Dougherty County, GA Building Safety: Plumbing Permits (2026)
Key Facts
- Adopting section
- Sec. 2-4-1(2), Res. No. 82-037 (12-6-82)
- Scope
- All plumbing work in the unincorporated area
- Enacted with
- City of Albany, as joint legislation
- Overridden by
- Stricter state fire safety standards, Sec. 2-7-1(b)
- Related permits
- Building permit compliance, Sec. 1-7-11
- General penalty
- Up to $1,000 fine or 60 days jail
Summary
Unincorporated Dougherty County adopts its plumbing code by reference rather than printing one: Sec. 2-4-1(2) incorporates Resolution No. 82-037, adopted December 6, 1982 jointly with the City of Albany, covering all matters pertaining to plumbing work performed in the unincorporated area.
The following resolutions of the board of commissioners, regulating the matter herein specified, constituting legislation enacted jointly with the City of Albany, and as amended, are hereby incorporated into and made a part of this Code by reference, as fully as if set out at length herein: ... (2)Plumbing: All matters pertaining to plumbing work within the unincorporated area of the county. (Res. No. 82-037, § 1.1, 12-6-82)
Full Breakdown
Chapter 2-4 of the Code of Dougherty County handles plumbing the same way it handles building, gas, housing, HVAC, and electrical work: rather than reprinting a technical code, Sec. 2-4-1 incorporates six board of commissioners' resolutions by reference. Item (2) is the plumbing resolution, Res. No. 1, adopted December 6, 1982, described as reaching all matters pertaining to plumbing work within the unincorporated area of the county. The intro line to Sec. 2-4-1 calls each of these resolutions legislation enacted jointly with the City of Albany, so the plumbing standards a contractor must follow are shared whether the job sits inside Albany's city limits or in the unincorporated county, though only the county board, not the city, can amend the version that governs the unincorporated area under this section.
Sec. 2-7-1(b) folds the plumbing code into the same enforcement scheme as the joint building, gas, HVAC, housing, and electrical codes: those joint codes remain in full force and effect, but wherever state law or the state minimum fire safety standards are inconsistent with them, or impose more stringent requirements, state law controls. Sec. 5 of the joint building code. Cross-references at the head of Chapter 2-4 also flag related requirements: building permit compliance at Sec. 1-7-11, mobile home park construction standards at Sec. , and floodplain management at Sec. 2-18-3, any of which can layer onto a plumbing permit depending on the project.
Violations & Fines
Plumbing work performed without complying with the incorporated Res. No. 82-037 standards is treated as a building-code violation: Sec. 2-1-8's general penalty imposes a fine of up to $1,000, up to 60 days in jail, or both, whenever the code does not state a specific penalty, and each day a violation continues is a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Dougherty County's plumbing code written down?
Does the same plumbing code apply inside Albany city limits?
Can state plumbing or fire standards override the county's code?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Dougherty County
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