Gary, IN Building Safety: Electrical Permits (2026)

Gary Municipal Code § 105-458 bars the Building Commissioner from issuing an electrical permit to anyone except a duly licensed electrical contractor or that contractor's authorized agent. The one exception is an owner working on the residence where he actually lives; a permit for a residential property the owner does not occupy is issued only at the joint discretion of the Building Commissioner and the electrical inspector. An owner who wants to do the electrical work himself must first pass a written and oral examination administered by the electrical inspector and is then held to the same rules on examinations, permit fees, inspection fees, and penalties that apply to licensed contractors under the building code.

The Building Commissioner or electrical inspector may suspend or revoke a permit in writing whenever it was issued in error, based on incorrect information, or in violation of any ordinance or Code provision. Licensing itself runs through the Board of Electrical Examiners created by § 105-457, made up of two common council members, the city electrical inspector, the city engineer, the building commissioner, and a contractor and journeyman electrician appointed by the mayor; applicants must show 15 years in a construction trade, three years of electrical schooling and experience, or ten years working in the trade before they can sit the licensing exam.

Licenses expire December 31 each year and lapse entirely after five years without renewal or a permit under § 105-485(e). Grounds for revoking a contractor's license, listed in § 105-434, include fraud in obtaining the license, gross negligence, abandoning a job, and diverting construction funds.