HB 1303 passed today by a vote of 19-0____________________News Release of Pa Rep Tim Solobay__________________ HARRISBURG, Nov. 5 ? State Rep. Tim Solobay's bill protecting the rights of nursing mothers in the workplace was approved by the House Children and Youth Committee.rn rn"Infants who are breastfed have fewer ear infections, fewer hospital stays for respiratory infections and are less likely to become overweight during childhood than bottle-fed babies," said Solobay, D-Washington. "With so many benefits, we need to do all that we can to help new mothers give their babies a healthy start in life. We have already removed discrimination against lactating mothers in public; now we need to remove that discrimination from the workplace."rn rnHouse Bill 1303 would prohibit employers, employment agencies or labor organizations from refusing to hire or fire; withholding pay; demoting or in any way penalizing an individual who is lactating due to breastfeeding or who expresses milk at the workplace. The bill would also prohibit employers from preventing an employee from expressing breast milk during any required meal or break period.rn rnAct 28 of 2007 was signed into law by Gov. Rendell in July 2007. This bill mirrored legislation sponsored by Solobay preventing local governments from adopting ordinances that ban breastfeeding in public. It also makes clear that breastfeeding is not a criminal offense and cannot be considered indecent exposure, obscene or a nuisance.rn rnIn 2009, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention prepared a breastfeeding report card based on 2006 data. Pennsylvania ranked 36th in the nation in the percentage of children that had been breastfed. In 2005, Pennsylvania ranked 35th in the nation.rn rn"Over the past five years, the state's breastfeeding initiation rates have increased slowly from 61.2 percent in 2003 to 65.4 percent in 2007. But more mothers should be encouraged to breastfeed their infants, and making accommodations for nursing moms in the workplace would help increase those numbers," Solobay said.rn rnThe bill now goes to the full House for consideration.r