Got a DSS Citation? What It Means and What to Do Next (RCFE and ARF)

October 2026 · RCFE ARF · By the Title22 team

A Licensing Program Analyst has finished a visit and handed you a list of deficiencies. This guide covers what happens next for a California RCFE or ARF: what the notice has to say, how correction works, what a citation can cost, and how to ask for a review if you think it is wrong.

The penalty and review rules below come from the state law for each license type: Health and Safety Code 1569.49 for RCFEs and Health and Safety Code 1548 for ARFs. For the subjects covered here, the two sections set the same amounts and the same steps.

At the end of the visit

CDSS's procedures manual for adult care facilities describes the exit interview. Before leaving, the analyst goes over every deficiency, any advisory notes, any civil penalties, and the plan of correction if citations were issued. If you are not there, a copy is left with the person in charge and another is mailed to you (Procedures Manual for Adult Care Facilities, March 2020).

The notice has to give a factual description of each deficiency and, where it applies, where in the home it was found. The law also says CDSS will make a good-faith effort to work with you on the cause and on keeping it from happening again (H&S Code 1569.49(h)(1) and 1548(h)(1)).

Type A and Type B

Each cited deficiency is marked Type A or Type B on the deficiencies page of the report (LIC 809D). The two penalty sections above do not use those terms, and the procedures manual does not define them. It does use them during the visit: one Type A, or three Type B deficiencies in the same inspection area, sends the analyst into a more detailed inspection of that area before moving on. If you are not sure why a deficiency was marked the way it was, ask the analyst at the exit interview.

The plan of correction

It is made at the exit interview. The plan of correction for each cited deficiency is recorded on the deficiencies page of the report, and it carries a due date.
Send proof when it is fixed. If CDSS agrees the deficiency is corrected, a daily penalty stops on the day CDSS received your evidence. CDSS may inspect within 5 working days of receiving it. If the deficiency turns out not to be corrected, the penalty runs from the date of the original citation (H&S Code 1569.49(b)(1) and 1548(b)(1)).
Expect a follow-up. The manual has the analyst follow up within 10 calendar days after the latest correction date, unless the plan of correction set a different date. If the corrections were not made, the analyst issues a notice of penalty.

What a citation can cost

These are the amounts in the statutes, for RCFEs and ARFs alike.

Situation	Penalty	Source
Not corrected by the date allowed	$100 a day for each violation	(b)(1)
Repeat violation: the same section, letter and number cited again within 12 months	$250 at once for each repeat, plus $100 a day while it continues	(b)(2)
Serious violations (list below)	$500 at once for each violation, plus $100 a day while it continues	(c)
A serious violation repeated within 12 months	$1,000 at once for each repeat, plus $100 a day while it continues	(d)
Physical abuse or serious bodily injury to a resident	$10,000	(f)
A resident's death	$15,000	(e)

Subdivision letters are the same in both sections. The ARF amounts for abuse, injury and death are the ones listed for adult residential facilities in section 1548(e)(1) and (f)(1)(A).

The serious violations that carry the immediate $500 are:

a violation that caused a resident injury or illness,
fire clearance violations, such as being over capacity, ambulatory status, or smoke or fire alarms that do not work (the law lists exceptions),
absence of required supervision,
accessible bodies of water where they are not allowed,
accessible firearms or ammunition,
refusing entry to the licensing agency, and
a person under a CDSS Order of Exclusion being in the home.

Correcting a deficiency does not always stop a penalty. If the nature, seriousness or frequency of a violation calls for it, CDSS can assess a penalty anyway (subdivision (b)(3)).

A note on older numbers. The penalty sections of the regulations (22 CCR 87761 for RCFEs and 80054 for the general rules) still show older amounts, such as $50 a day. The statutes above were changed in 2014 and directed CDSS to update its regulations. Ask your Regional Office if a notice you receive doesn't match what you expect.

If you think a citation is wrong

For most deficiencies and penalties, the statute sets two levels of review (subdivision (j)):

Ask for a formal review in writing within 15 business days of receiving the notice, with every document that supports your case. A regional manager of the Community Care Licensing Division reviews it. You can send more documents within the first 30 business days after your request, and CDSS has to ask for anything it needs in that same window. The decision is due within 60 business days after all the information is in.
Appeal that decision within 15 business days to the program administrator of the Community Care Licensing Division. The same document and timing rules apply. The program administrator's decision is final.

The reviewer can amend or dismiss a notice that was not issued according to the law and regulations. Penalties for death, physical abuse or serious bodily injury have their own path: a review by the division's deputy director, then a hearing before an administrative law judge (subdivision (i)).

Penalties are due once appeals are finished. Unless you have made payment arrangements, a penalty unpaid after 30 days adds late fees.

Watch the deadline. The RCFE regulation on appeals (22 CCR 87763) still says 10 working days, the older time limit. If you are not sure which applies, sending your request within 10 working days meets both.

How to keep it from happening again

Know your own record. Licensing reports are public. Our guide to checking a California care home shows where to find them.
Know what gets cited most. CDSS publishes yearly lists of the most commonly cited deficiencies for RCFEs and for ARFs on its most commonly cited deficiencies page.
Track repeats. A repeat is the same section cited again within 12 months. Keep each plan of correction where you will see it again before that year is up.
Keep dates in front of you. An expiring certificate or a missing clearance is a deficiency you can see coming. Our staff file checklist lists what each file needs.

Keep your home ready every day, not just on visit day. Title22 keeps staff files, training hours, certificate and clearance expiry dates, and your compliance checklist in one place, with Tello, an AI helper that tells you each morning what needs attention. The checklist follows your license type, RCFE or ARF. It holds no resident health records by design.

Start free on title22.app See what it covers on title-22.com