New Mexico Schools Fulfill Free Period Product Law Differently

Signed into law in 2023, New Mexico House Bill 134 requires and funds free period products in New Mexico schools to help fight period poverty, which is when people cannot afford basic menstrual supplies. The law provides millions of dollars to the New Mexico Public Education Department to set up dispensers and buy supplies however the districts see fit, a local ABC news affiliate reported.

According to the law, middle and high schools must put these products in all women’s restrooms, all gender-neutral restrooms, and at least one men’s restroom. Elementary schools need them in at least one women’s restroom, one men’s restroom, and one gender-neutral restroom.

What’s more, the “Santa Fe New Mexican” found the Santa Fe Public School district made just one purchase of period products in 2019 that they believed would last for years and comply with the law. Tampax, the brand used by the district, said its products have a shelf life of about five years. However, the district’s supply was already seven years old. The district said they have course-corrected, spending about US$27,000 of its roughly $66,000 annual allocation on new products.

ABC News also reached out to nine school districts across the state to ask how they’re implementing the requirement and found that each fulfill the law differently. For example, Los Alamos Public Schools’ custodians check and restock bathroom dispensers daily, with products funded through the district’s operational budget alongside other restroom supplies. School nurses can also order additional products as needed, and students who need menstrual products for home use can contact their school nurse for assistance.

Rio Rancho Public Schools said its custodians restock restroom dispensers as needed and menstrual products also are available in every school’s health office. Funding allocations come from its Facilities and Student Services department budgets, and the district asks staff and students to report empty dispensers to school administrators.

Albuquerque Public Schools has installed menstrual product dispensers in schools, with supplies ordered through the district warehouse. 

Bernalillo Public Schools’ menstrual products are stocked and available in designated school restrooms, with custodial and health staff restocking dispensers several times a week as needed. Products are funded through the district’s general operating budget, allocated specifically to meet the requirements of the law.