Wee the People: These Bills Aim to Fix New York’s Toilet Access Problem

“It shouldn’t be this hard to find a bathroom when you need one.” Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine shared this familiar lament during his recent State of the Borough address, but that’s changing, he said, with legislative efforts in the New York City Council to improve public bathroom access in the five boroughs.

New York’s park bathroom to population ratio ranks 93rd out of 100 major U.S. cities, according to a 2019 report by the comptroller’s office. Levine’s office estimates there’s 1 public toilet for every 6,000 residents, though independent researchers say the ratio is closer to 1 for every 8,000 residents. And these estimates don’t include the city’s visitors — commuters, tourists — as well as people who slip through census counts, such as migrants, asylum seekers, and unhoused people.

Advocates, such as those behind the homelessness union’s “Free to Pee” campaign, say that it’s the people in this last group who, lacking fixed residences and unwelcome in private establishments, rely on public toilets the most. But the problem of bathroom access unites us all. “It’s okay to admit it, guys,” said Levine in his speech. “We’ve all been caught out there.”

Levine mentioned a new bill, Intro 267, that proposes making restrooms in city-managed buildings available to the public during operating hours. It was introduced on Feb. 27, by primary sponsor Brooklyn Council Member Rita Joseph and at Levine’s request.

The new bill joins a slew of local legislation aimed at the city’s dire toilet problem in recent years. Two, also introduced by Joseph and Levine, have passed: Local Law 144 of 2023 requires the Parks Department to inspect all of its public bathrooms, and to make all bathroom locations and their reported conditions publicly available on a website. Local Law 114 of 2022 requires city agencies to find at least one feasible location for a new public bathroom in each zip code, and to report those locations by the end of 2023.

As for getting those new bathrooms built, there’s a bill for that. Intro 272, which would require the transportation and parks departments to create a funding and installation plan, is currently being heard in City Council.

Another bill, sponsored by Brooklyn Council Member Sandy Nurse, reaches for an even longer term goal. Intro 1154 would establish a long-term strategic plan for increasing New York’s public toilet ratio to 1 for every 2,000 residents by 2035.

Though there won’t be immediate relief for the city’s bathroom crisis, hold tight—things may be looking up.