Description: Open an action item during an inspection, set its priority and target date, and assign it to the people who need to fix it.
Overview
An action item is a task opened from an inspection — something you found that needs correcting. It records what's wrong, where it is, who's responsible, and when it's due.
Action items are always created inside an inspection. That's what ties the finding to the inspection record it came from.
Before You Begin
You need an inspection open — either start a new one or continue one already in progress. You can't add an action item from the site page.
It has to be your inspection. An inspection someone else started opens read-only, with a banner naming them — "This inspection is being completed by [name] and is being displayed read-only." There's no Add Action Item button on it.
Have the location in mind — your device's location or a written description. It's required.
Opening the Add Action Item Form
Start or open the inspection.
Click + Add Action Item in the toolbar at the top.
The Add Action Item page opens.
📝 No Add Action Item button? It can be switched off per form. A form's settings include Show Add Action Item Button (main button), and when that's off, the button doesn't render. Ask whoever manages your forms to turn it on.
If your form links action items to specific questions, you'll also see an Add Action Item for [answer] button beside that answer. That route ties the action item to the question you were answering.
Setting the Priority
Choose a Priority. The field starts on Select a Priority and is required.
Priority is what sets the due date — for most of the options. Non Specific sets none, and an item on it never turns Due or Late.
The options you see depend on the form and on the site. Two things shape the list:
The form decides which set is in play. A form set up with custom priorities shows your organization's own labels and day counts, and nothing below applies to it. Otherwise the standard five are used: 7 Days, Immediate Action Needed, 30 Days, End of Quarter and Non Specific.
On the standard set, the site's category trims the list. On Construction, Common Plan of Development and Low Erosivity Waivers sites, only 7 Days and Immediate Action Needed appear. Every other category also gets 30 Days, End of Quarter and Non Specific. Custom priorities are never trimmed this way.
Some forms also offer Operator Signature. Like Non Specific, it sets no due date and an item on it never turns Due or Late — and closing one regenerates the inspection's report.
📝 A priority a colleague can see may be missing for you. Check the form first — a form with custom priorities uses its own list entirely — then check the Site Category, which trims the standard set on Construction, Common Plan of Development and Low Erosivity Waivers sites.
Describing the Problem
Fill in Title.
Fill in Describe the Action Needed.
Both are required.
These may be dropdowns rather than text boxes. If your organization has set up predefined titles and descriptions, you pick from a list — Select a Title and Select a Description. Where the form allows both, choosing Custom Title or Custom Description reveals a text box so you can write your own.
Titles are capped at 256 characters.
Setting the Location
Location is required — you can't save without it. There are two ways to give it:
Add this Device's Location — adds the latitude and longitude from your device's location services. Location services must be switched on for both your device and your browser, or this control has nothing to record.
Location Description — describe it in words: "north-east outfall", "behind the site office".
📝 There's no map to drop a pin on. If you're writing the item up later at the office, use Location Description — Add this Device's Location would record the office, not the site.
Filling In the Additional Fields
Everything under Additional Fields is optional.
Field | What it does |
Municipal Code Violated | Ties the finding to a code from your list. MS4 organizations only — it doesn't appear otherwise. |
Add File | Attach photos of the problem. Hidden if your organization has photo uploads switched off. |
Require Photo On Close | Forces whoever closes this item to attach a photo as proof. |
Target Date | A soft date for notification and calendaring purposes. Set it if the priority alone doesn't give you the date you want. |
Assigned Individuals | Who's responsible. Pick from the people available on this site, or type in the email of the responsible party. |
Identifier | Your own reference number, up to 100 characters. May optionally be automatically generated. |
About Require Photo On Close: your form sets whether it starts on or off, so its starting state varies between forms. A form can also lock it on — the switch is grayed out and the requirement can't be waived — or hide it entirely.
📝 Assigned Individuals names who is responsible for the item. Action item notifications are sent through several routes, so people can be notified about an item whether or not anyone is named here.
Saving the Action Item
Click Save.
An Action Item Saved confirmation appears and you're returned to the inspection.
To open several findings in a row, use Save and add Another instead. It saves this one and gives you a fresh, empty form.
If the Problem Is Already Fixed
Sometimes you fix something while you're standing there. You can record and close it in one pass.
Switch on Close - this action item is already complete.
Optionally click Add Start and End Time and set Start Time and End Time for the work.
Read the certification statement that appears. Its wording comes from your form.
Switch on I confirm that I signed above.
Click Save and Close.
The save button stays disabled until you confirm the statement. Save and add Another is disabled the same way.
📝 An action item closed during the inspection will still show up in the Action Items section on the inspection page.
What Happens Next
The action item is attached to the inspection and appears on the site's action item list.
Anyone you named under Assigned Individuals can be notified. Assigned Individuals are independent of the site's notification recipients.
The item becomes due according to its priority and target date, and counts toward Due or Late Action Items on your dashboard — unless its priority is Non Specific or Operator Signature, neither of which sets a due date or ever turns Due or Late.
When the work is done, someone closes it — and depending on your setup, an editor then verifies it. See Closing, Verifying, and Reopening an Action Item.
FAQ
Q: There's no Add Action Item button on my inspection.
A: Either the inspection isn't yours — one someone else started opens read-only with a banner naming them, and has no button — or the form has Show Add Action Item Button (main button) switched off. Ask whoever manages your forms to enable it.
Q: A priority I expected is missing.
A: Two things shape the list. If the form uses custom priorities, you see your organization's own set and the site category doesn't apply. If the form uses the standard priorities, the site's category trims them — Construction, Common Plan of Development and Low Erosivity Waivers get only 7 Days and Immediate Action Needed. Check the form's settings first, then the Site Category. Operator Signature is separate again — it appears only on forms set up to offer it.
Q: I click Save and nothing happens.
A: A required field is empty — Priority, Title, Describe the Action Needed, or Location. Scroll for the red required markers. Location is the one people miss, and if you were relying on Add this Device's Location, check your device and browser allow location access — otherwise nothing is recorded. Typing a Location Description always works.
Q: Save and Close is grayed out.
A: You haven't switched on I confirm that I signed above. Turn it on and the button becomes active.
Q: Require Photo On Close won't switch off.
A: Your form requires a closing photo and has locked the switch. There's nothing to do here — the requirement is set on the form.
Q: There's no Municipal Code Violated field.
A: Expected — it's an MS4-only field, so it doesn't appear if your organization isn't an MS4.
Q: I saved an action item and now can't find it.
A: Closed action items appear in the Action Items section on the inspection page. They're also on the site's All Action Items page — set Showing to Closed.
Q: A required-field warning mentions fields I can't see.
A: Your form has its own action item questions further down the page. Scroll to the bottom — the count tells you how many are still outstanding.
Related articles
Closing, Verifying, and Reopening an Action Item
Completing an Inspection
Setting Up Notification Recipients for a Site