Menstrual Equity For All Act of 2021
Bill: H.R.3614 | Sponsor: Rep. Meng, Grace (D-NY)
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Menstrual Equity For All Act of 2021
This bill expands access to free sanitary napkins and tampons (i.e., menstrual products) in certain locations and for particular groups. It also requires Medicaid to cover menstrual products, as well as liners, cups, and similar items used by individuals with respect to menstruation.
Specifically, the bill imposes requirements to make free menstrual products available in federal and state correctional facilities (including facilities that house aliens detained by the Department of Homeland Security) and restrooms in federal buildings that are open to the public.
It also establishes a demonstration grant program to support the provision of free menstrual products on campuses of institutions of higher education and permits elementary and secondary schools to use certain grants to provide menstrual products to students.
Furthermore, the bill requires employers with at least 100 employees to provide free menstrual products for employees. It also permits the use of certain grants for emergency food and shelter to provide menstrual products to homeless individuals.

To increase the availability and affordability of menstrual products 
      for individuals with limited access, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Menstrual Equity For All Act of 
2021''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Menstrual products are a necessity each month for 
        millions of individuals across the United States.
            (2) More than half of the United States population will 
        likely menstruate every month for decades of their lives.
            (3) This lack of menstrual products, often called ``period 
        poverty'', can adversely affect an individual's health and 
        well-being.
            (4) Period poverty exacerbates the vicious cycle of poverty 
        by further marginalizing individuals who menstruate, causing 
        them to withdraw from daily life, forego pay, or miss 
        educational opportunities.
            (5) Period poverty existed long before the COVID-19 
        pandemic.
            (6) The COVID-19 pandemic has forced millions of 
        individuals out of work, thereby exacerbating the socioeconomic 
        and health challenges of individuals facing period poverty.
            (7) Addressing period poverty is essential to ensuring 
        educational equity for diverse populations.
            (8) Studies have shown that 1 in 4 women and girls reports 
        struggling to afford menstrual products.
            (9) Studies have shown that 1 in 10 college students in the 
        United States are affected by period poverty.
            (10) Period poverty disproportionately affects Black, 
        Latina, immigrant, and first-generation students at higher 
        rates than other cohorts.
            (11) Individuals living in period poverty are more likely 
        to experience depression than individuals with access to period 
        products.
            (12) Period poverty can increase the risk of infections due 
        to--
                    (A) the use of substitutes for menstrual products 
                (such as paper towels or toilet paper); and
                    (B) the inability to change menstrual products as 
                frequently as recommended.

SEC. 3. MENSTRUAL PRODUCTS FOR STUDENTS AT ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY 
              SCHOOLS.

    (a) In General.--Section 4108(5)(C) of the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7118(5)(C)) is amended--
            (1) in clause (vi), by striking ``or'' after the semicolon;
            (2) in clause (vii), by inserting ``or'' after the 
        semicolon; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
                            ``(viii) provide free menstrual products to 
                        students who use menstrual products;''.
    (b) Definitions.--Section 4102 of the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7112) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating paragraphs (6) through (8) as 
        paragraphs (7) through (9), respectively; and
            (2) by inserting after paragraph (5) the following:
            ``(6) Menstrual products.--The term `menstrual products' 
        means sanitary napkins and tampons that conform to applicable 
        industry standards.''.
    (c) Rulemaking.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary of Education, in consultation with the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall promulgate rules with 
respect to the definition of ``menstrual products'' in paragraph (6) of 
section 4102 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 7112), as amended by section 3(b).

SEC. 4. MENSTRUAL PRODUCTS FOR STUDENTS AT INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER 
              EDUCATION.

    (a) Purpose.--The purpose of this section is to alleviate--
            (1) the barriers to academic success faced by many college 
        and graduate students due to the inability of such students to 
        afford to purchase menstrual products; and
            (2) the unique set of burdens that college and graduate 
        students experiencing period poverty face that can be 
        compounded by lack of access to basic needs such as housing, 
        food, transportation, and access to physical and mental health 
        services.
    (b) In General.--The Secretary of Education shall establish a 
program to award grants, on a competitive basis, to at least 4 
institutions of higher education (as such term is defined in section 
101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001)), to--
            (1) support programs that provide free menstrual products 
        to students; and
            (2) report on best practices of such programs.
    (c) Application.--To apply for a grant under this section, an 
institution of higher education shall submit to the Secretary an 
application in such form, at such time, and containing such information 
as the Secretary determines appropriate, including an assurance that 
such grant will be used to carry out the activities described in 
subsection (e).
    (d) Community Colleges.--At least 50 percent of the grants awarded 
under this section shall be awarded to community colleges.
    (e) Grant Uses.--A grant awarded under this section may only be 
used to--
            (1) carry out or expand activities that fund programs that 
        support direct provision of free menstrual products to students 
        in appropriate campus locations, including--
                    (A) campus restroom facilities;
                    (B) wellness centers; and
                    (C) on-campus residential buildings;
            (2) report on best practices of such programs;
            (3) conduct outreach to students to encourage participation 
        in menstrual equity programs and services;
            (4) help eligible students apply for and enroll in local, 
        State, and Federal public assistance programs; and
            (5) coordinate and collaborate with government or 
        community-based organizations to carry out the activities 
        described in paragraphs (1) through (4).
    (f) Priority.--In awarding grants under this section, the Secretary 
shall prioritize--
            (1) institutions with Federal Pell Grant enrollment that is 
        at least 25 percent of the total enrollment of such 
        institution; and
            (2) historically Black colleges and universities, Hispanic-
        serving institutions, Asian American and Native American 
        Pacific Islander-serving institutions, and other minority 
        serving institutions.
    (g) Menstrual Product Defined.--In this section, the term 
``menstrual product'' means a sanitary napkin or tampon that conforms 
to industry standards.
    (h) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated $5,000,000 out of funds appropriated for a fiscal year to 
the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education under section 
741 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1138) to carry out 
the grant program under this section.

SEC. 5. MENSTRUAL PRODUCTS FOR INCARCERATED INDIVIDUALS AND DETAINEES.

    (a) Requirement for States.--Beginning on the date that is 180 days 
after the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, 
the chief executive officer of each State that receives a grant under 
subpart 1 of part E of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 
Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3750 et seq.) (commonly referred to as 
the ``Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program'') shall 
submit to the Attorney General a certification, in such form and 
containing such information as the Attorney General may require, that 
all incarcerated individuals and detainees in that State have access to 
menstrual products on demand and at no cost to the incarcerated 
individuals and detainees, and that no visitor is prohibited from 
visiting an incarcerated individual due to the visitor's use of 
menstrual products.
    (b) Reduction in Grant Funding.--In the case of a State whose chief 
executive officer fails to submit a certification required under 
subsection (a) in a fiscal year, the Attorney General shall reduce the 
amount that the State would have otherwise received under section 505 
of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 
(42 U.S.C. 3755) by 20 percent for the following fiscal year.
    (c) Reallocation.--Amounts not allocated to a State under section 
505 of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 
1968 (42 U.S.C. 3755) for a fiscal year pursuant to subsection (b) 
shall be reallocated under such section to States that submit such 
certifications.
    (d) Menstrual Products.--For the purposes of subsection (a), the 
term ``menstrual products'' means sanitary napkins and tampons that 
conform to applicable industry standards.
    (e) Availability for Federal Prisoners.--The Attorney General shall 
make rules requiring, and the Director of the Bureau of Prisons shall 
take such actions as may be necessary to ensure, the distribution and 
accessibility without charge of menstrual products to prisoners in the 
custody of the Bureau of Prisons, including any prisoner in a Federal 
penal or correctional institution, any Federal prisoner in a State 
penal or correctional institution, and any Federal prisoner in a 
facility administered by a private detention entity, to ensure that 
each prisoner who requires these products may receive them in 
sufficient quantity.
    (f) Availability for Detainees.--The Secretary of Homeland Security 
shall take such actions as may be necessary to ensure that menstrual 
products are distributed and made accessible to each alien detained by 
the Secretary of Homeland Security, including any alien in a facility 
administered by a private detention entity, at no expense to the alien.

SEC. 6. MENSTRUAL PRODUCTS AVAILABILITY FOR HOMELESS INDIVIDUALS UNDER 
              EMERGENCY FOOD AND SHELTER GRANT PROGRAM.

    Subsection (a) of section 316 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless 
Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11346(a)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (5), by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (2) in paragraph (6), by striking the period at the end and 
        inserting ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(7) guidelines that ensure that amounts provided under 
        the program to private nonprofit organizations and local 
        governments may be used to provide sanitary napkins and tampons 
        that conform to applicable industry standards.''.

SEC. 7. MENSTRUAL PRODUCTS COVERED BY MEDICAID.

    (a) In General.--Section 1905 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
1396d) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)--
                    (A) by redesignating paragraphs (30) and (31) as 
                paragraphs (31) and (32), respectively; and
                    (B) by inserting after paragraph (29) the following 
                new paragraph:
            ``(30) menstrual products (as defined in subsection 
        (hh));''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(hh) Menstrual Products.--For purposes of subsection (a)(30), the 
term `menstrual products' means sanitary napkins, tampons, liners, 
cups, and similar items used by individuals with respect to 
menstruation and that conform to industry standards.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--
            (1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), the amendments 
        made by this section shall apply with respect to medical 
        assistance furnished during or after the first calendar quarter 
        beginning on or after the date that is 1 year after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act.
            (2) Exception for state legislation.--In the case of a 
        State plan under title XIX of the Social Security Act (42 
        U.S.C. 1396 et seq.) that the Secretary of Health and Human 
        Services determines requires State legislation in order for the 
        respective plan to meet any requirement imposed by amendments 
        made by this section, the respective plan shall not be regarded 
        as failing to comply with the requirements of such title solely 
        on the basis of its failure to meet such an additional 
        requirement before the first day of the first calendar quarter 
        beginning after the close of the first regular session of the 
        State legislature that begins after the date of the enactment 
        of this Act. For purposes of the previous sentence, in the case 
        of a State that has a 2-year legislative session, each year of 
        the session shall be considered to be a separate regular 
        session of the State legislature.

SEC. 8. MENSTRUAL PRODUCTS FOR EMPLOYEES.

    Section 6 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 
U.S.C. 655) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(h) The Secretary shall by rule promulgate a requirement that 
each employer with not less than 100 employees provide menstrual 
products free of charge for employees of the employer. For purposes of 
the preceding sentence, `menstrual products' means sanitary napkins and 
tampons that conform to applicable industry standards.''.

SEC. 9. MENSTRUAL PRODUCTS IN FEDERAL BUILDINGS.

    (a) Requirement.--Each appropriate authority shall ensure that 
menstrual products are stocked in, and available free of charge in, 
each covered restroom in each covered public building under the 
jurisdiction of such authority.
    (b) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Appropriate authority.--The term ``appropriate 
        authority'' means the head of a Federal agency, the Architect 
        of the Capitol, or other official authority responsible for the 
        operation of a covered public building.
            (2) Covered public building.--The term ``covered public 
        building'' means a public building, as defined in section 3301 
        of title 40, United States Code, that is open to the public and 
        contains a public restroom, and includes a building listed in 
        section 6301 or 5101 of such title.
            (3) Covered restroom.--The term ``covered restroom'' means 
        a restroom in a covered public building.
            (4) Menstrual products.--The term ``menstrual products'' 
        means sanitary napkins and tampons that conform to applicable 
        industry standards.
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