[Code of Federal Regulations]

[Title 29, Volume 3]

[Revised as of July 1, 2006]

From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access

[CITE: 29CFR825.108]



[Page 750-751]

 

                             TITLE 29--LABOR

 

         CHAPTER V--WAGE AND HOUR DIVISION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

 

PART 825_THE FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT OF 1993--Table of Contents

 

Subpart A_What is the Family and Medical Leave Act, and to Whom Does It 

                                 Apply?

 

Sec.  825.108  What is a ``public agency''?



    (a) An ``employer'' under FMLA includes any ``public agency,'' as 

defined in section 3(x) of the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. 

203(x). Section 3(x) of the FLSA defines ``public agency'' as the 

government of the United States; the government of a State or political 

subdivision of a State; or an agency of the United States, a State, or a 

political subdivision of a State, or any interstate governmental agency. 

``State'' is further defined in Section 3(c) of the FLSA to include any 

State of the United States, the District of



[[Page 751]]



Columbia, or any Territory or possession of the United States.

    (b) The determination of whether an entity is a ``public'' agency, 

as distinguished from a private employer, is determined by whether the 

agency has taxing authority, or whether the chief administrative officer 

or board, etc., is elected by the voters-at-large or their appointment 

is subject to approval by an elected official.

    (c)(1) A State or a political subdivision of a State constitutes a 

single public agency and, therefore, a single employer for purposes of 

determining employee eligibility. For example, a State is a single 

employer; a county is a single employer; a city or town is a single 

employer. Where there is any question about whether a public entity is a 

public agency, as distinguished from a part of another public agency, 

the U.S. Bureau of the Census' ``Census of Governments'' will be 

determinative, except for new entities formed since the most recent 

publication of the ``Census.'' For new entities, the criteria used by 

the Bureau of Census will be used to determine whether an entity is a 

public agency or a part of another agency, including existence as an 

organized entity, governmental character, and substantial autonomy of 

the entity.

    (2) The Census Bureau takes a census of governments at 5-year 

intervals. Volume I, Government Organization, contains the official 

counts of the number of State and local governments. It includes 

tabulations of governments by State, type of government, size, and 

county location. Also produced is a universe list of governmental units, 

classified according to type of government. Copies of Volume I, 

Government Organization, and subsequent volumes are available from the 

Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, 

Washington, D.C., 20402, U.S. Department of Commerce District Offices, 

or can be found in Regional and selective depository libraries. For a 

list of all depository libraries, write to the Government Printing 

Office, 710 N. Capitol St., NW, Washington, D.C. 20402.

    (d) All public agencies are covered by FMLA regardless of the number 

of employees; they are not subject to the coverage threshold of 50 

employees carried on the payroll each day for 20 or more weeks in a 

year. However, employees of public agencies must meet all of the 

requirements of eligibility, including the requirement that the employer 

(e.g., State) employ 50 employees at the worksite or within 75 miles.