Gov’t must not limit gender-neutral design choices
Sometimes the smallest design changes can make a big difference when it comes to inclusion. Model building codes are developed by non-profit standards development organizations like the International Code Council (ICC), and those codes are adopted into law by states and local governments across the U.S.
It’s not necessarily intuitive, but building codes can play an important role in shaping public policy. Years ago, the American Institute of Architects (AIA), backed by a recommendation from the National Center for Transgender Equality, successfully advanced a change to the International Code Council’s International Plumbing Code (IPC) to ensure that restrooms could be designed for use by all genders where specific conditions are met, such as adequate privacy and safety provisions for restrooms with multiple users.
These provisions promote choice, equity, health and safety for transgender, gender non-binary, and gender non-conforming individuals.
They also benefit people who are disabled and families with small children. First, the good news: the General Services Administration (GSA) — the federal government’s landlord, which owns roughly 1,700 buildings and has an outsized DMV presence— follows the IPC.
