PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services.
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in Senate · May 11, 2021
Servicemember Parental Leave Equity Act
This bill modifies Department of Defense parental leave provisions for members of the Armed Forces.
Specifically, the bill increases parental leave for primary caregivers to 18 weeks (currently 12) following the birth of a child and to 12 weeks (currently 6) following the adoption of a child. The bill increases parental leave for a secondary caregiver from 21 days to 12 weeks in connection with the birth or adoption of a child.
Showing the opening paragraphs of the official summary.
Primary or secondary caregivers of a long-term foster child are authorized to take up to 12 weeks of leave in connection with such placement.
Parental leave for a primary or secondary caregiver for a birth, adoption, or foster child placement may be taken in more than one increment. For primary caregivers, the leave must be utilized within one year of the event.
The bill authorizes up to 12 weeks of leave to certain service members who would have been secondary caregivers but for a miscarriage, stillbirth, or infant death.
The following activities required of an active-duty member within a 12-month postpartum period must have the approval of a health care provider and be at the election of the member or in the interest of national security: (1) an order of temporary duty overnight travel or to participate in physically demanding field training exercises, (2) meeting of body composition standards, or (3) passing a physical fitness test.
The bill also reduces the service commitment required for participation in the Career Intermission Program.
People & committees
Sen. Duckworth, Tammy [D-IL] · D–IL
Legislative record
A procedural vote is different from passage. Passage in one chamber does not establish enactment. Explore the glossary.
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services.
Introduced in Senate
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We currently store references to these documents.
Source last updated: Dec 5, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
AI Conversation Starters
Choose a perspective, copy a prompt, and paste it into your preferred AI. Each prompt includes the bill version and available official source links, and asks for counterarguments as well as supporting evidence.
Analyze S.1571 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.
Examine S.1571 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.
Examine S.1571 through a conservative lens, focusing on fiscal responsibility, institutional stability, federalism, and the scope of government. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and any provisions that challenge this perspective.
Examine S.1571 through a civil-liberties and limited-government lens. Consider individual rights, privacy, voluntary choice, accountability, and government power. Explain tradeoffs, possible safeguards, and the strongest counterarguments without assuming the proposal is beneficial or harmful.