s Paid Parental Leave Ordinance (PPLO) should pay particular attention to this. This ordinance requires that most employers with twenty or more employees worldwide to supplement the PFL benefits received by employees for bonding with a new child. The PFL wage replacement benefit from the EDD combined with the employer’s PPLO supplemental compensation should make up 100% of the employee’s gross weekly wage, subject to a cap. In 2024, the PPLO cap remains $2,700 per week as it was in the previous year. The San Francisco Office of Labor Standards Enforcement provides a calculator on its website to help employers determine weekly supplemental compensation owed to eligible employees.

For employers who maintain a state-approved voluntary plan (VP), i.e., a disability insurance plan as an alternative to the mandatory DI and PFL for its California employees, the Assessment Rate is relevant. This is the amount an employer pays to the EDD as an administrative expense for maintaining a voluntary plan.