Emergency plan rules in Texas
4 license types researched, regulated by Texas Health and Human Services Commission. Every requirement below carries the rule that imposes it.
Skilled nursing facility
Licensed in Texas as Nursing Facility, by Texas Health and Human Services Commission.
26 TAC §554.1914 (emergency preparedness and response plan) — not yet confirmed against primary text
Not verified against official text: a written emergency preparedness and response plan with a current printed copy in a central location accessible to all staff, evaluated within 30 days after an emergency, after remodeling or additions, and at least annually, and revised within 30 days after any information in it changes.
26 TAC §554.1914 — not yet confirmed against primary text- citation — Open 26 TAC §554.1914 on the Texas Secretary of State Texas Administrative Code viewer and read the current rule text; the section was identified only from secondary copies and HHSC guidance.
- mandate[0] — Open 26 TAC §554.1914 on the Texas Secretary of State's Texas Administrative Code viewer and read the plan-evaluation and revision clocks. The foundation read Texas nursing rule text only on a secondary copy (ADVISE).
Reviewed 2026-09-28
Home health / home hospice agency
Licensed in Texas as Home and Community Support Services Agency (HCSSA), by Texas Health and Human Services Commission.
26 TAC §558.256; additionally §558.871(a)(2) for hospices with their own inpatient units
A Texas HCSSA plan must name — by title — an employee and at least one alternate as the agency's disaster coordinator; include a continuity of operations business plan; state how the agency will monitor disaster-related news and information; set procedures for releasing client information during a disaster; and describe staff actions and responsibilities in each of the four phases: mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery.
26 TAC §558.256Reviewed 2026-07-30
Child care center
Licensed in Texas as Child Care Center, by Texas Health and Human Services Commission — Child Care Regulation.
26 TAC §744.3553 (what the emergency preparedness plan must include)
An emergency evacuation and relocation DIAGRAM; staff responsibility in sheltering and lock-down emergencies for the orderly movement of children to designated locations; the NAME AND ADDRESS of alternate shelters; how children will be accounted for at safe areas or alternate shelters; how staff will communicate with local authorities, parents and regulators; and how staff will evacuate WITH essential documentation — parent and emergency contact telephone numbers and the authorization for emergency care for each child. The records travel with the children, which is the part most plans omit.
26 TAC §744.3553Reviewed 2026-07-30
Assisted living / residential care
Licensed in Texas as Assisted Living Facility, by Texas Health and Human Services Commission.
Tex. Health & Safety Code §247.073 (assisted living emergency preparedness, eff. 2025-09-01); 26 TAC §553.275 (emergency preparedness and response); 26 TAC §553.104 (fire drills) — not yet confirmed against primary text
Fire drill frequency is not verified. Secondary copies of 26 TAC §553.104 describe fire drills quarterly on each shift plus monthly, and 26 TAC §553.275 an unannounced drill each year; the official rule text has not been read.
Open 26 TAC §553.104 and §553.275 on the Texas Secretary of State Texas Administrative Code viewer and read the current drill requirements for Type A and Type B assisted living facilities; confirm with the local fire official which fire code edition applies, since Texas has no statewide private-building fire code.
Texas requires the facility to attempt to obtain feedback on its emergency preparedness plan from the county Emergency Management Coordinator.
Authority: County Emergency Management Coordinator
PR 2393 — HHSC publishes an Assisted Living Facility Emergency Preparedness Checklist (form PR 2393) as guidance and a survey tool. It is not a mandated form.
The written plan must be based on a risk assessment identifying the disasters, natural and man-made, that are likely to occur in this facility's service area.
26 TAC §553.275 — not yet confirmed against primary textTexas law requires an assisted living facility's emergency plan to provide a climate-controlled refuge area of at least 15 square feet per resident, and a climate-controlled room for each bedfast resident. The temperature range the statute sets is 68°F to 82°F.
Tex. Health & Safety Code §247.073The facility must notify the Texas Health and Human Services Commission of a power outage that lasts more than 12 hours.
Tex. Health & Safety Code §247.073- citation — Open 26 TAC §553.275 and §553.104 on the Texas Secretary of State Texas Administrative Code viewer and read the current rule text, including whether §553.275 was amended after HB 3595; then read HHSC provider letter PL 2026-11 on the enforcement of Health & Safety Code §247.073.
- filing — This duty was sourced to HHSC guidance, not the rule. Open 26 TAC §553.275 on the Texas Secretary of State Texas Administrative Code viewer and confirm whether the current text requires the facility to seek the county Emergency Management Coordinator's feedback on the plan.
- form — Open form PR 2393 on the HHSC website, confirm its current revision, and confirm that no rule in 26 TAC Ch. 553 makes it mandatory.
- drills — Open 26 TAC §553.104 and §553.275 on the Texas Secretary of State Texas Administrative Code viewer and read the current drill requirements for Type A and Type B assisted living facilities; confirm with the local fire official which fire code edition applies, since Texas has no statewide private-building fire code.
- mandate[0] — Read on secondary copies only. Open 26 TAC §553.275 on the Texas Secretary of State Texas Administrative Code viewer and confirm the risk-assessment requirement in the current rule text.
Reviewed 2026-09-28
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Everything else we’ve researched about Texas
Same state, the problems either side of this one. Each carries its own statute and the date we last checked it.
- Texas rent late fees & grace periodWhat may be charged when rent is late, and the notice to send.
- Texas notice to pay rent or quitHow many days' notice before a nonpayment filing, counted on a calendar.
- Texas deposit return law & letterThe landlord's deadline to return a deposit, and the itemized letter.
- Texas deposit demand letterFor the tenant: whether the landlord is late, and by how many days.
- Texas deposit deduction rulesWhat may fairly come out of a deposit, prorated by useful life.
What this page is
The requirements Texas places on a facility emergency preparedness plan, taken from the state’s own rules rather than a national template. Where we have confirmed something against primary text it is stated plainly; where we have not, it says so and names what to check. Nothing here is inferred from what other states do.
The part that is the same everywhere
The federal layer does not vary by state, and it is narrower than it is usually described. OSHA 29 CFR §1910.38 does not bind every employer on its own — by its applicability paragraph it governs an emergency action plan whenever another OSHA standard requires the employer to have one, and it then settles what that plan must contain. The CMS emergency preparedness rule applies by certified provider type rather than by building. That layer, plus the exit-route, alarm and first-aid rules and the fire code’s plan structure, is covered in the main crash course rather than repeated on all fifty state pages.
Write the plan
The Emergency Plan Builder produces the document itself. It reads the same research as this page, but it does not yet carry every requirement here into the plan it writes, so check the plan against this page before you rely on it for Texas. The Compliance Calendar puts the drills and inspections on dates.