Rockdale County, GA Building Safety: Building Inspections (2026)

Rockdale County Code § 46-10 makes the Fire Marshal's Office responsible for inspecting or causing to be inspected, at various intervals, all construction work touching fire codes, and for issuing orders needed to enforce fire and life safety laws. A final inspection is required for every building, structure, site or facility before it is used or occupied. Under the same section, owners and their agents must submit plans and specifications to the Fire Marshal's Office before obtaining construction permits, and the office performs an 80 percent completion inspection followed by a final inspection before the facility may be occupied.

Section 46-16 backs this up with a right-of-entry power: when a building or premises is open to the public, the fire code official presents credentials and inspects to enforce the Code, and where there is reasonable cause to believe unsafe or hazardous conditions exist, the official may enter at all reasonable times. If entry is refused, § 46-17 lets the Fire Marshal or a designee apply to the superior court for an inspection warrant, which must describe the property and the code provisions the inspection is meant to check. Certificates of occupancy issued under § 46-10 must be displayed conspicuously, and any change of occupancy use requires a new certificate before reoccupancy.