Darlington County, SC Building Safety: Building Inspections (2026)

Sec. 8-71 establishes the Darlington County Building Inspection/Code Enforcement Department within county government, placing it under the immediate supervision of the building codes enforcement officer defined in Sec. 8-72. That officer must have at least ten years of experience as an architect, engineer, inspector, contractor or construction superintendent, five of which in responsible charge of work, and must be certified and registered with the South Carolina Building Codes Council under S.C. Code 1976, title 6, chapter 8. Sec. 8-73 lets the officer, with the county administrator's approval, hire building inspectors and plan reviewers who must hold at least one year of equivalent experience and, for single-trade inspectors, be registered with the state Building Codes Council in their trade within 12 months of hire, or within 18 months for multi-trade inspectors.

Sec. 8-74 and Sec. 8-75 bar any department employee from holding a financial interest in the construction work they inspect or performing paid inspections outside their official duties. Under Sec. 8-87, department personnel are appointed code enforcement officers and, on witnessing a violation, may issue a written notice or a uniform ordinance summons; fire and life-safety inspectors appointed by the county fire chief under Sec. 8-101 have the same summons authority for fire-code violations. The Appendix A fee schedule prices reinspections separately from the original inspection: a first reinspection required by deficient or defective work costs $25.00, a second costs $50.00, and a third or later reinspection costs $100.00, on top of the underlying permit and administrative fees. Ignoring a written correction notice or a stop-work order after notice results in a uniform ordinance summons under Sec. 8-85.