With almost no fanfare, a small tweak in Raleigh’s latest budget just handed one nonprofit a very big job: making sure public school bathrooms across North Carolina are stocked with pads and tampons.
Last Tuesday, Gov. Josh Stein signed a budget change that formally designates the Diaper Bank of North Carolina as the state’s contracted supplier of period products for public schools. The move replaces a patchwork of small competitive grants with a single statewide distribution system that will send supplies out based on how many female students are enrolled in grades 6 through 12.
Supporters say centralizing purchasing and distribution could make life easier for students who currently depend on teachers, nurses, and staff quietly buying products out of pocket. But the money behind the program still falls far short of the need those same schools have documented.
Budget Language Locks In A New Delivery Model
The change appears in the budget bill that directs the Department of Public Instruction to contract with the Diaper Bank of North Carolina to provide feminine hygiene products to participating public school units on a pro rata basis. As spelled out in the 2026 Appropriations Act, the Department must base distribution on female enrollments in grades six through 12 and file yearly reports on how the program is used.
The budget cleared both chambers of the legislature before landing on the governor’s desk, and Stein signed it into law last week.
DPI Numbers Show Need Dwarfs Funding
Even before the shift to a statewide contract, the numbers told a familiar story: far more demand than dollars. The Department of Public Instruction’s latest report to lawmakers shows that for the 2025–26 school year, 316 public school units applied for period product grants. Only 138 received funding, with awards ranging from $100 up to $5,000 and the overall program funded at $500,000 for the year, according to the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.
The report notes that districts used the grants to buy pads and tampons, underwear and leggings, dispensers, and educational materials. It also highlights that 67 percent of female students in grades 7 through 12 attend Title I-eligible schools, and that many campuses still lean on staff who purchase supplies on their own when grants and donations come up short.
Diaper Bank Gears Up To Scale, With Logistics As The Pricey Part
The Diaper Bank of North Carolina is not exactly new to this work. The group says it has distributed more than 3 million period supplies to schools since 2014, according to the Diaper Bank of North Carolina.
Founder Michelle Schaefer told North Carolina Health News that legislators “trust us in the work” and that the main financial challenge under the new model will be getting products where they need to go. Consolidating purchasing is expected to push unit costs down a bit, but shipping and delivering to hundreds of schools across a big, rural-heavy state will require new logistics and additional funding.
Policy Holes Still Wide Open
Advocates point out that a better supply chain only goes so far when the state’s broader tax policy still makes products more expensive. North Carolina continues to tax menstrual products, a practice national advocacy groups say hits low-income residents hardest.
The Alliance for Period Supplies reports that one in four teens nationwide has missed class because they did not have pads or tampons and lists North Carolina among the states that still tax menstrual products. At the same time, a bipartisan proposal to remove sales tax from essentials, HB 1200, the Tax-Free Family Essentials Act, has cleared the House and is now in the Senate’s hands, according to the North Carolina General Assembly.
Districts Say Even Tiny Grants Go A Long Way
Grant applications reviewed by the Department of Public Instruction show just how far a few hundred dollars can stretch in tight school budgets. Asheboro City Schools reported that nurses had been covering the gap by buying products themselves. Bertie County Schools told the state that the grant helped “meet this basic need with dignity,” and Beaufort County noted that donations had been plugging a persistent shortfall.
The report estimates that routine per-student costs run about $1.50 to $2.00 per month, but stresses that actually getting products into bathrooms and keeping them stocked across multiple buildings adds layers of complexity and cost for partners like the Diaper Bank, according to the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.
What Comes Next
Under the new budget language, the Department of Public Instruction must send annual updates to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee, which should reveal whether the Diaper Bank model actually closes gaps across the state or just rearranges the shortages.
Gov. Stein signed the Appropriations Act on July 7, and his office’s announcement notes that the spending plan makes targeted investments that include this shift in how schools get period supplies, according to the Office of the Governor.
Advocates say the immediate priority is making sure the new distribution system is funded well enough to work as advertised, while keeping pressure on lawmakers to follow through on eliminating the state sales tax on menstrual products as HB 1200 moves through the Senate.
