More Changes to NSPIRE Standards
NSPIRE 3.0 was released by HUD on June 16, 2023. On August 11, HUD made additional changes to the NSPIRE Standards. We have updated our compact version of the NSPIRE standards on our website, and you can download an updated version of the manual now.
NSPIRE went into effect on July 1, 2023, for Public Housing and will apply beginning October 1, 2023, for all other funding programs. HUD will implement a three-year notice review cycle, which it says will allow it to be more responsive to evolving industry standards and the changing needs of the public housing portfolio. The review cycle also creates the opportunity for the public to comment and propose changes at regular intervals.
What is Covered in NSPIRE Changes From 8/11?
There is a log of the NSPIRE changes on HUD’s website. We have made a copy of the changelog document which only includes the changes from August 11, 2023, you can download the document here.
Many of the changes have to do with:
- Inspection Instructions – what should and should be included in a REAC Inspection and how to handle certain issues, such as when to record one deficiency vs. another. For instance, it was clarified that if an outlet to something like an appliance is found to be inoperable, the appliance should be cited, not the outlet.
- Grammatical Issues – there are several issues where a minor change was made, such as making a word plural or adding or removing an article (a, the, etc.) in a sentence.
Substantial Changes in 8/11 NSPIRE Standards Update
The updates to the NSPIRE Standards includes several changes of severity, timeframe for completion, and scope of inspection criteria.
Smoke Alarms
Under Deficiency # 1 in the smoke alarm standard, there were two changes included:
- The “Inside” of any inspected building will have a requirement to have at least one smoke alarm on each floor of the building.
- In dwelling units, the deficiency now includes clarification that the smoke alarm outside a sleeping room needs to be within 21 feet of any bedroom door – this provides some very needed objectivity to this standard.
Fire Labeled Doors
One of the areas of major focus under NSPIRE was the increased scrunity on fire-labeled doors, and in this update, HUD has added two new issues to the scope of inspection of the “Inside” of buildings.
- Fire-labeled door assembly: 25 percent or more of common area door surface has rust that affects the integrity of the door surface
- Fire-labeled door assembly: Common area door with broken or missing glass
Changes to Severity and Descriptions
In several scenarios, HUD decided to update the amount of time alloted for repairs and the severity rating for issues.
- Cooking appliance — Changed severity: A missing primary cooking appliance is now a moderate violation
- Service panel: Title changed to replace “reasonably” with “readily” accessible
- Entry door missing: Severity changed to life-threatening and for voucher program inspections, the time frame for repairs was changed to 24 Hours.
- Chimney — Added additional language: A visually accessible chimney or flue or firebox connected to a fireplace or wood-burning appliance is incomplete or damaged such that it may not safely contain for and convey smoke and combustion gasses: Failed lining (e.g., creosote leaching through brick)
We have updated our condensed version of the NSPIRE standards to include these changes as well as the minor linguistic changes. We have also included links to the previous (June 20, 2023) documents for comparison. You can view and download the condensed NSPIRE standards at https://nspire.us-hc.com
