SACRAMENTO, Calif. - California stood poised to become the first state in the nation to offer millions of workers up to six weeks paid time off to care for sick relatives, newborn babies and adopted children under a measure approved Tuesday night by the state Assembly.

Over the objections of California businesses, lawmakers endorsed the landmark proposal by Democratic state Sen. Sheila Kuehl that would once again put California at the forefront of a growing national movement. The version of SB 1661, approved by the state Assembly and sent back to the Senate on a 45-28 vote, would create a new payroll deduction that the more than 13 million California workers who are covered by the state disability program would have to pay.

On average, workers making $36,000 a year would pay $27 to fund the program. In return, they could get 55 percent of their salary -- about $380 each week for six weeks -- to look after a sick relative, care for a newborn baby or bond with a newly adopted child.

The measure would also cap the amount more wealthy workers have to pay into the program. A worker making $65,000 a year would pay $520 annually, a contribution that would allow the worker to receive more than $4,300 during the six weeks taken off under the program.

So far, Gov. Gray Davis has not taken a position on the bill, but both opponents and supporters of the proposal said it would probably be a ''close call'' for the Democratic governor, who has benefited from both labor and corporate campaign contributions.

A balancing act

"I have goose bumps right now,'' said A. Wolfson, a mother from Alameda County who was recently confronted with the death of her father and the adoption of a newborn child at the same time.

Under current state law, big businesses must offer unpaid time off to employees. The new bill would extend the provision to smaller businesses and mandate that workers be paid.

If the new bill had been law, Wolfson would have had more options as a caregiver. Her employer gave her some time off to deal with her father's death, but that left her with just one week to bond with her new child.

"I think it's a wonderful thing for anybody who either has a child or has an ill family member to take care of,'' she said. "My husband and I juggled schedules to watch our child, but neither of us was able to spend the first six weeks or so of quality bonding time -- which is extremely important.''

As first proposed, Kuehl's bill would have allowed workers to take up to 12 weeks of paid time off, with the costs to be shared by both the employee and the employer.

But businesses, particularly small businesses, protested that they could not bear the cost of employees' absences. In an effort to dilute that opposition, the Los Angeles lawmaker cut the paid time in half and eliminated the requirement that employers pay for the program.

Despite the changes, many California businesses oppose the bill and argue that it would impose an especially difficult burden on small companies where every worker counts.

"Of all the issues that we've worked on this year, this measure has gotten the most tremendous outpouring of grass-roots opposition,'' said Fred Main, senior vice president with the California Chamber of Commerce.

Where U.S. stands

The United States is one of the few developed nations that does not offer paid leave to workers. Of the 130 countries that have some sort of program, only Ethiopia, Australia and the United States do not offer paid time off, according to the National Partnership for Women and Families.

While efforts to pass a national paid-leave program have faltered, 27 states have taken up the cause.

During Tuesday's debate, Republicans denounced the proposal.

"This is a tax on workers so that someday some of them may be able to take some time off,'' said GOP Assemblyman George Runner of Lancaster.

Supporters cast the proposal as a measured compromise that would provide compassionate benefits to workers who are trying to juggle the competing demands of their personal and professional lives.

"When we force Californians to choose between caring for a seriously ill family member and a paycheck, no one wins,'' Kuehl said in a statement after the measure was sent back to the state Senate for one final vote before going to the governor's desk.

"Providing Californians with family leave insurance is the solution,'' she said. "It will make an enormous difference for the families of this state.''