State lawmakers on Monday advanced a measure that would once again grant leave time to workers to take part in their children’s school academics.

House Bill 1001, sponsored by Rep. Janet Buckner, D-Aurora, passed the Democratic-controlled House Eduction Committee on a party-line 7-5 vote. One Republican member of the committee, Rep. Clarice Navarro of Pueblo, was excused from the vote.

A 2009 law permitting employees to take as much as six hours a month and 18 hours a year of unpaid leave to attend their child’s parent-teacher meetings and other academic activities expired in September 2015.

Republicans in the legislature in 2015 voted against extending the law, despite no evidence presented at the time of the law placing an unfair burden on businesses. There is, however, also no data on how frequently the law was used and whether it had a positive impact on student success.

“Most businesses are already leading the way by letting parents leave work for academic activities … For those that don’t, I think this bill gives reassurance,” Buckner said.

Business groups appear neutral to the bill, and no one signed up to testify against the measure on Monday. It still faces an uphill battle if the measure makes it to the Republican-controlled Senate.

The bill this year would provide up to 18 hours of leave per academic year, which would be limited to six hours per month. Employers would be allowed to require employees to take the leave in three-hour increments or less. The law would only apply to parents who have children in grades K-12.

In an effort to appease the business community, parents would be required to provide employers with one week’s notice. Employers would be allowed to deny the request if the employee’s absence would result in a halt to service or production, but employers would have to work with employees to find a more appropriate time.

Republican Rep. Lang Sias of Arvada suggested that perhaps the focus should be on schools allowing for more flexible schedules.

“In my very limited experience I have found that at least the public schools where my kids have gone, the schools have been very receptive to scheduling those sorts of things at times that weren’t work hours,” Sias said.

Republicans on the committee also asked how technology might help parents attend such meetings during the work day, pointing to services like video conferencing.

But Democrats highlighted that not every parent has access to such technology, and that not all schools are able to accommodate every parent”s schedule.

“It’s nice that we make academics as important as athletics. No one really says you can’t go to their football game or soccer game. But often times the academics take place in the middle of the day …” said Rep. Barbara McLachlan, D-Durango, a retired award-winning teacher. “It’s really important that we let students know that the academics are really important and that we can give parents time to talk.”