Perhaps less well-known than her push to make the House of Representatives more environmentally friendly is an ongoing effort by Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to make the chamber a more family-friendly place to work. [IMGCAP(1)]

After commissioning a review of the House’s day care operations earlier this year, Pelosi’s office announced on Monday that the Office of the Attending Physician would soon open a new facility in the Cannon House Office Building to serve the needs of nursing mothers who work in the House.

Available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, the room will be stocked with about $3,000 in state-of-the-art equipment, be monitored by trained OAP nurses and allow nursing mothers the privacy that is often lacking in crowded House offices, a House leadership aide said Monday.

According to the aide, interested mothers will be able to sign up through the OAP for a key card that will allow them access to the new room.

“Many women face great challenges in managing both motherhood and career,” Pelosi said in a release. “In order for the House to continue to attract and maintain the brightest and most committed public servants, we must ensure that it becomes a family-friendly place to work.”

— John McArdle