NC S516

Establishes a paid parental leave program allowing state employees to voluntarily share leave with other employees for birth or adoption purposes, with a maximum of six weeks of parental leave accrued through donations.

Requires recipient employees to be full-time, permanent state employees with at least 12 months of continuous employment and must certify intent to return to state employment for at least one year after the leave period.

Makes paid parental leave available only within the first 12 weeks after birth or adoption and does not require employees to exhaust their own sick or vacation leave before using donated leave.

Applies to employees of state agencies, public schools, and community colleges, with leave donations allowed between employees across different state entities.

Requires the State Human Resources Commission, State Board of Education, and State Board of Community Colleges to report annually on the program, including total days donated and used, and total program costs.