Wharton County Commissioners Court has made a change to the personnel policy, allowing employees up to 12 weeks of accrued sick leave for maternity or bonding time under the Federal Medical Leave Act. The county judge, Phillip Spenrath, says that to be granted leave, employees need a note from a doctor. However, the county has had issues with doctors not understanding the request. Therefore, the new policy lets doctors write a note stating the date of the child’s birth for documentation, making the county compliant with federal law. The policy change was unanimously approved by the commissioners.