Every state has its own rules and regulations for residential board and care homes, and with Texas being the 2nd largest state in the US, we felt it was important that we wrote a blog detailing the requirements and process for a home in Texas.
Let’s start with the basics, what is a residential board and care home and do these rules apply to me?
A Residential Board and Care home (RBC) is the name used in the national code books to describe a variety of homes where multiple residents who aren’t related to each other live and possibly receive care. This includes children’s group homes, adult group homes, and assisted living homes for the elderly or others who need assistance with daily living and activities. For adult group homes, there are several types of homes including halfway homes, drug or substance abuse homes, or homes for adults with developmental disabilities. If you operate or are looking to open a home like this, then rules apply to you.
What types of homes are in Texas?
Like all states, Texas has all of the different homes mentioned above, and they use the same names for children’s group homes and adult group homes. However, when it comes to elderly group homes, they use the term Assisted Living Home, also abbreviated as ALF. This differs from states like Kansas that use the term Home Plus. An Assisted Living Home can be a small home, for up to 12 or 16 residents, which is what we are going to discuss, or can be for a large home for hundreds of residents. Texas recognizes two different kinds of Assisted Living Homes, Type A and Type B. A small ALF Type A home is a home for up to 12 residents who can egress a home on their own without any assistance. This typically applies to homes for the children and adults with mental disabilities, who are mobile and can exit the home during an emergency in 3 minutes or less. But it also can refer to a home with elderly residents who are also mobile and would be able to exit the home with little or no assistance. The second type of home, a Type B home, is the more common type where the residents would need assistance to exit the home during an emergency. They may be unable to walk, be bed bound like in a hospice, may require wheelchairs or walkers, or have other conditions. These type A and B distinctions comes from the national code books that recognize that people who can easily exit a home without help don’t require as stringent of fire protections as those who do need help. The type of home can have all kinds of implications, including rooms sizes, fire suppression systems, and more.
Let’s talk about the home now, what are the requirements for bedrooms and living spaces?
The Texas Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has listed all kinds of various regulations for RBC Homes, and they vary based on the type of home. No group home of any kind is allowed to have bedrooms in the basement, but can have bedrooms on the main level and upper level of a home. Single occupancy bedrooms for children, adult, and type A homes require 80 SF per resident; type B homes require slightly more space at 100 SF per resident. In multi-occupancy rooms (two or more residents in the room), children, adult, and type A homes require 60 SF per resident (8’ minimum bedroom width), and 80 SF per resident in a type B home (10’ minimum bedroom width). All home types are limited to a maximum of 4 residents in a room, and a closet or armoire (furniture for clothes storage with a hanger rod) are required.
Texas also differs from other states when it comes to restrooms, imposing some different rules not seen elsewhere. All assisted living homes require 1 restroom (toilet and sink) per 6 residents, and 1 shower or bathing room (separate or combined with the restroom) per 10 residents. However, children’s and adult group homes are required to have 1 full restroom (toilet, sink, shower/bath) per 8 residents. All home types must have a minimum of 1 restroom for men and 1 for women if the home is mixed gender.
When it comes to living areas, dining areas, or kitchens, Texas doesn’t publish any other requirements specifically for the size of these rooms for children or adult group homes other than there is a minimum of 40 SF per resident for living areas. However, there is a variety of requirements and minimums for both Type A and B ALF homes. The requirements are the same for both homes and are as follows…
120 SF minimum total living area, with a minimum of 15 SF per resident. (If your living room is only 120 SF, then it meets the requirement, however you could only have up to 8 residents, any more than 8 and you’d need a larger living room). The living areas must have at least 1 window.
120 SF minimum total dining area, with a minimum of 15 SF per resident. The dining area must have at least 1 window. You can combine living and dining rooms, but the total area must be at least 240 SF minimum.
Kitchens are not required in the home if there is an off-site kitchen where meals are prepared and brought daily, but if a kitchen is in the home, commercial cooking equipment would require special fire suppression systems or hoods.
Are there any other spaces in Texas group homes that have rules?
Texas does stipulate a few extra rules that other states may not. One is that for ALF’s a staff area (a nurse station for example) is required on every level of the home that has sleeping rooms. So if your assisted living home has bedrooms on the main level and second floor, you would need a nurse station on both levels. Additionally, the Fire Alarm equipment must be located in the staff area.
Texas does specifically require storage areas for records, supplies, medical items, and resident needs like towels, linens, wheelchairs, foot etc. There are no specific rules other than storage rooms and spaces are required.
And lastly, Texas is unique that in ALF’s a home with sleeping areas on the upper levels must have a minimum of two sets of stairs, and that residents are not allowed to pass through restrooms or another bedroom to access any of the stairs. Since most homes only have 1 set of stairs, a two-story ALF would likely need a second stair added, and possibly some remodel to extend a hallway to that stair.
What about fire safety and exiting?
You can read our other blogs about fire alarm systems, and fire sprinkler suppression system for more information related to these systems. The basics are that for all homes, a fire alarm system is required. But sprinkler systems would be a per home basis, it would depend on the local authorities. If the local city, county, or other authority reviewing the plans uses an older NFPA 101 Life Safety Code book, or has passed special amendments, then a sprinkler system may not be required. If they are using a newer version of the NFPA 101, or are using the International Building Code (IBC) books, then a sprinkler system would be required. When we start a project I a new jurisdiction, we always ask a variety of questions to find out what the local requirements would be for every project, this way you know from the start what you will have to do!
When it comes to exiting, Texas uses the same national codes other states do, so you can read our other blogs about egress windows, bedroom doors, exterior egress doors, etc, because there are lots of rules there too. However, Texas does have a unique requirement for windows. Like all states, bedroom windows must meet egress requirements, but Texas also requires that windows must be equal too or larger than 8% of the usable bedroom area. In other words, if a bedroom is 100 SF, then the window must be at least 8 SF. The typical window in a home is usually 3ft wide and 4ft tall, which would be about 12 SF, so it’s not too difficult to meet the 8% requirement for a standard 100 SF bedroom. But over large bedrooms must have more or larger windows, and bedrooms with small windows might need a bigger window or an additional window added.
What’s the process for plan review and licensure in Texas?
In Texas, you would work with Texas Code Plans to measure the home, prepare any remodel plans needed, and draw up the code footprint of the home. Then we’d submit your plan to the local city or county for plan review and approval, this is also known as the local Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ). The local AHJ uses their own building codes, and have often passed local rules and amendments that could limit or restrict these homes, and we are required to follow the local AHJ’s requirements. Once we meet all of their stipulations and receive plan approval from the local AHJ, then we submit permitted plans to HHS for review. It is recommended that in new homes (new or existing construction) that you wait until you have full plan approval prior to starting most remodel projects.
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