Richland County, SC Ordinances (2026)

Cooking fires and fires in fire pits, chimineas, or portable outdoor fireplaces need no notification. But South Carolina law requires you to notify the SC Forestry Commission before…

Richland County Code Sec. 10-2 prohibits open burning of leaves and yard trimmings on private residences in residential zoning districts. In rural districts it is allowed only if the…

Consumer fireworks are legal in South Carolina and in unincorporated Richland County, but Sec. 18-9 bans discharge between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. On July 4th and New Year's Eve the…

Richland County requires electrical work not already covered by the residential code to follow the 2020 National Electrical Code (NFPA 70) with South Carolina modifications, and bars…

Richland County requires plumbing work outside the residential code to follow the 2021 South Carolina Plumbing Code, and a separate county permit before any sewer tap or plumbing…

Richland County building permits require a set sequence of inspections: foundation, roughing-in, and final. Permit holders must give the Building Official three working days' advance…

Richland County requires a separate building permit before you construct, alter, repair, move, or demolish any building, structure, or electrical, gas, or plumbing installation. The…

Every mobile or manufactured home in unincorporated Richland County with a fossil-fuel-burning appliance or an attached garage must carry an operational carbon monoxide alarm. Going…

A home occupation in unincorporated Richland County must meet LDC standards: only residents may work there, no retail of off-premises goods, no outside storage, and instruction limited…

Richland County's Land Development Code allows one small, non-illuminated sign for a home occupation, not exceeding two square feet, mounted flat against the dwelling (or on a low…

South Carolina lets residents run a "home-based food production operation" selling nonpotentially hazardous foods without a DES/DHEC permit. Products must carry a specific disclaimer…

South Carolina lets a resident care for up to six children in a "family childcare home," which must register with SC DSS. In unincorporated Richland County it is treated as a home…

Every business operating in unincorporated Richland County is placed into one of nine NAICS-based rate classes under the county's Business License Fee Schedule. The License Official…

Richland County bans massage and bodywork establishments from staying open between 10:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m., requires every therapist to hold the state license and post it on-site, and…

Unincorporated Richland County dispatches non-consent tows off a sheriff's-office rotation list, not driver choice. Wrecker services must apply to the county administrator, meet…

Richland County requires a business license specific to sexually oriented businesses, with a mandatory pre-application check by zoning, fire, building and health officials and…

Richland County Code Sec. 18-5 bans drinking beer, wine or any alcoholic beverage from an unsealed container on public streets, sidewalks, parking lots, alleys or at public gatherings…

Unincorporated Richland County lets people smoke outdoors, but not within 15 feet of any workplace entrance, exit or air intake. The rule protects employees and patrons from drifting…

Richland County outlaws panhandling outright in the unincorporated area: Sec. 16-33 makes it unlawful for anyone to go door-to-door or onto the streets asking for money for their own…

Richland County bans loitering in public places when it disturbs others, blocks passage, or accompanies begging, gambling, prostitution, drug or open-container activity. An officer can…

Yes. Since April 2024, short-term rentals in unincorporated Richland County must obtain a Richland County business license and register the property before renting. STRs are only…

Richland County caps overnight stays at a short-term rental at two people per bedroom, plus two more per unit, counting only between midnight and 7 a.m. Bookings must run at least one…

Every short-term rental in unincorporated Richland County must provide and designate two parking spaces, with guests notified in writing of the parking plan and the maximum number of…

Richland County's STR ordinance does not set a separate decibel limit for rentals. Sec. 16-82 requires the property to comply with all county ordinances at all times, so the county…

Richland County does not require the host to be physically present during a stay, but Sec. 16-82 requires a responsible local representative who can take phone calls at all times and…

Short-term rental hosts in unincorporated Richland County collect South Carolina's 7% state accommodations tax on gross rental proceeds under S.C. Code Section 12-36-920(A). A separate…

Richland County Code Sec. 16-82 does not spell out a specific liability-insurance minimum, but it authorizes county safety inspections and requires ongoing compliance with all county…

There is no ordinance putting sidewalk repair on the abutting homeowner in unincorporated Richland County. Instead, the Director of Public Works runs the county's own sidewalk…

Anyone building, digging or installing utilities within the right-of-way of a county-maintained road in unincorporated Richland County needs an encroachment permit from the county…

Digging, tapping utilities, or cutting a curb along a county road in unincorporated Richland County requires an encroachment permit from the county engineer's office before work…

Want to close a county-maintained street for a block party? Richland County requires a written request to the county administrator at least ten days ahead, a named point person, and…

Richland County offers a 20-year special tax assessment to owners who rehabilitate a certified historic property, whether it is National Register-listed, on the Bicentennial Committee…

Anyone peddling goods for non-charitable purposes in unincorporated Richland County must first get the South Carolina state peddler's license and pay the county's $50 peddler's license…

Richland County's vector control code requires every unincorporated-area property to stay free of insect and rodent harborage, bans standing water where mosquitoes breed, and requires…

Unincorporated Richland County requires owners of non-owner-occupied rental homes to register the property in the county's online database within 30 days of it becoming a rental…

Richland County's Property Maintenance Division must inspect a code complaint about a mobile or manufactured home park within three business days when the alleged violation poses an…

Richland County's Property Maintenance Division cites mobile home parks and permanent structures for a defined list of substandard conditions: missing or broken plumbing fixtures, damp…

Richland County's animal care ordinance doesn't cap how many chickens or livestock a lot may hold; that sits in the separate Land Development Code. But Chapter 5 does require every…

A wildlife rehabber can legally hold species the county otherwise bans as pets. Section 5-13(b)(4) exempts a "wildlife rescue organization" from the Section 5-13(a) prohibited-animals…

It's unlawful for any animal, not just dogs, to run loose in unincorporated Richland County. Section 5-5 requires every animal to be kept "under restraint or confinement," with narrow…

Richland County bans keeping a long list of wild and dangerous animals as pets. Section 5-13(a) prohibits nonhuman primates, venomous reptiles, wolf-dog hybrids, big constricting…

In unincorporated Richland County, cats are treated as pets under the animal ordinance: every cat over four months old must have a current county pet license and rabies vaccination…

Richland County doesn't require every pet to be sterilized, but any animal impounded by Animal Services must be spayed or neutered before it goes home. Section 5-17(b) sets three…

Richland County doesn't require pet stores to be adoption-only. Section 5-9 bans curbside and public-space animal sales and sales of pets under eight weeks old, but it expressly…

Richland County collects yard waste separately from garbage at no extra charge, but only within tight size limits under Sec. 12-21. Sticks, hedge clippings and small brush must be…

Richland County will haul away large household items like furniture, mattresses and appliances at no extra charge, but only by appointment under Sec. 12-23. Curbside customers get up…

In unincorporated Richland County, roll carts go at the curbside of the nearest public road by 7:00 a.m. on collection day and must be brought back in once emptied or by 7:30 p.m. Keep…

It is unlawful to dump garbage, debris, junk, appliances, or any solid waste anywhere in unincorporated Richland County except at an SCDHEC-approved landfill (Sec. 12-60). South…

Richland County's curbside contractors will not collect certain waste categories under Sec. 12-29. Dead pets go out only in sealed plastic bags after residents notify Animal Care; all…

Unincorporated Richland County provides curbside recycling by roll cart under Code Sec. 12-22. Only authorized recyclable materials are accepted, and collectors may refuse contaminated…

Richland County's countywide recycling program is mandatory only on the household side of curbside service; for local businesses it stays voluntary. Sec. 12-42 sets the program's four…

Richland County runs a single countywide curbside program for unincorporated households, small businesses and duplex-through-quadraplex units under Sec. 12-19. One roll cart is issued…

Richland County's noise ordinance sets no separate construction curfew, but domestic power equipment such as saws and grinders is only exempt from the noise rule when operated after…

Richland County prohibits allowing an animal to bark, whine or howl in an excessive, continuous or untimely way that seriously annoys or interferes with neighbors' use of their…

Richland County makes it unlawful to play a vehicle radio or sound system so loud it is plainly audible 50 feet from the vehicle or inside someone's home. Detecting the rhythmic bass…

Richland County has no leaf-blower-specific ordinance. Leaf blowers count as domestic power equipment, so they are exempt from the noise rule only when used between 6:00 a.m. and 10:00…

Richland County limits noisy yard equipment like mowers, chainsaws and grinders to the hours of 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. under Code Sec. 18-3(c)(2)(ii), while a broader nuisance-noise…

Richland County has no separate industrial-noise or decibel-by-zone ordinance. Commercial and industrial noise in the unincorporated county is judged under the same Section 18-3…

Richland County's airport ordinance sets no decibel cap or curfew on aircraft noise. Section 3-37 only requires the county-owned Jim Hamilton - L.B. Owens Airport to maintain and…

Richland County bans vehicle stereos and sound systems that are plainly audible 50 feet away or inside another person's home, under Code Sec. 18-3(b). The rhythmic bass alone counts as…

Backyard smokers, BBQ pits, and grills are treated as cooking devices in Richland County. A fire used for immediate food preparation needs no SC Forestry notification, but the same…

Richland County restricts what can be parked on public streets in residential zones: truck tractors, semi-trailers and trailers may not be parked on any public street, road or…

In unincorporated Richland County, truck tractors, semi-trailers and trailers may not be parked on public streets in residential zones, and may not be parked or stored on a…

Richland County restricts inoperable vehicles in yards: any motor vehicle or trailer that cannot move under its own power or is not street-legal may not be stored on a residential or…

In unincorporated Richland County, only one travel or camping vehicle per family may be parked on a residentially zoned lot, and it may not sit in the required front or side yard or in…

A compliant fence in unincorporated Richland County stays within the 4-foot front and 7-foot side/rear height limits, keeps clear of corner sight-triangles, sits on your own side of…

Common residential fence materials, wood, vinyl, aluminum, and chain-link, are allowed in unincorporated Richland County within the height limits. Masonry and concrete walls need a…

In Richland County's single-family residential districts (RS-LD, RS-MD, RS-HD) and the rural district, the maximum height of structures is 45 feet. Accessory structures must stay…

In Richland County's single-family districts, principal homes must sit 25 feet from the front, 20 feet from the rear, and meet a combined side-yard total (16 ft in RS-LD, 13 ft in…

Richland County's single-family districts control building bulk mainly through setbacks and the 45-foot height cap rather than a fixed lot-coverage percentage. Accessory structures in…

Richland County does not require homeowners to plant native species, but its Land Development Code favors them: on development sites, trees and plants in parking-lot islands that treat…

In developed parts of unincorporated Richland County, grass or weeds over 12 inches tall, or trailing vines over 10 feet, can be declared an unlawful nuisance. The Sheriff serves…

A homeowner can remove trees on their own single-family lot without a county permit. On land being developed, Richland County's LDC protects "grand trees" and larger trees in protected…

Richland County requires a licensed swimming pool contractor to obtain a building permit before installing any in-ground pool or spa, and adopts the 2021 International Swimming Pool…

Richland County requires owners of boarded-up commercial or residential structures to register with the Housing Official within five days, keep the boarding painted to match the…

Yes. Unincorporated Richland County allows one accessory dwelling per single-family lot in most residential and rural districts. The unit cannot exceed 500 square feet or one-fourth of…

Richland County has no tiny-home-specific ordinance. A tiny house on a permanent foundation is treated as a single-family dwelling that must meet the building code and district…

Richland County has no carport-specific ordinance. A carport is an accessory structure under LDC Sec. 26-185: it may not stand in front of the principal home's building line, must be…

Political signs in unincorporated Richland County may not stand in a public road right-of-way or be attached to trees, utility poles, or public property. They cannot be illuminated…

Yard sale signs in unincorporated Richland County must be on the sale premises only, never in a public right-of-way or on a tree, road sign, or utility pole. They cannot be…

Yes. Unincorporated Richland County has genuine dark-sky lighting standards. All new development must use full-cutoff certified luminaires aimed downward to minimize light pollution…

Unincorporated Richland County caps light spilling onto neighboring property. Illumination at a property line may not exceed 0.1 horizontal or 0.1 vertical foot-candles (outdoor retail…

Richland County handles hurricane and storm debris separately from routine trash under Sec. 12-41. Storm Debris and Tree Storm Debris must go to the curb sorted by waste type, and the…

Richland County crews will fix drainage problems on private land only in narrow circumstances: an approved system built under the county's stormwater and erosion control regulations…

Owners of non-owner-occupied habitable rental property in unincorporated Richland County must register the unit in the county's online database within 30 days of it becoming rented…

Richland County treats mobile food trucks as a licensed business under NAICS 722330, Mobile Food Services, Rate Class 9.94, requiring a county business license before operating…

An HOA in unincorporated Richland County that wants backyard, rather than curbside, trash and recycling pickup for its neighborhood has to follow a specific vote-and-notice procedure…