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NORTH DAKOTA ADMINISTRATIVE CODE
TITLE 75. DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES
ARTICLE 3. COMMUNITY SERVICES
CHAPTER 16. LICENSING OF GROUP HOMES AND RESIDENTIAL CHILD CARE FACILITIES
Date:
08/31/2009
Document:
75-03-16-29. Buildings, grounds, and equipment.
1. A facility shall comply with all state, county, and local building and zoning codes and ordinances as well as all applicable state, county, and local safety, sanitation laws, codes, and ordinances.
2. A facility must be inspected annually by the local fire department or the state fire marshal's office. A facility shall correct any deficiencies found during these inspections. The facility shall keep a written report of the annual inspection on file at the facility or other designated location, and a copy sent to the licensing authority.
3. All chimneys, flues, and vent attachments to combustion-type devices must be structurally sound, appropriate to the unit or units attached to them, and cleaned and maintained as necessary to provide safe operation. The heating system of each facility, including chimneys and flues, must be inspected at least once each year by a qualified individual.
4. There shall be at least one 2A 10BC fire extinguisher on each floor and in or immediately adjacent to the kitchen, incinerator, and combustion-type heating units. Additional fire extinguishers must be provided so it is never necessary to travel more than seventy-five feet 22.86 meters to an extinguisher. Fire extinguishers must be mounted on a wall or a post where they are clearly visible and at a readily accessible height. All required fire extinguishers must be checked once a year and serviced as needed. Each fire extinguisher must have a tag or label securely attached indicating the month and year the maintenance check was performed last and identifying the individual who performed the service.
5. The facility shall provide the following smoke detectors:
a. One unit for each bedroom hallway;
b. One unit at the top of each interior stairway; and
c. One unit for each room with a furnace or other heat source.
6. Battery-operated smoke detectors must signal when the battery is exhausted or missing, and be tested at least once a month.
7. A facility shall have written plans and procedures for meeting disasters and emergencies.
a. Staff members must know all plans and procedures for meeting disasters and emergencies.
b. The facility shall advise each child in the facility of all emergency and evacuation procedures upon admission to the facility. These procedures shall be reviewed with the children every two months, including performance of fire evacuation drills.
c. The facility shall have telephones centrally located and readily available for staff use in each living unit of the facility. Emergency numbers including the fire department, police, hospital, physician, and ambulance must be written and posted by each telephone. There must be telephone service in all buildings housing children.
d. There must be at least two independent exits from every floor. The exits must be located so that children can exit from each floor in two separate directions, without going through a furnace room, storage room, or other hazardous area.
e. Flashlights must be available to all staff for emergency purposes.
8. Any vehicle used by a facility for the transportation of children or staff must be licensed in accordance with the laws of North Dakota and must be maintained and periodically inspected to ensure its safe operating condition.
a. Vehicles used to transport children must be covered by liability insurance.
b. The number of persons in a vehicle used to transport children may not exceed the number of available seats. All individuals shall wear seatbelts in vehicles that are equipped with seatbelts.
c. Any operator of any vehicle shall hold a valid driver's license of the appropriate class from the operator's jurisdiction of residence.
9. All buildings must be equipped with furnishings suitable to needs of the children. Recreational space and equipment must be safe, functional, and available for all children in the facility.
10. The facility shall have one centrally located living room for the informal use of children.
11. The facility shall have a dining room area large enough to accommodate the number of individuals who normally are served.
12. A facility shall provide space and privacy for individual interviewing and counseling sessions. This space must be separate and apart from rooms used for ongoing program activities.
13. A facility shall have bedroom accommodations for the children.
a. The facility shall have at least one bedroom for each four children.
b. The facility may not permit nonambulatory children to sleep above or below the ground floor.
c. There must be no more than one child per bed. Triple bunks may not be used.
d. No child six years of age or older may share a bedroom with a child of the opposite sex.
e. All bedrooms must have at least one window which opens to the outside.
f. No sleeping room may be in an unfinished attic, hallway, or other room not normally used for sleeping purposes.
g. A basement which has over half its outside walls below grade and no door opening directly to the outside may not be used for bedrooms.
h. Furnishings must be safe, attractive, easy to maintain, and selected for suitability to the age and development of the children in care.
i. A facility shall have sufficient storage to accommodate each child's clothing and other personal belongings.
14. A facility shall have one complete bathroom for each six residents. A complete bathroom includes toilet, washbasin, and a tub or shower.
a. All bathroom facilities must be indoors, equipped with hot and cold running water, and kept clean.
b. When bathroom units contain more than one toilet, tub, or shower, each must be in a separate compartment.
c. The facility shall provide bathrooms with nonslip surfaces in showers or tubs.
15. Facilities shall ensure that kitchen equipment and area meet the standards prescribed by the state department of health for food and beverage establishments. Compliance with these standards must be documented annually and the documentation kept on file at the facility or other designated location within the state of North Dakota.
a. Food storage space must be clean and containers must be covered and stored off the floor.
b. Dishes, cups, and drinking glasses used by the children must be free of chips, cracks, and other defects, and must be sanitized after every use by a washing process, sanitization solution, and air-drying or commercial dishwasher.
c. Kitchen floors must be reasonably impervious to water, slip-resistant, and maintained in a clean and dry condition.
16. Laundry facilities must be located in an area separate from areas occupied by children. Space for sorting, drying, and ironing must be made available to children who are capable of handling personal laundry.
17. The water supply of a facility must be from an approved municipal system where available. Where a municipal system is not available, the facility shall obtain approval for the water supply from the state department of health. Each water outlet accessible to children must be supplied with safe and potable water.
18. All agricultural chemicals, pesticides, and other poisons must be stored in a locked cabinet.
19. Firearms are prohibited in program or living areas of a facility premises. Firearms kept at any other location on the facility premises must be stored in a locked and secure area.
20. A facility shall have a quiet area to be used for studying and furnished for that purpose.
21. All rooms in a facility must have adequate lights, heat, and ventilation. All baths and toilet rooms must have a window which opens to the outside or exhaust ventilation.
22. Buildings and grounds of a facility must be maintained in a clean, comfortable, sanitary, and safe condition.
a. The facility may not be located within three hundred feet 91.44 meters of an aboveground storage tank containing flammable liquids used in connection with a bulk storage or other similar hazards.
b. The grounds must be attractive, well-kept, and spacious enough to accommodate recreational areas that take into consideration the age and interest levels of the children.
c. Rooms, exterior walls, exterior doors, skylights, and windows must be weathertight and watertight.
d. Stairways, porches, and elevated walks and ramps must have structurally sound and safe handrails.
e. Buildings must be free of unabated asbestos.
f. Lead paint may not be used within a building or on the exterior, grounds, or recreational equipment.
23. A facility must immediately notify the responsible placing agency and the department of a fire or other disaster which endangers or requires the removal of children for reasons of health and safety.
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