Video: Fewer hassles if you've got to go
SEATTLE - Going into a store bathroom is about to get easier.
Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire has signed a law that eases public access to restrooms in stores and restaurants.
Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready, who suffers from Crohn's Disease, testified for the bill.
The law requires businesses to open their bathrooms to people who have a doctor's note. Businesses are also required to open their bathrooms if at least three store employees are working at the time and the request does not pose a security risk.
Some restaurant owners see the new law as an expensive challenge.
"There are a lot of costs involved in social services but we're private enterprise and we're trying to stay in business," said Danny Mitchelli, owner of Mitchelli's in Pioneer Square.
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"This is a restaurant and the bathrooms are for customers. I may have a difficult time dealing with people in off the street," said Two Bells Restaurant owner Jeff Lee in Seattle's Belltown.
There are fewer outdoor bathrooms available now. Seattle's experimental, high priced bathrooms are long gone. They were a magnet for drug users.
Now some business owners fear their bathrooms will be magnets and drive customers away.
"When they come in they mess up the bathroom," said Tracy Nguyen, of T and T Salon and Spa.
The new bathroom law goes into effect at the end of July.
Although they are not taking an official stand on it, the Washington State Restaurant Association helped the draft the new law.
