Spalding County, GA Ordinances (2026)

In unincorporated Spalding County, Sec. 7-1004 of the county code names more than fifty specific roads, from Bleachery Street to Wilson Road, where no vehicle may be parked or left…

Sec. 7-1010 of the Spalding County Code makes it unlawful to park any motor vehicle, trailer, tractor, or other wheeled vehicle overnight on county-owned property that carries a sign…

Spalding County Code Chapter 2 of Part VII defines an abandoned motor vehicle as one left unattended for at least five days on a public street or other public property, or thirty days…

In unincorporated Spalding County, no driveway onto a county road may be built without a permit from the Public Works Department. Sec. 4-1028 of the Spalding County Code sets exact…

In Spalding County's R-1A district, the zoning ordinance lets a homeowner park one unoccupied travel trailer or motor coach and one pleasure boat in the side or rear yard only, as an…

Inside Spalding County's North Expressway Improvement District overlay along U.S. Highway 19/41, planned commercial developments cannot park delivery vehicles, including tractor…

Manufacturing, industrial, wholesale and retail uses in unincorporated Spalding County must provide off-street loading space sized to their operation under the county's parking…

Spalding County Code Sec. 7-1012 bans the use of jake brakes, jacob brakes, engine brakes, or compression release engine brakes anywhere on the public roads of unincorporated Spalding…

Outdoor loudspeakers and amplifiers in unincorporated Spalding County need a board of commissioners permit unless indoor sound cannot be heard 100 feet from the building. The community…

Outside construction or repair work on buildings, structures, roads, or projects is barred between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. in commercial and industrial zoned areas of unincorporated…

Spalding County Code Sec. 7-1013 defines "electric bicycle" as a two- or three-wheel device with an electric motor, pedals, and a power output capped at 1,000 watts that cannot exceed…

Sec. 8-1001 of the Spalding County Code adopts the latest Georgia-amended edition of the National Electrical Code as a Construction Code, and Sec. 8-1006 requires anyone who wants to…

Sec. 8-1001 of the Spalding County Code adopts the latest Georgia-amended edition of the International Plumbing Code as a Construction Code, and Sec. 8-1006 requires a permit from the…

Any construction, enlargement, repair, move, demolition, or change of occupancy involving a building or structure in unincorporated Spalding County requires a permit from the…

Once a building permit is issued in unincorporated Spalding County, the building officer inspects the work at intervals throughout construction and again at completion, under Code §…

Building a swimming pool on residential property in unincorporated Spalding County requires a building permit from the Department of Community Development under Code § 8-1006. The…

A one-story detached shed, playhouse, or similar tool and storage building on residential property in unincorporated Spalding County needs no county building permit if its floor area…

Spalding County's zoning ordinance defines a tiny house as a principal dwelling on a permanent foundation with 400 heated square feet or less, under Zoning Ordinance Section 209(30)…

Unincorporated Spalding County treats a mother-in-law suite as a permitted accessory use in agricultural and residential districts such as AR-1, with no separate permit category beyond…

A dwelling, building, structure, or lot in unincorporated Spalding County that violates county codes, is unfit for habitation, is abandoned, or otherwise endangers public health or…

In unincorporated Spalding County, developed property of five acres or less, including vacant subdivision lots, must keep weeds and plant growth in the yard area under twelve inches…

In unincorporated Spalding County, the occupant and the property owner share the duty to keep exterior property, including sidewalks, walkways, stairs, driveways, and parking areas, in…

Unincorporated Spalding County treats blocking a sidewalk, street, road, or parking area as disorderly conduct. Sec. 11-1003 makes it unlawful to obstruct any highway, sidewalk…

Unincorporated Spalding County bans noxious weeds outright, defining them as any species listed on the federal Noxious Weed List published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, under…

Grass and weeds in the yard area of a developed lot five acres or smaller cannot exceed twelve inches in unincorporated Spalding County, under Code § 8-3003(2). Cultivated flowers…

Outdoor irrigation in unincorporated Spalding County is restricted to the hours between 4:00 p.m. and 10:00 a.m. under Code § 5-2002(a), covering lawns, trees, shrubs and ground cover…

Planned commercial and industrial developments in unincorporated Spalding County can't clear-cut a site before building. Under Sec. 1708.P of the Zoning Ordinance's Planned Development…

In unincorporated Spalding County, no fence may exceed six feet above adjoining ground level, and front-yard fences are capped at four feet across nearly every residential and…

Unincorporated Spalding County allows barbed wire and other sharp, pointed fence material only on AR-1 and AR-2 land, and only to contain livestock, plus on the county's heaviest…

Zoning Ordinance Section 424 bars mobile food vendors from public streets and rights-of-way except at a county-sponsored or permitted special event, limits them to private…

Operating a food cart, mobile food vehicle, or any other food service establishment in unincorporated Spalding County requires a permit from the Spalding County board of health before…

Spalding County's AR-1 district exists to establish and preserve low-to-medium density land where agriculture is the primary use, with residences allowed only as incidental to that…

In AR-1 and AR-2 zoned property in unincorporated Spalding County, a day care center is allowed only as a special exception, and it must comply with rules set by the Georgia Department…

A 'home occupation, minor' in unincorporated Spalding County, defined in Zoning Ordinance Section 202(71), may only be used as a business address or for clerical work such as…

Spalding County's zoning code defines home occupation, general in Section 202(72) as a use ancillary to a residence or farm that employs no more than two non-resident workers, stays…

In unincorporated Spalding County, a home-based business cannot post any exterior sign advertising its operation. The county's Sign Ordinance, Appendix E, Article 7, lists 'home…

In the R-1 district in unincorporated Spalding County, the minimum front yard setback is 100 feet, reduced to 70 feet where public sewer serves the lot, side yards must be at least 25…

In the R-1 district in unincorporated Spalding County, buildings are capped at 35 feet under Zoning Ordinance Section 704(G), but the limit rises to 60 feet if the structure has an…

Spalding County's R-6 zoning district development standards cap impervious surface, buildings, driveways and parking combined, at 25 percent of the lot under Sec. 1106A. The same…

In unincorporated Spalding County, garbage and rubbish must be stored in a proper container until pickup; unauthorized accumulation outside a residence is declared a public nuisance…

Spalding County requires garbage containers to be durable, tightly covered, rodent-proof and hold between 15 and 35 gallons, with rubbish bundles capped at 50 pounds. Code § 4-2003(d)…

Collection days for unincorporated Spalding County are set by the Board of Commissioners rather than printed in the code. Code § 4-2004(a) leaves residential and commercial pickup…

Dumping litter on public or private property or waters in unincorporated Spalding County is unlawful under the county's Litter Control Ordinance. Violators face escalating court fines…

In unincorporated Spalding County, any service, loading or refuse area sitting between a building and a public street, and within one hundred feet of that street, must be screened once…

Any movie, television, video, commercial, music video, photo shoot or infomercial shoot on public property, or one restricting public access, needs a media production permit from the…

No street, road, alley or sidewalk in unincorporated Spalding County may be closed or obstructed for a media production unless the closure is approved as a permit condition; low-impact…

Media production activity in unincorporated Spalding County must occur between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m., with prep and wrap limited to an extra hour; a high-impact permit must…

Every business operating in unincorporated Spalding County must register each distinct line of business with the county manager under Code § 6-1086 and display the certificate that…

Renting a private home in unincorporated Spalding County for more than two days a year makes the owner an 'operator' under Code § 6-1174, and the county's excise tax on rooms, lodgings…

Anyone renting out lodging accommodations, including a private residence, in unincorporated Spalding County must register the business with the Department of Community Development…

Spalding County's zoning ordinance does not cap occupancy for short-term rentals generally, but its agriculture homestay definition in Section 206(1) limits that specific farm-based…

Hotels, motels, inns, lodges and tourist cabins operating in unincorporated Spalding County must collect an 8 percent excise tax on gross rent from every guest room occupancy, set by…

In unincorporated Spalding County it is unlawful for a registered canvasser or solicitor to knock at any residence, office, business or subdivision clearly displaying a sign reading…

Before knocking on doors in unincorporated Spalding County, a canvasser or solicitor must register with the Community Development Office, pay a $100 fee, submit to fingerprinting and a…

In unincorporated Spalding County, an adult entertainment establishment must hold an annual $1,000 license from the county manager and sit at least 1,000 feet from any residential…

Pawn shops in unincorporated Spalding County must record each customer's ID, photo and fingerprint, file a daily transaction report with the sheriff by 9:00 p.m., and re-ticket items…

Spalding County does not license scrap metal or secondhand dealers, but every scrap metal processor in the unincorporated area must collect ID, a photo and a fingerprint from each…

Unincorporated Spalding County property owners must keep structures and exterior areas free of rodent harborage under Sec. 8-3005 of the county code. Where rodents turn up, the owner…

Unincorporated Spalding County bans dumping anything but stormwater into its separate storm sewer system. Chapter 4's illicit discharge ordinance prohibits illegal discharges and…

Unincorporated Spalding County regulates flood-prone land through its S-1 Sensitive Land Flood Damage Prevention overlay district, adopted under O.C.G.A. § 36-1-20(a). The district's…

Within Spalding County's S-1 flood hazard overlay, new construction and substantial improvements must sit at least one foot above the base flood elevation shown on FEMA's map, the…

Unincorporated Spalding County's alcohol offense rule doesn't ban drinking in public generally; instead Sec. 11-1004 targets evasion. It makes it unlawful to consume or possess…

In unincorporated Spalding County, no one may keep, harbor or control more than four dogs and cats combined on a single property without a kennel license, per County Code Section…

Since March 1, 2016, anyone owning, keeping or harboring a dog or cat six months or older in unincorporated Spalding County must have the animal surgically sterilized under County Code…

Spalding County does not ban retail pet sales, but County Code Section 12-1014 requires every animal establishment, including pet shops and kennels, to hold a business license and meet…

Spalding County does not impose a general pet microchipping rule, but County Code Section 12-1011(c)(3) requires any dog classified as vicious to be microchipped between the shoulder…

Every cat over three months old in unincorporated Spalding County must be vaccinated against rabies before April 1 each year, and households on two acres or less cannot keep more than…

Dog owners in unincorporated Spalding County must keep their animal under control whenever it is off the owner's property, meaning leashed to six feet or less, voice-commanded…

Spalding County's Animal Control Ordinance defines a long list of wild and exotic animals, from monkeys and raccoons to tigers, alligators, and tarantulas, makes any one kept in…

In unincorporated Spalding County's AR-2 district, the zoning ordinance allows up to four chickens per one-acre lot as an accessory use, with no roosters. Coops must sit at least 20…

Spalding County's Zoning Ordinance permits an animal hospital or veterinary clinic as a principal use in the VN Village Node district, but only if it has no outside runs or pens, under…

Window signs in unincorporated Spalding County only get a green light in commercial and office-institutional districts, and Sec. 513 of the sign ordinance caps them at fifty percent of…

Garage sale signs in unincorporated Spalding County don't need a sign permit, but Appendix E's sign ordinance still controls their timing. Article 8(I) lets you post the sign no…

Campaign signs are allowed in every zoning district in unincorporated Spalding County, but Sec. 516 of the sign ordinance limits how long they can stay up, how big they can be, and how…

Spalding County's sign ordinance doesn't carve out a category for digital billboards, it bans the underlying technology outright. Article 7 of Appendix E prohibits animated signs…

Approved event centers in unincorporated Spalding County can host amplified sound without a permit only if two law enforcement officers confirm no excessive-noise complaint holds up…

When officers confirm an event center's amplified sound is audible and sustained for five straight minutes at the property line, Spalding County's noise ordinance directs them to make…

In unincorporated Spalding County, developers of conservation subdivisions can get more lots than the base yield plan allows if the board of commissioners approves specific public…

For conservation subdivisions in unincorporated Spalding County, Sec. 711 of the county's subdivision ordinance requires every homeowners' association document to make each lot owner…

Conservation subdivisions in unincorporated Spalding County must set up a homeowners' association with a written document defining its powers, decision-making process and mandatory…

Spalding County's zoning ordinance defines 'Bitcoin mining' as cryptocurrency mining and its facilities, then carves that use out of the special-exception allowance for data centers in…

Data centers approved as a special exception in Spalding County's C-1C district must complete an acoustic and noise study when they apply for the land disturbance permit, per Sec…

Data centers in Spalding County need a special exception and can only locate in a planned commercial or industrial development in the C-1C district, never inside an S-2, S-3 or S-4…

Inside Spalding County's Tri County Crossing Overlay District near U.S. Highway 19/41 and Zebulon Road, exterior lighting must use full cutoff, downward-facing fixtures instead of…

Outdoor advertising signs, i.e. billboards, in unincorporated Spalding County must be lit from the top rather than up-lit from the ground, under Sec. 201-5.B of the county's Outdoor…

Where a Tri County Crossing Overlay development sits next to residentially zoned land, Spalding County caps spillover light at one foot-candle measured at the property line. The…

Unincorporated Spalding County can designate an individual property or a district as a protected 'historic property' for its historic, cultural or aesthetic value, but only by an…

Rooftop solar panels are a permitted accessory use across unincorporated Spalding County's residential districts, but Sec. 503(20) of the Zoning Ordinance conditions that right on…