Section 16. Any assisted living residence shall meet the requirements of all applicable federal and state laws and regulations, including, but not limited to, the state sanitary code, state building and fire safety codes and regulations, and laws and regulations governing handicapped accessibility. In order to facilitate compliance with these laws and regulations, the department, in consultation with the department of housing and community development and the executive office of public safety, shall compile and make available a list of all such applicable laws and regulations.

In order to ensure the maximum residential setting possible, any assisted living residence shall provide only single or double living units with lockable doors on the entry door of each unit. All newly constructed assisted living residences shall provide a private bathroom for each living unit which is equipped with one lavatory, one toilet, and one bath tub or shower stall. All other assisted living residences shall provide at a minimum a private half bathroom for each living unit which is equipped with one lavatory and one toilet, and shall provide at least one bathing facility for every three residents. All assisted living residences shall provide at a minimum either a kitchenette or access to cooking capacity for all living units. The secretary of elder affairs may, when the secretary determines that public necessity and convenience require and to prevent undue economic hardship, waive the requirements relative to bathrooms and the bathing facilities; provided, however, that the secretary finds that the residence will otherwise meet the purposes of assisted living to provide a home-like residential environment, which promotes privacy, dignity, choice, individuality and independence for its residents.