Sangamon County, IL Building Safety: Fire Sprinkler Requirements (2026)
Key Facts
- IRC 2018 §R313
- deleted entirely
- Applies to
- unincorporated county only
- Governing section
- §15.05.090
- Other permit violations
- petty offense
Summary
Sangamon County struck the International Residential Code's automatic fire sprinkler section entirely, so new one- and two-family homes built in the unincorporated county face no local sprinkler mandate.
Section R313. Automatic Fire Sprinklers. Delete this Section.
Section R322.1.4. Substitute: Delete the section as written and in its place insert the following:
"Section R322.1.4 Establishing the design flood elevation. The design flood elevation shall be used in areas designated as FLOODPLAIN IN Chapter 16.72 and shall be defined as the base flood elevation plus one foot."
Section R322.1.7. Substitute: Delete the section as written and in its place insert the following:
"Section R322.1.7. Protection of water supply and sanitary sewage systems. New and replacement water supply systems shall be designed to minimize infiltration of flood waters into the system in accordance with the plumbing provisions of this code. New and replacement private sanitary sewage systems are prohibited in a 100-year flood plain."
Section R506.2.1. Substitute: Delete the section as written and its place insert the following: "Section R506.2.1 Fill. Fill materials shall consist only of clean fill as defined by the Illinois Environmental Protection Act. The fill shall be compacted to assure uniform support of the slab, shall be placed in layers no greater than one foot deep before compaction, and except where approved, the fill depths shall not exceed 24 inches (610 mm) for clean sand or gravel and 8 inches (203 mm) for earth."
Full Breakdown
Sangamon County adopted the 2018 International Residential Code by reference at §15.05.070, but its own amendments at §15.05.090 delete Section R313 (Automatic Fire Sprinklers) outright, so the model code's sprinkler requirement for new one- and two-family dwellings and townhouses does not apply within unincorporated Sangamon County. Builders must still meet every other IRC 2018 requirement, including permitting through the county's building department, but a home does not need a fire sprinkler system to pass inspection. This covers unincorporated territory only. Springfield and the county's other cities and villages enforce their own separate building codes.
Violations & Fines
No sprinkler mandate means no sprinkler-specific fine, but skipping any other IRC-required permit or inspection is a petty offense under the codes adopted at §15.05.070.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Sangamon County require fire sprinklers in new homes?
Does this no-sprinkler rule apply inside Springfield or Chatham?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Sangamon County
Compare Sangamon County to another location·View the Illinois building safety overview
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