| (a) A building or structure used as a licensed assisted
living facility, whether new or existing, must comply with these standards.
(b) All assisted living facilities must comply with
National Fire Protection Association Life Safety Code (NFPA 101) and
any applicable Tentative Interim Amendment (TIA) issued by NFPA, except
as otherwise stated in these standards.
(c) All assisted living facilities must comply with
other chapters, sections, subsections, and paragraphs of NFPA 101,
as they relate to: Chapter 18, New Health Care Occupancies; Chapter
19, Existing Health Care Occupancies; Chapter 32, New Residential
Board and Care Occupancies; and Chapter 33, Existing Residential Board
and Care Occupancies, including:
(1) Chapter 1, Administration;
(2) Chapter 2, Referenced Publications;
(3) Chapter 3, Definitions;
(4) Chapter 4, General;
(5) Chapter 5, Performance-Based Option;
(6) Chapter 6, Classification of Occupancy and Hazard
of Contents;
(7) Chapter 7, Means of Egress;
(8) Chapter 8, Features of Fire Protection;
(9) Chapter 9, Building Service and Fire Protection
Equipment;
(10) Chapter 10, Interior Finish, Contents, and Furnishings;
(11) Chapter 11, Special Structures and High-Rise Buildings;
and
(12) Chapter 43, Building Rehabilitation.
(d) An assisted living facility that wishes to be reclassified
from a small facility to a large facility, from a Type A facility
to a Type B facility, or both, must meet the requirements for a new
facility of the type and size specified in this subchapter to be reclassified.
(e) The requirements of this subchapter apply to an
assisted living facility as follows:
(1) All assisted living facilities must comply with
Division 1 of this subchapter (relating to General Provisions) and
Division 2 of this subchapter (relating to Provisions Applicable to
All Facilities).
(2) An assisted living facility initially licensed
before August 31, 2021, and continually operated under an assisted
living license without interruption since then, is considered an existing
assisted living facility and must comply with the following, as applicable:
(A) An existing small Type A assisted living facility
must comply with Division 4 of this subchapter (relating to Existing
Small Type A Assisted Living Facilities).
(B) An existing small Type B assisted living facility
must comply with Division 5 of this subchapter (relating to Existing
Small Type B Assisted Living Facilities).
(C) An existing large Type A assisted living facility
must comply with Division 6 of this subchapter (relating to Existing
Large Type A Assisted Living Facilities).
(D) An existing large Type B assisted living facility
must comply with Division 7 of this subchapter (relating to Existing
Large Type B Assisted Living Facilities).
(3) An assisted living facility initially licensed
on or after August 31, 2021, or any new building or building addition
to a currently licensed assisted living facility constructed on or
after August 31, 2021, is considered a new assisted living facility
and must comply with the following:
(A) A new small Type A assisted living facility must
comply with Division 8 of this subchapter (relating to New Small Type
A Assisted Living Facilities).
(B) A new small Type B assisted living facility must
comply with Division 9 of this subchapter (relating to New Small Type
B Assisted Living Facilities).
(C) A new large Type A assisted living facility must
comply with Division 10 of this subchapter (relating to New Large
Type A Assisted Living Facilities).
(D) A new large Type B assisted living facility must
comply with Division 11 of this subchapter (relating to New Large
Type B Assisted Living Facilities).
(f) An assisted living facility must comply with local
codes and ordinances as follows:
(1) An assisted living facility located within the
jurisdiction of a local organization, office, or individual responsible
for enforcing the requirements of a code or standard, or for approving
equipment, materials, an installation, or a procedure that adopts
codes or ordinances governing building construction or fire safety
(Authority Having Jurisdiction or AHJ) must comply with applicable
local codes and ordinances adopted by the AHJ, as interpreted and
enforced by the AHJ. The description of the occupancy may vary with
local codes.
(2) An assisted living facility located where there
is no local AHJ must be designed and constructed to meet a nationally-recognized
building code and its referenced codes.
(3) An existing building, either occupied as an assisted
living facility at the time of initial inspection by HHSC or converted
to occupancy as an assisted living facility prior to the initial inspection
by HHSC, must meet all local requirements pertaining to that building
for that occupancy as administered by the local AHJ for the adopted
code or ordinance.
(4) An assisted living facility must submit documentation
from the local AHJ that local requirements are satisfied.
(g) When local laws, codes, or ordinances are different
from the standards for assisted living facilities set forth in this
Subchapter D, an assisted living facility must comply with both local
and HHSC requirements.
(h) An assisted living facility must ensure building
rehabilitation on existing buildings is classified according to NFPA
101 and that any rehabilitation complies with NFPA 101 and §553.107
of this subchapter (relating to Building Rehabilitation).
(i) An assisted living facility must ensure buildings,
or portions of buildings, are not occupied during construction, repair,
alterations, or additions, except when required means of egress, required
means of escape, and required fire protection features are in place
and continuously maintained for the portion occupied. Alternative
life safety measures may be put in place if prior approval is obtained
from HHSC.
(j) An assisted living facility must ensure no existing
life safety feature is removed or reduced when the feature is a requirement
for a new facility. Life safety features, and equipment not required
by NFPA 101, that have been installed in existing buildings must continue
to be maintained or be completely removed, if prior approval is obtained
from HHSC.
(k) An assisted living facility must comply with the
plan review and inspection requirements of the Texas Accessibility
Standards (TAS) adopted by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation
(TDLR) rules in Texas Administrative Code, Title 16, Chapter 68, and
must provide documentation demonstrating it has registered the facility
with TDLR and obtained a plan review from a Registered Accessibility
Specialist, if TDLR requires the facility to be registered and reviewed.
(l) An assisted living facility must not segregate
any area housing residents from other parts of the assisted living
facility housing residents, except as permitted by §553.51 of
this chapter (relating to Certification of a Facility or Unit for
Persons with Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders).
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