Requirements for Baby Diaper Changing Stations in Public Restrooms. The federal Bathrooms Accessible In Every Situation Act, or BABIES Act, was enacted in 2016 and requires baby changing facilities in public restrooms of all publicly accessible federal buildings. A public restroom in such building that does not have a baby changing facility must contain clear and conspicuous signage indicating where a restroom with a baby changing table is located on the same floor of such building.

Some states that have enacted legislation requiring baby diaper changing stations in public restrooms of public and private entities include California, Illinois, Nevada, New Mexico, and New York. Arizona and Utah passed laws limiting the requirement to public entities.

State Building Code. The State Building Code sets minimum requirements for safety, design, construction, quality of materials, and maintenance of building systems throughout Washington. The State Building Code, as well as most other state building codes in the United States, are based on International Code Counsel model codes.

Building code standards are adopted at the state level and are then required to be adopted and enforced locally by counties and cities. Local governments can amend standards, but local amendments are subject to certain conditions, including that they cannot be less strict than State Building Code standards.

Building code standards are enforced in the processing and issuance of building permits. Building permits are required for almost all types of construction, including new construction, repairs, alterations, additions, and demolition of existing structures.

Requirement for Baby Diaper Changing Stations in Certain Public Buildings with Public Restrooms. 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.

If multiple restrooms accessible to women, restrooms accessible to men, or gender-neutral restrooms exist, each restroom that does not include a baby diaper changing station must contain clear and conspicuous signage indicating where a restroom with a baby diaper changing station is located.

The requirement applies to any public building constructed after the effective date of the section created by the bill, and to any existing public building upon the issuance of a permit for a remodel or renovation of a public restroom within the building with an estimated cost of $15,000 or more.

A public building is defined as any building required to have a public restroom by the State Building Code or local regulations. A public building does not include an industrial building or commercial building that does not permit anyone who is under 18 years of age to enter the premises.

A baby diaper changing station is defined as a table or other device suitable for changing the diaper of a child weighing less than 50 pounds that is in compliance with the International Building Code standards as amended and adopted by the State Building Code Council.

A gender-neutral restroom is defined as a restroom that is not restricted by gender including, but not limited to, restrooms available for use by families.

Exemptions. These requirements do not apply to:

• an existing public building at the time of the issuance of a permit for the remodel or renovation of a public restroom, if the local government issuing the permit or a building inspector determines that the installation of a baby diaper changing station in the building is not feasible or would result in a failure to comply with applicable building standards governing the right of access for persons with disabilities; or
• a restroom located in a health care facility if the restroom is intended for the use of one patient or resident at a time and is not available for public use.

A health care facility is defined as a hospital, clinic, nursing home, laboratory, office, or similar place where a health care provider provides health care to patients.

Penalties. For a first violation, the city or county attorney must issue a warning letter to the owner or operator of the public building.

An owner or operator of a public building that violates the above requirements after receiving a warning letter is guilty of a class 2 civil infraction, which carries a maximum penalty and default amount of $125, not including statutory assessments.

A building owner or operator that has installed a compliant baby diaper changing station but is no longer usable to the standards established by the manufacturer may remove the baby diaper changing station, and no penalty may be issued.