(a) A person or governmental unit, acting jointly or severally, must be licensed by DADS to establish, conduct, or maintain a facility.
(b) An applicant for a license must submit a complete application form and license fee to DADS.
(c) No person may apply for a probationary license, a license, change of ownership, increase in capacity, or renewal of a nursing facility license without making a disclosure of information as required in this section.
(d) An applicant for a license must affirmatively show that:
  (1) the applicant or license holder has the ability to comply with:
    (A) minimum standards of medical care, nursing care and financial condition; and
    (B) any other applicable state or federal standard;
  (2) the facility meets the standards of the Life Safety Code;
  (3) the facility meets the construction standards in Subchapter D of this chapter (relating to Facility Construction); and
  (4) the facility meets the standards for operation based on an on-site survey.
(e) Before issuing a license, DADS considers the background and qualifications of:
  (1) the applicant or license holder;
  (2) a partner, officer, director, or managing employee of the applicant or license holder;
  (3) a person who owns or who controls the owner of the physical plant of a facility in which the nursing facility operates or is to operate; and
  (4) a controlling person with respect to the nursing facility for which a license or license renewal is requested.
(f) An applicant or license holder must submit to DADS a sworn affidavit of a satisfactory compliance history and any other information required by DADS to substantiate a satisfactory compliance history in each state or other jurisdiction for any time period during which persons described in subsection (e) of this section operated a long-term care facility. For purposes of the sworn affidavit of a satisfactory compliance history, the applicant will be considered to have complied with the submission requirement (but not necessarily be entitled to a license) if the applicant swears or affirms that all the information disclosed in the application concerning previous state and federal nursing facility sanctions and penalties and related information are true and correct. The affidavit of compliance history is contained in DADS application form.
(g) A license is issued if, after inspection and investigation, DADS finds that the persons described in subsection (e) of this section meet all requirements of this chapter. Except as provided in §19.205 of this subchapter (relating to Probationary License) and §19.208(b)(2) of this subchapter (relating to Renewal Procedures and Qualifications), the license is valid for three years. Each license specifies the maximum allowable number of residents. The number of residents authorized by the license must not be exceeded.
(h) In making a determination whether to grant a nursing facility license, DADS reviews:
  (1) the information contained in the application;
  (2) the criminal history information of the persons described in subsection (e) of this section; and
  (3) other documents DADS deems relevant, including survey and complaint investigation findings in each facility with which the applicant or any other person named in subsection (e) of this section has been affiliated at any time.

Source Note: The provisions of this §554.201 adopted to be effective May 1, 1995, 20 TexReg 2054; amended to be effective March 1, 1998, 23 TexReg 1314; amended to be effective October 15, 1998, 23 TexReg 10496; amended to be effective March 15, 1999, 24 TexReg 994; amended to be effective October 1, 1999, 24 TexReg 8314; amended to be effective August 1, 2000, 25 TexReg 6779; amended to be effective May 1, 2002, 27 TexReg 3369; amended to be effective September 1, 2007, 32 TexReg 4231; amended to be effective September 1, 2009, 34 TexReg 5138; amended to be effective December 2,2012, 37 TexReg 9525; transferred effective January 15, 2021, as published in the Texas Register December 11, 2020, 45 TexReg 8871