Washington lawmakers considered a bill during the 2024 legislative session that would require more men’s restrooms to be equipped with diaper changing tables. Sponsored by Representative Lisa Callan of Issaquah, House Bill 2052 received a public hearing in the House Committee on Local Government. The committee unanimously approved a substitute version of the bill, but the bill did not make it to the House floor for a vote.
“A public building in which a public restroom is required must provide a baby diaper changing station in at least one restroom that is accessible to women and one restroom that is accessible to men, or in one gender-neutral restroom.” – Substitute House Bill 2052
One of the bill’s cosponsors was Representative Julia Reed (D-Seattle), who also co-sponsored the Washington state commission on boys and men bill (HB 1270 2023-24).
Seattle Times staff reporter Daniel Beekman covered Rep. Callan’s bill in an article headlined “Washington could require diaper changing stations for both moms and dads”.
Rep. Callan’s constituent Alexandra Johnson encouraged her to introduce this legislation. Ms. Johnson is a Snoqualmie resident, a nurse, and a mom of two young children. In her testimony making her case for the bill, she said:
“For years, whenever my family went out I was always the one doing the diaper changing. It’s not that my husband wasn’t willing. We just had no other option…The passage of this bill would allow single dads, two-dad households, uncles, grandfathers, and other caregivers other than women to perform diaper changes in public…Most importantly, as the Seattle Times article about this bill mentioned, what are the implications for our children when they see that mom is the only one providing care?
In this two-minute video we show excepts from the public hearing on this legislation:
‘There just weren’t places for babies in men’s restrooms’
Representative Cyndy Jacobsen (R-Puyallup) is a member of the committee that voted 7-0 to approve the bill. She said, “I dislike putting mandates on high from the State to local entities, but this is a very good bill. My husband could attest that in 1985, when he and I first started having kids, there just weren’t places for babies in bathrooms that he had access to.”
Spokespersons for the Washington Hospitality Association and the Washington Food Industry Association gave testimony explaining their position as neither supportive nor opposed to the bill. They spoke about:
- wanting to ensure the bill does not create conflicts with requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act
- wanting to see the language in the bill placed in a different part of Washington’s legal code rather than in the part that deals with the State Building Code Council
- wanting the diaper changing station requirements to kick in only when a bathroom-specific remodel permit is sought for a building rather than when any remodel permit is sought
We haven’t yet reached out to Rep. Callan to find out whether she plans to re-introduce this legislation for the 2025 legislative session, assuming voters re-elect her in November.
Brief Summary of Substitute House Bill 2052 [source]
- Requires a baby diaper changing station in both a restroom accessible to women and a restroom accessible to men, or in a gender-neutral restroom, in each newly constructed public building in which a public restroom is required and in any existing public building when a permit is issued for the renovation of a public restroom in the building with an estimated cost of $10,000 or more, with certain exceptions.
- Provides that a first violation of the diaper changing station requirement is subject to a warning, with subsequent violations classified as class 2 civil infractions.
See related: Free Workshops for Dads and Families Offered by Washington Fathers Network