Shelby County, TN Building Safety: Green Building Code (2026)
Key Facts
- Adopted code
- 2021 ICC International Energy Conservation Code
- Local amendments
- Joint Ordinance No. 524
- Joint name
- 2021 Memphis and Shelby County Energy Conservation Code
- Effective date
- December 31, 2021
- Applies to
- Unincorporated Shelby County and City of Memphis
Summary
Unincorporated Shelby County's version of a green building code is the 2021 ICC International Energy Conservation Code, adopted by reference and amended locally under Joint Ordinance No. 524. Known jointly as the Memphis and Shelby County Energy Conservation Code, it sets the energy-efficiency standards builders must meet.
(a) Adopted. The 2021 edition of the ICC International Energy Conservation Code is hereby adopted by reference, a copy of said code being on file in the Minutes Offices of the Shelby County Board of Commissioners and of the Memphis Council. (b) Local amendments. The 2021 edition of the ICC International Energy Conservation Code is amended by adoption of the local amendments attached to Joint Ordinance No. 524 (on file with the county), as exhibit A. (c) Incorporated by reference. The 2021 edition of the ICC International Energy Conservation Code and those local amendments attached to Joint Ordinance No. 524 as Exhibit A are hereby incorporated by reference as if set out herein in their entirety and that no Appendices from the 2021 Edition of the ICC International Energy Conservation Code are adopted.
Full Breakdown
Shelby County Code § 6-48(a) adopts the 2021 edition of the ICC International Energy Conservation Code by reference, with a copy on file in the Minutes Offices of both the Shelby County Board of Commissioners and the Memphis City Council. Subsection (b) layers on local amendments attached to Joint Ordinance No. 524, and subsection (c) incorporates the 2021 IECC and those amendments by reference in their entirety, expressly adopting none of the code's appendices. Subsection (d) folds the result into the county's construction-code family: together the 2021 IECC and its local amendments are called the 2021 Memphis and Shelby County Energy Conservation Code, and that code's standards get implemented through the corresponding sections of the Memphis and Shelby County Building Code, the Residential Code, and the other adopted technical codes covering energy efficiency of buildings, structures, and their internal support systems, insulation, HVAC sizing and glazing performance among them.
Subsection (e) sets the effective date for both the City of Memphis and the unincorporated county as December 31, 2021, contingent on concurring passage by the Memphis City Council and the Shelby County Board of Commissioners, or on the date the later body adopts it if they act on different days. Because the county never enacted a separate stand-alone green building ordinance, this energy code is the operative standard for the county's environmental building performance requirements.
Violations & Fines
Chapter 6's general penalty at Sec. 6-5 fines violations of the building regulations, including the adopted energy code, up to $50.00 per offense, and Sec. 6-6 lets the county attorney or a county building inspector seek an injunction or abatement order against noncompliant construction in addition to that fine.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Shelby County have a green building ordinance?
What does the energy code cover?
When did the current energy code take effect?
What happens if new construction does not meet the energy code?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Shelby County
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