BILL ANALYSIS PUBLIC HEALTH C.S.H.B. 2677 By: Chavez 4-16-97 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND Currently, most portable restroom facilities are unisex, thus are equipped with both a urinal and a toilet. For individuals using the toilet, the propensity for contact with unsanitary surfaces is unnecessarily increased due to the close proximity of the urinal to the toilet. This arrangement increases the risk infection and disease for those who use the toilet. Women are faced with this problem considerably more often than men. Therefore, it is necessary to create portable restroom facilities for women without urinals, thereby lessening the risk of infection and disease. PURPOSE CSHB 2677 requires portable restroom facilities to be designated gender-specific. Portable restroom facilities that are designated for women may not contain urinals. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the committee's opinion that this bill expressly grants rulemaking authority to the Texas Board of Health in SECTION 1 ( Section 341.069(d), Health and Safety Code). SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Subchapter D, Chapter 341, Health and Safety Code, by adding Section 341.069 as follows: (a) Each portable restroom open for use by the public must be designated for use by only one gender. (b) A portable restroom designated only for women may not contain a urinal. (c) This section applies only to portable restroom facilities that are provided for use by the public as required by law. (d) The board may adopt rules to implement this section. SECTION 2. Effective Date. September 1, 1997. SECTION 3. Emergency Clause. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE CSHB 2677 omits a subsection from SECTION 1 (Sec. 341.069, Health and Safety Code) of the original bill to remove the requirement that a person providing public portable restroom facilities must do so at a specific ratio for separate facilities that are gender specific. BG C.S.H.B. 2677 75(R)