Period Products and Facilities (Access) Bill 2025 (SA)

South Australia Period Products and Facilities (Access) Bill 2025 A Bill For An Act to provide free access to period products, facilities and information about menstruation, and for other purposes.

Contents Part 1—Preliminary 1 Short title 2 Commencement 3 Interpretation 4 Objects 5 Principles of dignity 6 Meaning of period poverty Part 2—Access to period products Division 1—Access in the community 7 Suitable places for accessing period products 8 Access to period products at suitable places 9 Access arrangements—suitable places 10 Approved suitable places 11 Approval guidelines Division 2—Access for students 12 Access to period products on education provider premises 13 Access arrangements—government schools 14 Access arrangements—other education provider premises Division 3—Access for patients and visitors 15 Interpretation 16 Access to period products on hospital premises 17 Access arrangements—hospitals Part 3—Workplace access to facilities 18 Definitions 19 Workplace access to facilities Part 4—Information and guidelines 20 Information about menstruation 21 Access guidelines Part 5—Miscellaneous 22 Review of Act 23 Regulations

The Parliament of South Australia enacts as follows: Part 1—Preliminary 1—Short title This Act may be cited as the Period Products and Facilities (Access) Act 2025. 2—Commencement This Act comes into operation 3 months after the day on which it is assented to by, or on behalf of, the Crown. 3—Interpretation In this Act— access arrangements, in relation to a place, mean— (a) for a place on the suitable places list—the arrangements made for the place under section 9; and (b) for government school premises—the arrangements made for the premises under section 13; and (c) for the premises of an education provider other than a government school—the arrangements made for the premises under section 14; and (d) for hospital premises—the arrangements made for the premises under section 16; access guidelines—see section 21(1); approval guidelines—see section 11(1); approved suitable place means a place approved to be included on the suitable places list under section 10; Chief Executive means the Chief Executive of the administrative unit of the Public Service that is responsible for assisting a Minister in the administration of this Act; education provider means— (a) a government school; or (b) a registered training organisation under section 3 of the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011 of the Commonwealth; or (c) a registered higher education provider under section 5 the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency Act 2011 of the Commonwealth; or (d) an entity prescribed by the regulations; government school means a school established under section 33 of the Education and Children's Services Act 2019; period poverty—see section 6; period product means a manufactured item designed to absorb or collect menstrual flow; principles of dignity—see section 5; responsible entity, for an approved suitable place, means the entity who applied for the place to be included on the suitable places list under section 10; sanitary waste facility means a facility for the hygienic disposal of waste period products; student means a person who is enrolled, or regularly attends classes, with an education provider; suitable places list—see section 7(1). 4—Objects (1) The main object of this Act is to reduce and prevent period poverty in South Australia. (2) This Act aims to achieve its object by— (a) providing free access to period products for people experiencing period poverty in South Australia; and (b) improving access to toilets, handwashing facilities and sanitary waste facilities; and (c) providing public information about menstruation and menstrual hygiene. 5—Principles of dignity In exercising a function under this Act, the following principles (the principles of dignity) must be taken into account: (a) a person may experience period poverty as a result of either or both of the following, which, if experienced in combination, may worsen period poverty: (i) economic disadvantage; (ii) different aspects of the person's identity, for example, their sexual orientation, gender identity, mental health, nationality, religion or ability; (b) not every person who menstruates identifies as a woman; (c) a person accessing period products should— (i) be given a reasonable amount of privacy; and (ii) have their personal information be protected against disclosure; and (iii) as far as reasonably practicable, be given the same access to period products as anyone else seeking access to the products, regardless of their identity; and (iv) be able to access period products in a way that avoids humiliation and enables age appropriate participation in decision‑making. 6—Meaning of period poverty For this Act, a person experiences period poverty if the person is in financial, social, cultural or physical circumstances that prevent the person from accessing, when needed, any of the following: (a) period products; (b) menstrual hygiene information; (c) toilets; (d) handwashing facilities; (e) sanitary waste facilities.