Memorializing Governor Kathy Hochul to proclaim May 11-17, 2025, as Period Poverty Awareness Week in the State of New York
Assembly Resolution No. 1342 is a nonbinding memorializing resolution that urges Governor Kathy Hochul to proclaim May 11-17, 2026, as Period Poverty Awareness Week in New York State. The resolution frames period poverty as a public health, economic, and educational issue affecting women, girls, and other menstruators who cannot afford adequate menstrual products. It emphasizes that period supplies are basic necessities and that lack of access can harm health, dignity, and daily participation in work and school.
The resolution does not create a new statutory program, mandate funding, or change existing law. Instead, it expresses the Legislature’s support for public awareness and recognition of period poverty and asks the Governor to issue a proclamation. Its practical effect is symbolic and advocacy-oriented, aimed at elevating awareness of menstrual equity and the need for access to period products.
The general sentiment reflected in the bill text is strongly supportive and compassionate. The resolution presents period poverty as a serious and widespread problem and links access to menstrual products with health, economic opportunity, and educational attainment. There is no recorded committee debate or vote history in the provided materials, so no formal opposition is documented.
Because the measure is a resolution rather than substantive legislation, the main point of discussion is awareness rather than policy mechanics. The bill’s framing suggests support for broader menstrual equity efforts, but it does not specify enforcement, eligibility, or appropriations. No notable contention appears in the available record, though any disagreement would likely center on whether awareness proclamations are sufficient versus the need for direct state action or funding.
This resolution would not amend the New York Consolidated Laws or impose legal obligations on agencies, schools, employers, or individuals. Its impact is limited to a legislative request that the Governor proclaim a designated awareness week, with the intended effect of promoting public attention to period poverty and related access issues. The measure may indirectly support future policy discussions about menstrual product access, public health, and poverty reduction, but it does not itself change statutory rights or duties.
The sentiment around the bill is positive and supportive. The resolution is written in advocacy language that treats period poverty as a serious barrier to health, education, and economic participation, and it seeks to recognize the issue through an official state proclamation. No votes or committee transcripts were provided, so there is no evidence of recorded opposition or controversy in the available materials.
There is no documented contention in the provided record, and no committee discussion or vote history is available. If any disagreement exists, it would most likely concern the usefulness of a symbolic proclamation versus direct legislative action such as funding menstrual products, expanding access in schools and shelters, or creating statewide menstrual equity programs. The bill itself does not address those policy questions, so any substantive debate would be external to the text provided.