Congress wants small airports to have ‘mothers’ rooms. Boise beat them to it.
Congress wants to make sure smaller airports have “mothers rooms” with proper lighting, changing tables and other comforts.
No problem, says Sean Briggs, Boise Airport marketing manager.
The airport now has a Mamava Lactation Pod in the secure area.
And the airport is in the midst of a multiyear airport expansion project that will include three new parking structures and a new concourse. Part of the upgrade will include a Mothers Room.
Washington is moving quickly to make such rooms standard in smaller hub airports around the country. The House has passed “The Small Airport Mothers’ Rooms Act of 2019,” which will require a lactation area for nursing mothers in small hub airports, generally those located in small or medium-size cities.
A lactation area is defined as “a location for members of the public to express breast milk that is shielded from view and free from intrusion from the public, has a door that can be locked, includes a place to sit, a table or other flat surface, a sink or sanitizing equipment, and an electrical outlet, is readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities, including individuals who use wheelchairs and is not located in a restroom.”
The legislation mandates a baby changing table in at least one men’s and one women’s restroom in each passenger terminal building of the affected airports. While many of the small airports already have such facilities, they all must meet the new standards by fiscal 2023, which begins Oct. 1, 2022. The Mamava rooms meet the standard.
The bill won voice vote approval in the House last month. A Senate version won the backing of the Senate Commerce Committee last month and is expected to be considered this year.
The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s report on the bill said it was necessary because “nursing parents continue to face challenges, and potentially public stigma, when attempting to breastfeed, nurse, or change their child while traveling.”
The bills have strong support from Republicans and Democrats.
“When traveling, you’d never be expected to eat your meal in a bathroom stall, yet for many new mothers, that’s the reality they face,” said Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Illinois. In 2018, she became the first person to give birth while serving in Congress.
Chief House sponsor is Rep. Carol Miller, R-West Virginia. The bill, she said, will help ease anxiety and “allows for mothers to have a quiet, private space to care for their young ones and nurse their children in privacy.”
About 60 organizations sent Congress a letter supporting the effort, including the U.S. Breastfeeding Committee, American Academy of Pediatrics, American Breastfeeding Institute, American College of Nurse-Midwives, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Association of Maternal & Child Health Programs and Association of State Public Health Nutritionists.
“A growing number of airports have designated lactation spaces, yet many lactating people still end up in restrooms or on airport floors,” they wrote. “Travelers rarely have control over how long they are in transit, making accessible accommodations within airports a critical priority.”
About 70 small airports, including the Boise Airport, would be subject to the new requirement. Larger airports already have to comply with the ‘mothers room’ law by 2021.
This story was originally published January 3, 2020 at 6:00 AM.
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