AN ACT to streamline the inspection process for Adult Care Homes.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  G.S. 131D‑2.11 is amended by adding a new subsection to read:

(d)      Streamlining of Inspections. – Notwithstanding any other provision of law, and to the extent permissible under federal law and regulation, if an adult care home licensed under this Article has passed an inspection related to its facility, real property, workplace, or workplace safety conducted by the Adult Care Licensure Section of the Division of Health Service Regulation of the Department in the immediately preceding three months before a substantially similar routine inspection is conducted by any other State or local department, agency, board, or commission, then the passing results of the inspection by the Adult Care Licensure Section shall be accepted by the other inspecting entity as if it had conducted its own inspection, and the other inspecting entity shall deem the substantially similar inspection as having been passed.

This subsection shall not apply to any complaint investigation, follow‑up inspection, monitoring visits, investigation of abuse, neglect, resident harm, exploitation, or any inspection or investigation based on a specific allegation, incident, referral, or concern involving resident health, safety, welfare, or resident rights. Nothing in this subsection shall limit the authority of the Secretary, the Department, the Division of Health Service Regulation, a county department of social services, or any other State or local inspecting entity to conduct an inspection or investigation in response to a complaint, incident, referral, or concern involving resident health, safety, welfare, or resident rights.

Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit an otherwise authorized agency from conducting an independent inspection where the agency has reasonable cause to believe conditions affecting resident health, safety, welfare, fire protection, or workplace safety have changed since the prior inspection.

For the purposes of this subsection, substantially similar routine inspection means an inspection evaluating materially similar physical conditions under materially similar regulatory standards.

For the purposes of this subsection, a facility will be deemed to have passed an inspection when the inspection resulted in no deficiencies, violations, citations, or corrective action requirements related to the subject matter of the substantially similar routine inspection.

SECTION 2.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Health Service Regulation, the sum of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) in nonrecurring funds for the 2026‑2027 fiscal year to be used for the streamlining of adult care home inspections.

SECTION 3.  Section 1 of this act becomes effective October 1, 2026, and applies to inspections conducted on or after that date. Section 2 of this act becomes effective July 1, 2026. The remainder of this act is effective when it becomes law.