EDOLPHUS TOWNS, NEW YORK, DARRELL E.

ISSA, CALIFORNIA,
CHAIRMAN RANKING MINORITY MEMBER

PAUL E. KANJORSKI, PENNSYLVANIA
CAROLYN B. MALONEY, NEW YORK
ELIJAH E. CUMMINGS, MARYLAND
DENNIS J. KUCINICH, OHIO
JOHN F. TIERNEY, MASSACHUSETTS
WM. LACY CLAY, MISSOURI
DIANE E. WATSON, CALIFORNIA
STEPHEN F. LYNCH, MASSACHUSETTS
JIM COOPER, TENNESSEE
GERALD E. CONNOLLY, VIRGINIA
MIKE QUIGLEY, ILLINOIS
MARCY KAPTUR, OHIO
ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON,
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
PATRICK J. KENNEDY, RHODE ISLAND
DANNY K. DAVIS, ILLINOIS
CHRIS VAN HOLLEN, MARYLAND
HENRY CUELLAR, TEXAS
PAUL W. HODES, NEW HAMPSHIRE
CHRISTOPHER S. MURPHY, CONNECTICUT
PETER WELCH, VERMONT
BILL FOSTER, ILLINOIS
JACKIE SPEIER, CALIFORNIA
STEVE DRIEHAUS, OHIO
JUDY CHU, CALIFORNIA
ONE HUNDRED ELEVENTH CONGRESS DAN BURTON, INDIANA
JOHN L. MICA, FLORIDA
MARK E. SOUDER, INDIANA
Congress of ttje Uniteb g>tate* JOHN J. DUNCAN, JR., TENNESSEE
MICHAEL R. TURNER, OHIO
LYNN A. WESTMORELAND, GEORGIA
PATRICK T. McHENRY, NORTH CAROLINA
^ousie of Ikpretfentattoea BRIAN P. BILBRAY, CALIFORNIA
JIM JORDAN, OHIO
JEFF FLAKE, ARIZONA
JEFF FORTENBERRY. NEBRASKA
COMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT AND GOVERNMENT REFORM JASON CHAFFETZ, UTAH
AARON SCHOCK, ILLINOIS
BLAINE LUETKEMEYER, MISSOURI
2157 RAYBURN HOUSE OFFICE BUILDING
ANH "JOSEPH" CAO, LOUISIANA
WASHINGTON, DC 20515-6143
MAJORITY (202)225-5051
FACSIMILE (202)225-4784
MINORITY (202) 225-5074
www.oversight.house.gov

May 7, 2010

MEMORANDUM

TO: Members of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

FROM: Majority Staff, Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

SUBJECT: Full Committee Hearing on H.R. 4869, the Restroom Gender Parity in
Federal Buildings Act

On Wednesday, May 12, 2010. at 10:00 a.m.. in room 2154 of the Rayburn House
Office Building, the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform will hold a
hearing on H.R. 4869, the Restroom Gender Parity in Federal Buildings Act.

The bill was introduced by Chairman Towns on March 17, 2010, with Ranking
Member Darrell Issa [CA-49], Rep. Yvette Clarke [NY-11], and Rep. Peter Visclosky
[IN-1] as original cosponsors. Similar legislation was introduced in the 110 Congress
and referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, but did not receive
action.

H.R. 4869 requires that the Federal Acquisition Regulation be revised to require
that the number of toilets in women's restrooms equal or exceed the number of toilets and
urinals in men's restrooms in all future Federal buildings or in major renovations of
existing Federal buildings. The Committee will receive testimony from GSA and from
other experts on this issue.

Background and Need for Legislation

Historically, public restrooms have been the site of discrimination based on race,
sex, and physical ability. Federal legislation has eliminated much of this discrimination.
Racially segregated public restrooms were prohibited in 1964 with the passage of Title II
of the Civil Rights Act. In 1968, the Architectural Barriers Act required that facilities
built, renovated, leased and/or financed by the Federal government be constructed so as
to be accessible by persons with disabilities. In 1990, the Americans with Disabilities
Act required reasonable access for disabled people to private sector facilities, including
restrooms.

Nevertheless, women are often forced to wait in long lines to use public
restrooms, while men rarely have to wait. This has a number of causes. Many public
buildings, including universities, airports, theaters and work environments, were
constructed decades ago, before women entered the workforce in large numbers.
Further, procurement officers, contractors, architects, engineers, and builders were
overwhelmingly male, and rarely considered the needs of women.

Within the last couple of decades, public appreciation of gender parity issues has
gradually resulted in improvements in restroom gender parity. As of 2006, at least 21
states had adopted statutes addressing restroom gender parity.

This issue is more than a matter of simple fairness. The potential health
complications for women waiting in long restroom lines are now more widely
understood. These include abdominal pain, and greater risk of cystitis and other urinary
tract infections that, if left untreated, can cause renal damage.

Recent Restroom Gender Parity Legislation

Chairman Towns introduced restroom gender parity legislation in the 110 1

Congress. H.R. 693, the Restroom Gender Parity in Federal Buildings Act of 2007,
would have amended Section 3307(b) of Title 40 to require the General Services
Administration to ensure that the number of toilets in women's restrooms exceeded the
number of toilets and urinals in men's restrooms in covered federal facilities by a ratio of
two-to-one. The bill had the support of 65 cosponsors, but did not receive action.

The current bill, H.R. 4869, the Restroom Gender Parity in Federal Buildings Act,
would require the Federal Acquisition Regulation to be revised to direct federal
procurement executives involved in the acquisition, construction, or major renovation
(including contracting for the construction or major renovation) of any facility to ensure
that the number of toilets in women's restrooms equals or exceeds the number of toilets
and urinals in men's restrooms; and to direct Federal procurement executives involved in
leasing buildings to give preference to leasing facilities that meet the one-to-one standard.
If this ratio is unachievable or not feasible, GSA would be required to submit a statement
to Congress explaining why this ratio is unnecessary.

Anthony, K. H. and Meghan Dufresne, "Putting Potty Parity in Perspective: Gender and Family Issues in
Restroom Design." Journal of Planning Literature. 21:3 (February 2007), p. 271.
2
Id. at 268.
3
Id. at 278
4
Id. at 272.
Witnesses

The Honorable Rep. Yvette Clarke, Brooklyn, NY (11th District). As a New

York City Councilwoman, Rep. Clarke was instrumental in passing similar restroom
gender parity legislation in New York City.

The Honorable Rep. Steve Cohen, Memphis, TN (9th District). Rep. Cohen
served for 24 years in the Tennessee State Senate, where he led legislative efforts in
support of restroom gender parity.

Commissioner Robert Peck, Public Building Service, U.S. General Services

Administration. Commissioner Peck manages GSA's federal government building
portfolio, which consists of over 8,600 government-owned or leased buildings.

Dr. Kathryn H. Anthony, Professor, School of Architecture, University of

Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Dr. Anthony is Co-Chair of the Provost's Gender Equity
Council, which is spearheading an initiative to incorporate gender equity into the design
review process for new buildings and major renovations on campus. She is the author of
Designing for Diversity: Gender, Race, and Ethnicity in the Architectural Profession
(2001,2008).

The Honorable Sharon Pratt, Vice Chairman and Director, Opportunity

Funding Corporation. Mayor Pratt was the first African-American woman elected mayor
of a major American city and still the only woman to have served as mayor of
Washington, D.C.

For further information regarding this hearing, please contact Alex Wolf at ext.
5-5051.