This regulation establishes physical standards for bedrooms in Mental Health Community Residence Facilities (MHCRFs) in the District of Columbia. Operators must meet minimum square footage requirements per occupant, prohibit sleeping near certain heating equipment, provide each resident with specified furnishings and lockable storage, and ensure bedrooms have direct corridor access and exterior windows. Staff and residents may not share bedrooms, and residents must be offered a choice of roommates consistent with their person-centered plan.
View official source3831 BEDROOMS 3831.1 Each bedroom shall comply with the space and occupancy requirements for habitable rooms in the D.C. Property Maintenance Code and § 402 of the Housing Code (14 DCMR § 402), and shall require at a minimum: If used for sleeping by only one (1) occupant, at least eighty square feet (80 sq. ft.) of habitable room area. If used for sleeping by two (2) or more occupants, at least fifty square feet (50 sq. ft.) of habitable room area for each occupant. 3831.2 No sleeping facilities shall be permitted in any room in which there is located a furnace, space heater using an open flame, domestic water heater or gas meter. 3831.3 Each resident shall be provided a choice of roommates in accordance with his or her level of care as articulated in the person-centered planning and treatment plan. This roommate requirement may be modified if supported by a specific assessed need and justified and agreed to in the person-centered service plan. An employee of a MHCRF and a resident of the MHCRF shall not share a bedroom under any circumstances. 3831.4 Each resident shall be provided with at least the following items: A bed, which shall not be a cot; A mattress that was purchased new by the MHCRF, has a manufacturer’s tag or label attached to it, is in good, sanitary and intact condition without broken springs, and a new mattress cover; A bedside table or cabinet and an individual reading lamp with at least a seventy-five (75) watt or luminance equivalent bulb; Lockable storage space in a stationary cabinet, chest, or closet that provides at least one (1) cubic foot of space for each resident for valuables and personal items; Sufficient suitable storage space, including a dresser and closet space, for personal clothing, shoes, accessories, and other personal items; and A waste receptacle and clothes hamper with lid. 3831.5 Each bed shall be located in a room that is designed and utilized solely as a bedroom. Each bedroom shall have a door lockable by the resident, with only appropriate staff having keys to the door. This lockable door requirement may be modified if supported by a specific assessed need and justified and agreed to in the person-centered service plan. 3831.6 Each bed shall be placed at least three (3) feet from any other bed and from any uncovered radiator. 3831.7 Each bedroom shall have direct access to a major corridor and at least one (1) window to the outside, unless DCRA has determined that it otherwise meets the lighting and ventilation requirements for habitable rooms pursuant to the D.C. Property Maintenance Code and the D.C. Housing Code. SOURCE: Final Rulemaking published at 65 DCR 1633 (February 16, 2018). District of Columbia Municipal Regulations Mental Health 22-A DCMR § 3831