Advocacy That Changes Systems

Access to essential hygiene supplies should never depend on where someone lives, what they earn, or whether the systems around them recognize hygiene as a basic need.

At Essentials First, we work to change those systems. Our advocacy brings the voices and lived experiences of people facing hygiene insecurity into conversations with policymakers, community leaders, agencies, and institutions—from city halls and county governments to state legislatures and the national stage.

We advocate for policies that make essential hygiene supplies more accessible, affordable, equitable, and dignified. That means identifying barriers, bringing evidence and community experience to decision-makers, building coalitions, and working alongside partners to turn good ideas into lasting policy change.

Our work spans every level of government. At the local level, we engage municipalities, counties, and community institutions to increase recognition of hygiene as a critical component of health and well-being and to strengthen local access to essential supplies. At the state level, we advance policies that address the affordability, availability, and quality of hygiene products and ensure that public systems meet the basic needs of the people they serve. And at the national level, we contribute to the growing movement to recognize hygiene access as a fundamental component of health, dignity, and economic security.

We don't just advocate for people—we advocate with communities, bringing real-world experience and data into policy conversations and helping decision-makers understand the consequences of hygiene insecurity and the solutions that can address it.

A Landmark Policy Win: the Hygiene Tax Exemption

In 2026, Essentials First played a leading role in creating and advancing a groundbreaking policy to make essential hygiene products more affordable for Washington families.

Working with legislative champions and coalition partners, we helped develop and advocate for a hygiene tax exemption that was ultimately included in the state's landmark millionaires tax legislation. The exemption removes sales tax from qualifying essential hygiene products, recognizing that these products are necessities—not discretionary purchases.

This victory represents an important shift in how policymakers think about hygiene: access to basic hygiene should not be treated as a luxury.

The passage of the exemption demonstrates what is possible when community experience, research, advocacy, and legislative leadership come together. And it is just one example of how Essentials First is working to make hygiene access more equitable—not simply by providing supplies today, but by changing the systems that determine who can afford and access them tomorrow.