Bathroom Law Is Not So Simple

Spokesman says Santa Fe's law on bathroom inclusivity is enforced by complaints or if businesses make contact with City Hall

While the federal government goes after the state of North Carolina for its laws about bathrooms and birth certificates, Santa Fe has been enjoying a moment of liberal bubble-ness. We've already got a law on the books that requires businesses to openly advertise that their single-stall bathrooms are for use by people of any gender.

But when SFR conducted a spot check of a few businesses during the last week of April, we found quite a few that weren't complying with the change to the city code that went into effect last summer.

Turns out, that’s probably going to be the case for quite some time.The mayor’s spokesman, Matt Ross, issued a statement for our story, noting that it should be attributed to Mayor Javier Gonzales:"Despite the national conversation, here at home it's simpler. We believe every member of the community deserves to have a place they feel safe. Thanks to the attention this issue has been getting, and the work of groups like All Families Matter, we're seeing more and more businesses adopt gender neutral signage, and we'll keep that push going until we reach full buy-in."Does that answer all your questions? Ours neither. So we pressed Ross to explain how he defined “that push.” After some debate about whether Ross “provided details” or not the first couple of times we tried to get them, this week, he is ready to tell you how enforcement of the law works. In summary, he writes, there have been no citations to businesses that don’t have the signs in place, and the only time the city will even look for the signs is when a business approaches the government with a new request or if it’s selected for a random fire inspection. The city will also respond to "reports of non-compliance." Here’s the full text of his recent explanation: The city conducts business inspections when an existing business conducts a remodel or does any kind of construction, when they change location, and at random intervals for fire inspections. We also conduct inspections on new businesses. For those who are subject to the ordinance, compliance is one of the things our inspectors are checking and is a necessary condition of their construction and occupancy permits and their business licenses.At the time the ordinance was passed, staff committed to the governing body to be responsive when reports of non-compliance are received and to proactively institute the ordinance through this inspections process. Thus far, we’ve found that the businesses who have been informed about the ordinance in the course of these inspections have been happy to comply, so there have not been any documents generated like what you’d see if a business was refusing to comply.Meanwhile, the statewide group that Gonzales mentioned, All Families Matter, has been at work distributing fliers and giving shout-outs to businesses that are in compliance with the law, which the mayor promised last June would send a  "powerful message to their kids that they’re accepted by their community." Good job, Plaza Starbucks, La Fonda, Betterday Coffee, La Montañita Co-Op and others who have posted the signs. With few public restrooms in the downtown area, here are places where you can #peeinpeace. Now, how about that Allsup's?

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