Darlington County, SC Building Safety: Electrical Permits (2026)

In unincorporated Darlington County, Sec. 8-36 of the county code adopts the National Electrical Code, 2002 Edition, published by the National Fire Protection Association, and directs that it be cited as the 'Electrical Code.' Sec. 8-77 makes it unlawful to install any electrical equipment or other apparatus regulated by chapter 8 without first obtaining a separate permit from the building codes enforcement officer, issued under the procedures the adopted codes prescribe. The only carve-out is for agricultural storage structure work costing $5,000 or less that needs no inspection under the adopted codes.

Under Appendix A's permit fee schedule, an electrical permit carries the same base fee scale as building, mechanical, plumbing and gas work, from $80.00 for jobs up to $2,000.00 up to $18,327.00 plus $2.00 per additional thousand for work over $5,000,000.00, on top of a flat $20.00 administrative fee, plus a $25.00 electrical reconnect fee unless the reconnection stays active 30 days or less for a special event. Skipping the permit does not avoid the fee: Sec. 8-84 doubles the required permit fee for anyone who fails to comply with Sec.

8-77. Sec. 8-85 makes violating the technical provisions of the adopted electrical code a misdemeanor punishable under S.C. Code 1976 § 6-9-80, and an ignored correction notice or stop-work order draws a uniform ordinance summons. The codes took effect July 1, 2001, and apply only to unincorporated areas of the county, excluding land owned by the state or federal government.