The Mt. Pleasant City Commission voted Monday to make free menstrual products available in city-owned public restrooms, adopting a flexible policy after considering an initially citywide proposal.
The commission passed the policy at its Oct. 26 meeting, according to mpcityblog.com. As The Morning Sun reports, the city will begin purchasing dispensers for placement in women's restrooms, though the policy itself does not specify which gendered bathrooms must carry them. Commissioner Amy Perschbacher said the dispensers will cost roughly $25,000 to implement, while annual product costs will depend on how much supply gets used, the outlet reports.
City officials have acknowledged they don't yet know when the dispensers will actually go in, per the same report. Mt. Pleasant plans to track how much product gets used over time and may eventually expand the program to serve everybody who menstruates, not just those using women's restrooms, according to the article.
From Ordinance to Policy
The measure started out with more teeth. Commissioner Hanna Demerath originally brought the proposal to the commission as an ordinance in September, and at a Sept. 18 meeting she estimated the cost of implementation at a few thousand dollars a year, according to The Morning Sun's earlier coverage. An ordinance would have carried the force of law and extended the requirement to all public restrooms in the city, Demerath said at the time.
Instead, the commission voted on Oct. 13 to draft a policy rather than an ordinance, according to the city's regular meeting packet. The final measure that passed Oct. 26 is a guideline rather than an enforceable city law, The Morning Sun notes. Despite the softer outcome, Demerath called the policy a good step, per the outlet's reporting.
How Other Michigan Cities Handle It
Mt. Pleasant now joins a small but growing list of Michigan municipalities addressing period-product access through local government action. Ann Arbor and East Lansing have similar policies for free or lower-cost menstrual products, The Morning Sun reports, though the details diverge sharply. Ann Arbor's ordinance, ORD-21-32, requires public-restroom managers — including bars, restaurants and stores — to provide menstrual pads and tampons at no cost to users in public restrooms regardless of gender, with an exemption for qualifying places of worship. The rule took effect Jan. 1, 2022, and carries a civil-infraction fine of up to $100 for violations, with enforcement handled on a complaint-driven basis, according to MLive.
East Lansing's rule is narrower. It requires free menstrual products only in restrooms the city itself owns, not in every bathroom across town, according to Michigan Public.
Equity and Dignity
Ann Arbor Mayor Christopher Taylor has framed the issue in terms that go beyond plumbing and budgets. Taylor said providing menstrual products is a matter of equity and personal dignity, according to The Morning Sun's reporting, and argued that access to menstrual products is a fundamental human necessity.
Mt. Pleasant's policy is a local step. Several practical questions — including installation timing and exact restroom coverage — remain for later.
