I always saw LoA as an official notification (to prevent accidents and in case of one there is proof to rectify it), rather than for permission.

If I lost my job suddenly and had to take a step back for a couple weeks to find a new job and acclimate to schedule/work and had to ask for permission to essentially not be removed from "citizenship" (which is effectively what Legislatorship is everywhere else), then the Chair can go kick rocks.

The solution is to notify the chair in a public space, such as the thread we post LoA in. If notification is given, you will remain a Legislator and in the case of an accident you have proof to present that you aren't using LoA you never told anyone for an excuse of your inactivity because you got bored and forgot.

As for indefinite LoA, I don't like that in general. If someone is gone for 3 months or more it's not likely they are gonna comeback until outside matters are resolved in some way. It shouldn't take me 3 or more months to acclimate to a new job for instance. You have better things to do than worry about having to reapply again.