DSA and OSHPD Compliance Support
School and healthcare construction in California operates under a separate regulatory structure. The Division of the State Architect governs K-12 and community college facilities. HCAI, formerly OSHPD, governs hospitals and skilled nursing facilities.
Both impose plan review, continuous inspection, and formal certification requirements that determine whether a completed building can legally be occupied.
Regulatory certainty on projects that cannot be occupied without it
On an ordinary commercial project, a missed inspection record is an inconvenience. On a DSA or HCAI project it can prevent certification, which prevents occupancy, which strands the entire capital investment. These are among the few construction environments where documentation failure has a hard consequence rather than a soft one.
Division of the State Architect projects
DSA reviews public school and community college construction for structural safety, fire and life safety, and accessibility. Construction requires a certified project inspector, verified reports from the design professionals and the contractor, and a formal closeout process before the project is certified.
- Project inspector of record selection and coordination
- DSA project inspection card procedure management
- Construction change document tracking and approval sequencing
- Verified report collection from architect, engineers, and contractor
- Testing and special inspection coordination under the approved program
- Deferred approval submittal tracking
- Form 6 closeout package assembly and DSA certification support
- Resolution of outstanding certification items on prior projects
HCAI and healthcare facility projects
Healthcare construction under HCAI requires continuous inspection by an HCAI approved inspector of record, strict change control through the amended construction document process, and coordination of phased occupancy in facilities that remain operational throughout construction. Infection control risk assessment and interim life safety measures apply throughout.
Where projects go wrong
The recurring failures are consistent: construction changes implemented in the field before the change document is approved, inspection card items left unsigned, verified reports never collected from a departed consultant, deferred approvals submitted too late to be reviewed in time, and closeout attempted months after the field staff have demobilized.
We track these items from the beginning as active work rather than as a closeout task, because closeout is precisely when the people who know the answers have moved on.
Bond funded school programs
Most California school construction is bond funded, which layers Proposition 39 requirements, citizens oversight committee reporting, and independent performance and financial audit obligations on top of DSA. We build documentation that satisfies all of it at once. See also program management for multi site bond programs.
Regulatory support scope
- DSA submittal and plan review coordination
- Project inspector of record coordination
- Inspection card procedure management
- Construction change document processing
- Deferred approval tracking
- Verified report collection and assembly
- Special inspection and testing program management
- HCAI amended construction document coordination
- Interim life safety and infection control coordination
- Phased occupancy planning in operating facilities
- Form 6 and certification closeout packages
- Legacy uncertified project resolution
What you receive
Every engagement is scoped in writing before it begins, so you know exactly what is being produced and when.
Regulatory tracking log
A live register of every submittal, change document, deferred approval, inspection card item, and verified report with its current status and responsible party.
Change document management
Coordination of construction changes through the approval process before field implementation, with the record maintained for certification.
Inspection coordination
Management of the inspector of record relationship, special inspection program, and testing so no required observation is missed.
Certification closeout package
Complete assembly of verified reports, signed inspection cards, and required forms for DSA or HCAI certification.
Legacy project resolution
Investigation and closure of prior projects left uncertified, including reconstruction of missing documentation where possible.
Bond program reporting
Documentation supporting citizens oversight committee reporting and independent performance and financial audit requirements.
Questions owners ask about this service
Do you serve as the project inspector of record?
The inspector of record is a separately certified role. We coordinate and manage that function as part of construction management, verify that inspection is occurring as required, and ensure the record is complete. Where the agency needs us to procure the inspector, we manage the selection.
We have an old project DSA never certified. Can that be fixed?
Often, yes. Resolution depends on what documentation still exists and what work can be verified after the fact. We investigate the file, identify the outstanding items, and develop a resolution plan. It is far more work than doing it correctly the first time, but it is frequently achievable.
Does HCAI still apply now that it has been renamed?
Yes. The Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development became the Department of Health Care Access and Information. The regulatory function over hospital building safety continues under the new name, and the construction requirements are substantively unchanged.
Can you manage construction in an operating hospital or school?
Yes. Phased construction in occupied facilities requires interim life safety measures, infection control protocols, coordinated shutdowns, noise and dust management around instruction or patient care, and constant communication with facility staff. This is coordination work as much as construction work.
Talk to us about DSA and OSHPD Compliance Support
Send us the project details and we will tell you what a defensible scope of work looks like and what it would cost. Initial consultations carry no fee.
Send us the project
Tell us the site, the scope, and the deadline. Initial consultations carry no fee and no obligation.