Building Safety in Georgia (2026)

Augusta-Richmond County's building maintenance code prohibits lead-based paint on any exterior wall or surface of a…

Glynn County bars anyone from selling, renting or leasing a dwelling, day care, school, clinic or other child-serving…

Atlanta requires passenger elevators be inspected every six months and freight elevators annually under the City of…

Carroll County's property maintenance code requires elevators, dumbwaiters and escalators in the unincorporated county…

Atlanta requires automatic fire sprinklers in every new multi-family building and hotel three stories or taller, and in…

South Fulton requires automatic fire sprinkler protection on private property subdivided for more than one…

Sec. 12-62 requires every new or substantially rehabilitated multifamily property in the City of Stonecrest to be fully…

In the City of Brookhaven, Georgia, § 12-62 requires all new or substantially rehabilitated multifamily dwellings to be…

In unincorporated Rockdale County, hotels, multifamily buildings, day cares, health care facilities and any residential…

Large or hard-to-reach homes in unincorporated Walker County must install a residential fire sprinkler system once the…

Alpharetta governs residential fire sprinkler installations through a standalone domestic sprinkler installation code…

A personal care home in Augusta-Richmond County with at least 7 beds for nonfamily adults, built or converted on or…

Bartow County requires a minimum NFPA 13R automatic fire sprinkler system in community living arrangements, personal…

Clayton County's fire code requires an approved automatic sprinkler system throughout all new construction and every…

New apartment buildings two stories or taller in unincorporated Cobb County must install a supervised fire protection…

DeKalb County Code § 12-24 requires every new multifamily dwelling property in the unincorporated county to be fully…

Fayette County's Multifamily Residential Sprinkler Code requires automatic fire sprinkler systems in apartment…

Attached multi-family buildings with three or more dwelling units in Forsyth County must have an automatic fire…

In unincorporated Gordon County, Gordon County Code § 14-35 requires an automatic fire sprinkler system in any building…

Hall County does not mandate residential sprinklers countywide, but a short-term rental with more than six bedrooms…

Code § 2-6-140 requires automatic fire sprinklers in every new multifamily residential structure and in new one- and…

Newton County adopts NFPA 13 and Appendix B of the International Fire Code by reference, mandating sprinklers in…

In the City of Smyrna, Georgia, Sec. 50-81 does not force a sprinkler system into every new house. A single-family…

Before a fire sprinkler system in unincorporated Troup County passes final inspection, Section 5.16 of the UDO requires…

Unincorporated Carroll County, Georgia treats day care differently by zoning district: private day nurseries are a…

Chatham County requires anyone operating a child day care agency in the unincorporated county, defined as care for four…

Hall County licenses a "day care center" under Sec. 7.5.2.C as any state-licensed facility caring for 19 or more…

Stonecrest requires a city business license and full state daycare licensing before a child daycare facility or center…

Augusta-Richmond County treats group day-care homes serving 7 to 12 children, and group day-care centers serving more…

Unincorporated Barrow County's Unified Development Code sets site standards for day care facilities: group homes cap at…

In unincorporated Bartow County, an in-home child day care for six or fewer children is a permitted use in the A-1…

Section 27-625 of the Brookhaven Code sets the rules for day care in the City of Brookhaven, Georgia. Outdoor activity…

Unincorporated Bulloch County requires any day care facility, whether in a residential or commercial zone, to sit on at…

Before operating a child day care facility in unincorporated Catoosa County, whether a family day care home, group day…

A day care center operating out of a commercial building or commercial zoning district in unincorporated Clayton County…

Unincorporated Fulton County limits family day care homes to weekday-Saturday daytime hours, requires 1,000 feet of…

A private childcare center, kindergarten, or pre-school allowed as a special use in Glynn County's residential and…

In unincorporated Gordon County, a child day care center, nursery school or private preschool serving nineteen (19) or…

Larger childcare operations in unincorporated Jackson County must fence and enclose their outdoor play areas, provide a…

Macon-Bibb County requires child day care centers to sit on at least a full acre with a 150-foot-wide lot before the…

Roswell's UDC sets minimum outdoor play area, indoor space per child, and play-area fencing requirements for day care…

South Fulton's Zoning Ordinance Sec. 302.12 governs any day care facility serving seven or more children: a six-foot…

Unincorporated Troup County requires day care facilities to keep a state-compliant outdoor play area, sit 1,000 feet…

A day care center in unincorporated Walton County needs more than a state license: Land Development Ordinance Section…

Whitfield County's Unified Zoning Ordinance permits child care learning centers, which serve 19 or more children under…

Carroll County requires every dwelling, rooming or housekeeping unit that is rented, leased or let in the…

In unincorporated Cobb County, every exterior door must carry proper hardware kept in working condition, fit its frame…

Hotels, motels, and extended-stay hotels permitted for construction after March 16, 2018 in unincorporated DeKalb…

Fulton County requires vacant dwellings and structures found unfit to have a deadbolt installed above the existing lock…

Unincorporated Jackson County requires rental dwelling, rooming and housekeeping units to have deadbolt locks with at…

Barrow County has no separate "green building" ordinance. Instead it adopts the Georgia State Energy Code for Buildings…

Chatham County has no standalone "green building" ordinance, but every construction project in the unincorporated…

Cobb County adopts the International Energy Conservation Code as the county's energy code for the unincorporated area…

Forsyth County has no separate green building program: it enforces the Georgia State Energy Code as one of the Georgia…

Atlanta requires LEED Silver certification for city-owned and city-funded buildings over 5,000 square feet, not for…

DeKalb doesn't mandate green construction, but in the RSM zoning district, developers who certify buildings for LEED or…

Macon-Bibb County has no mandatory green building code. Code of Ordinances § 6-2(c) adopts the National Green Building…

South Fulton's Green Building Community Incentives chapter (Title 14, Ch. 13) sets no green building mandate. Instead…

Unincorporated Barrow County requires every permitted short-term rental to have a working carbon monoxide detector…

Bartow County's fire code requires carbon monoxide detectors in community living arrangements, personal care homes…

Cherokee County requires an operational carbon monoxide detector outside each bedroom rented in a licensed short-term…

Every licensed Forsyth County short-term rental must have a working carbon monoxide detector on each habitable floor…

Every short-term rental in unincorporated Glynn County must have working carbon monoxide and smoke detectors in every…

Every short-term rental in unincorporated Houston County must have working carbon monoxide detectors in each bedroom…

Whitfield County requires any camper, recreational vehicle, or travel trailer used as temporary living quarters during…

Acworth enforces Georgia's state minimum construction codes rather than writing its own, and Section 18-56 requires a…

Alpharetta requires a building permit before any construction exceeding $100.00 in cost, or any remodeling that changes…

Replacing a roof in Atlanta requires a building permit with a $360 minimum fee; only non-structural repairs to existing…

Augusta-Richmond County requires a building permit before any construction, alteration, repair, or occupancy change to…

In unincorporated Barrow County, anyone who wants to construct, enlarge, alter, repair, move, demolish or change the…

Unincorporated Bartow County requires a permit before anyone builds, enlarges, alters, repairs, or changes the…

In the City of Brookhaven, Georgia, § 7-118 requires a permit before any construction, erection, alteration or repair…

In unincorporated Bulloch County, anyone who intends to construct, enlarge, alter, repair, move, demolish or change the…

Any construction, enlargement, alteration, repair, move, demolition or occupancy change to a building or structure in…

Catoosa County adopts the state Building, Mechanical, Plumbing, Electrical and One- and Two-Family Dwelling Codes by…

Chatham County adopts the International Building, Plumbing, Mechanical and Electrical Codes under Code § 20-201, making…

Cherokee County enforces building permits by adopting the International Building Code's administrative chapter…

Clayton County requires a permit before anyone builds, alters, moves, demolishes or changes the occupancy of a…

Cobb County requires a permit before any building, electrical, mechanical, plumbing, or gas work begins on…

Columbia County enforces the state-mandated International Building, Residential, Mechanical, Fuel Gas, Plumbing…

Renovating a building in Columbus, Georgia takes a permit from the Department of Inspections and Code, and City Code §…

Coweta County requires a building permit before anyone builds, enlarges, alters, repairs, moves, or demolishes a…

Any Decatur, Georgia owner, agent or contractor who wants to build, alter, move or demolish a building, or install its…

In unincorporated DeKalb County, interior finish work -- painting, papering, tiling, carpeting, cabinets and…

Dunwoody requires a permit from the building official before constructing, enlarging, altering, repairing, moving, or…

Anyone who wants to construct, enlarge, alter, repair, move, demolish or change the occupancy of a building or…

Anyone who wants to construct, enlarge, alter, repair, move, demolish or change the occupancy of a building or…

Unincorporated Floyd County requires a building permit from the Chief Building Official before any structure or…

Forsyth County requires a building permit before any building or structure is erected, moved, extended, enlarged…

Unincorporated Fulton County requires a building permit for construction, alteration and repair work, with only narrow…

Any construction, alteration, repair, or demolition of a building in unincorporated Glynn County must follow the 2006…

In unincorporated Gordon County, Georgia, a building permit from the building inspection department is required before…

Anyone who wants to build, enlarge, alter, repair, move, or demolish a structure in unincorporated Gwinnett County must…

Before building, altering or demolishing any structure in unincorporated Hall County, an owner must obtain a building…

Houston County requires a permit before almost any construction or system work on a building: Sec. 14-91(a) of the…

Unincorporated Jackson County requires a building permit under Unified Development Code Section 2021 before anyone…

Johns Creek requires a permit from the Building Official before any construction, alteration, repair, demolition, or…

Macon-Bibb County issues building permits through the Department of Business Development Services and its Chief…

Marietta enforces the Georgia-adopted International Building Code and requires anyone who wants to construct, enlarge…

Unincorporated Newton County requires a building permit before anyone builds, alters, moves, demolishes or changes the…

Any owner, agent, or contractor who wants to build, enlarge, alter, repair, move, demolish, or change the occupancy of…

In unincorporated Rockdale County, Code § 302-49 makes it unlawful to excavate, fill, build, demolish, move or alter…

Building a deck, pool, addition, or freestanding retaining wall over 8 feet in Roswell, Georgia requires at least a…

In Sandy Springs, anyone who wants to construct, enlarge, alter, repair, move, demolish, or change the occupancy of a…

In the City of Smyrna, Georgia, Appendix A § 1302 requires a building permit from the building inspector before any…

South Fulton requires a permit from the building official before constructing, enlarging, altering, moving…

Any construction, enlargement, repair, move, demolition, or change of occupancy involving a building or structure in…

The City of Stonecrest requires a permit before any construction, erection, alteration or repair to a building…

In unincorporated Troup County, anyone who wants to construct, enlarge, alter, repair, move, demolish or change the…

Anyone who wants to construct, enlarge, alter, repair, move, demolish or change the occupancy of a building or…

In unincorporated Walton County, anyone who wants to construct, enlarge, alter, repair, move, demolish or change the…

Warner Robins requires a permit for any building, structure or alteration covered by its adopted 2012 International…

Whitfield County Code § 5-11 makes it unlawful to do any work on a building or structure that needs a permit without…

Acworth enforces the Georgia State Minimum Standard Electrical Code on every electrical installation, addition…

Alpharetta requires a permit for electrical work performed under Code of Ordinances Chapter 8, which adopts the…

Atlanta requires a written application and formal permit from the Bureau of Buildings before any electrical work…

Augusta-Richmond County requires a permit from the Building Official before any electrical system is installed…

Unincorporated Barrow County enforces the National Electrical Code as one of its technical codes (§ 22-31(a)(5))…

Unincorporated Bartow County enforces the National Electrical Code as one of the state minimum standard codes, and…

In the City of Brookhaven, Georgia, electrical work other than ordinary repairs needs a permit under § 7-118, and §…

Bulloch County enforces Georgia's state minimum standard codes, which include the National Electric Code, under Sec…

Electrical work in unincorporated Carroll County, Georgia is regulated under the National Electrical Code, adopted by…

Unincorporated Catoosa County enforces the state-adopted Electrical Code under Sec. 18-31, with the county building…

Chatham County enforces the National Electric Code on all electrical work in the unincorporated area under section…

Cherokee County adopts the National Electrical Code for all electrical work in the unincorporated county, administering…

Clayton County enforces the National Electrical Code, as adopted and amended by the state, for every electrical…

Cobb County has adopted the National Electrical Code as its electrical code, and Sec. 18-27 requires a permit before…

Columbia County enforces the National Electrical Code on all wiring work under § 18-31(a)(5), and requires every…

Columbus, Georgia requires a permit before any electrical installation, alteration, or repair, plus a state-issued…

Coweta County requires a building permit before anyone erects, alters, repairs, or replaces an electrical system…

Decatur, Georgia enforces the National Electrical Code, as adopted and amended by the Georgia Department of Community…

Electrical work in unincorporated DeKalb County must conform to the National Electrical Code, adopted through County…

Unincorporated Dougherty County does not run its own electrical code from scratch: Sec. 2-4-1(6) incorporates by…

Dunwoody enforces the National Electrical Code as a mandatory state minimum standard code for every electrical…

Effingham County adopts the National Electrical Code, with state and local amendments, to govern every electrical…

Electrical work in unincorporated Fayette County requires a permit from the code official under Fayette County Code…

Unincorporated Floyd County has adopted the National Electrical Code, as amended by the State of Georgia, to govern all…

Forsyth County requires a trade permit before any electrical work on a building or structure in unincorporated areas…

Unincorporated Fulton County enforces the National Electrical Code (NFPA) and will issue an electrical permit only to a…

All electrical work in unincorporated Glynn County must follow the 2005 National Electrical Code with Georgia…

Gwinnett County requires a permit before any electrical system work covered by the state electrical code, under…

Electrical work in unincorporated Hall County is permitted under the 2005 National Electrical Code adopted at §…

Any electrical installation, alteration, repair or replacement in unincorporated Houston County falls under the…

Unincorporated Jackson County enforces the National Electrical Code, as adopted and amended by the Georgia Department…

Johns Creek requires a building-official permit before installing, altering or replacing electrical systems under the…

Macon-Bibb County enforces Georgia's state minimum standard codes, including the National Electrical Code, through the…

Marietta enforces the Georgia-adopted National Electrical Code and requires a permit from the building official before…

Unincorporated Newton County enforces the National Electrical Code with eleven local amendments under Newton County…

Rockdale County Code § 102-8(a)(10) adopts the latest National Electrical Code as a Georgia State Minimum Standard…

Roswell adopts the National Electrical Code, as amended, for every electrical installation in the city (Code of…

Sandy Springs enforces the latest state-amended National Electrical Code and requires a building-official permit before…

In the City of Smyrna, Georgia, no wiring installation or alteration in a building or structure for light, heat or…

South Fulton adopts the National Electrical Code, as amended by the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, for every…

Sec. 8-1001 of the Spalding County Code adopts the latest Georgia-amended edition of the National Electrical Code as a…

The City of Stonecrest requires a permit before any electrical installation, alteration or repair under Code Sec…

Unincorporated Troup County enforces the National Electrical Code, as adopted and amended by the Georgia Department of…

Walker County has adopted the 2020 National Electrical Code with no Georgia amendments, and anyone installing, altering…

Electrical work in unincorporated Walton County is governed by the Georgia State Minimum Electrical Code as locally…

Warner Robins bars anyone from starting electrical installation, alteration or repair work until the city's electrical…

Whitfield County Code § 5-9 adopts the National Electrical Code, along with the other Georgia State Minimum Standard…

Acworth enforces the Georgia State Minimum Standard Plumbing Code on every plumbing installation, alteration, repair or…

Alpharetta requires a permit for plumbing work performed under Code of Ordinances Chapter 8, which adopts the…

Atlanta requires a formal permit from the Bureau of Buildings before any plumbing installation, alteration, or repair…

Augusta-Richmond County requires a permit from the Building Official before anyone installs, alters, repairs, or…

Barrow County enforces the Standard Plumbing Code as one of its technical codes (§ 22-31(a)(4)), applying it to "every…

Unincorporated Bartow County enforces the International Plumbing Code as one of the state minimum standard codes, and…

In the City of Brookhaven, Georgia, § 7-118 requires a permit before construction, alteration or repair to a plumbing…

Plumbing work in unincorporated Carroll County, Georgia is regulated under the International Plumbing Code, adopted by…

Unincorporated Catoosa County enforces the state-adopted Plumbing Code under Sec. 18-31, administered by the county…

Chatham County requires all plumbing work in the unincorporated area to comply with the International Plumbing Code…

Cherokee County enforces the International Plumbing Code, with local water-efficiency amendments, for all plumbing work…

Clayton County adopts the International Plumbing Code with local amendments under Section 18-71, adding requirements…

Cobb County has adopted the International Plumbing Code as its plumbing code, and Sec. 18-27 requires a permit before…

Columbia County enforces the International Plumbing Code on every plumbing installation under § 18-31(a)(4), and bars…

Any installation, repair or alteration to a plumbing system in Columbus, Georgia needs a permit from the Department of…

Coweta County requires a permit before any plumbing system is installed, altered, or replaced, issued by the building…

Decatur, Georgia adopts the International Plumbing Code, as amended by the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, as…

Before starting plumbing work on any building in unincorporated DeKalb County, the installer must pull a permit and…

Unincorporated Dougherty County adopts its plumbing code by reference rather than printing one: Sec. 2-4-1(2)…

Dunwoody adopts the Georgia-amended International Plumbing Code by ordinance and requires anyone doing plumbing work to…

Effingham County applies the International Plumbing Code, with state and local amendments, to every plumbing…

Anyone constructing, altering or replacing a plumbing system in unincorporated Fayette County must apply to the code…

Unincorporated Floyd County has adopted the International Plumbing Code, as amended by the State of Georgia, to govern…

Forsyth County enforces the Georgia State Minimum Standard Plumbing Code, adopted by reference, with local…

Unincorporated Fulton County enforces the International Plumbing Code and hands plumbing permits only to contractors…

Plumbing work in unincorporated Glynn County needs a permit from the Building Official under the 2006 International…

In unincorporated Gordon County, Georgia, anyone who installs, alters, repairs, removes, converts or replaces a…

Unincorporated Gwinnett County plumbing installations, alterations, and repairs must follow the adopted Georgia State…

Plumbing work in unincorporated Hall County is permitted under the 2000 International Plumbing Code adopted at §…

Every plumbing installation in unincorporated Houston County, from new piping to a fixture replacement, is governed by…

Unincorporated Jackson County enforces the International Plumbing Code, as adopted and amended by the Georgia…

Johns Creek locally adopts the International Plumbing Code for every plumbing installation, and any covered plumbing…

Macon-Bibb County enforces Georgia's state minimum standard plumbing code under Code of Ordinances § 6-2(a)…

Marietta enforces the Georgia-adopted International Plumbing Code and requires a permit from the building official…

Unincorporated Newton County adopts the state plumbing code by reference under Newton County Code § 10-54, filing a…

Paulding County enforces the International Plumbing Code as a mandatory technical code, with its own local amendments…

Rockdale County Code § 102-8(a)(4) adopts the latest International Plumbing Code as a Georgia State Minimum Standard…

Roswell, Georgia enforces the International Plumbing Code, as amended, for every plumbing installation connected to a…

Sandy Springs enforces the latest state-amended International Plumbing Code, including its Appendices C and I, and…

In the City of Smyrna, Georgia, Sec. 18-7 adopts the Standard Plumbing Code, latest edition as adopted by the state…

South Fulton applies the International Plumbing Code, as amended by the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, to…

Sec. 8-1001 of the Spalding County Code adopts the latest Georgia-amended edition of the International Plumbing Code as…

The City of Stonecrest adopts the International Plumbing Code with Georgia amendments under City Code Sec. 7-23(a)(3)…

Every plumbing installation in unincorporated Troup County, from fixtures to water and sewer connections, must comply…

Walker County has adopted the 2018 International Plumbing Code with Georgia amendments, and anyone installing, altering…

Unincorporated Walton County plumbing work runs on the Georgia State Minimum Standard Plumbing Code as locally amended…

Warner Robins enforces the 2012 International Plumbing Code as its local plumbing code under Section 6-211, with local…

Unincorporated Whitfield County enforces the International Plumbing Code as one of the Georgia State Minimum Standard…

The City of Alpharetta requires a fixed sequence of building inspections before construction can proceed: footing…

Atlanta requires three staged inspections on permitted construction: foundation, framing and final, each signed off by…

Augusta-Richmond County requires foundation, slab, rough, and final inspections before work can proceed, with written…

In unincorporated Barrow County, the building official inspects construction at set stages under Barrow County Code §…

Bartow County requires a building official to inspect construction at defined stages before releasing work to proceed…

In the City of Brookhaven, Georgia, § 7-170 requires permitted work to stay exposed until the building official…

Bulloch County's building official inspects construction in stages under Sec. 4-52(a): foundation, dry-in, insulation…

Construction permitted in unincorporated Carroll County, Georgia goes through staged foundation, frame and final…

In unincorporated Catoosa County, no excavation, construction, alteration or moving of a building, or development of…

Chatham County Code § 20-306 puts re-inspections in the hands of the Director of the Department of Building Safety and…

Clayton County inspects every phase of construction under Section 18-48, requiring a foundation inspection after…

Columbus, Georgia requires scheduled inspections at foundation, plumbing, framing, interior-wall, and final stages…

DeKalb County requires staged inspections for permitted work, including foundation, framing and final inspections for…

Effingham County's building official inspects every stage of permitted construction under Code § 14-57, from foundation…

Fayette County Code § 102-284 keeps every permitted job open to inspection by the building official until approved, and…

Unincorporated Floyd County's Unified Land Development Code requires builders to schedule inspections with the Chief…

Forsyth County requires a sequence of building inspections, from footing and foundation through framing to a final…

Fulton County's amended building code sets three required inspection stages for mechanical and plumbing work in…

In unincorporated Glynn County, every approved construction project needs periodic inspections during construction…

In unincorporated Gordon County, Georgia, the building inspector must sign off at each stage of construction before…

Gwinnett County's building official runs a fixed sequence of inspections, footing, framing, and final among them, and…

Building permits and inspections in unincorporated Hall County run through the Hall County Building Inspections…

Unincorporated Jackson County's building official inspects construction at each stage of work under Unified Development…

Macon-Bibb County Code Section 13-23 lays out the inspection process for manufactured, mobile, and pre-owned…

Marietta's building official runs required construction inspections in stages, foundation, frame, and final for…

Every permitted construction job in unincorporated Newton County must pass building official inspections at required…

In unincorporated Rockdale County, the Fire Marshal's Office inspects construction at intervals, requires an 80 percent…

Roswell requires staged inspections, footing, framing, and final, before any permitted building work can proceed to the…

In the City of Smyrna, Georgia, the office of building inspector enforces all laws on the construction, alteration…

South Fulton requires a building permit before construction and mandates five inspection stages, foundation, slab…

Once a building permit is issued in unincorporated Spalding County, the building officer inspects the work at intervals…

Stonecrest's Building Official inspects every stage of permitted construction under Sec. 7-170, and work must stay…

Before Troup County will issue a certificate of occupancy, the Community Development Director inspects work at each…

Walker County's Code Official inspects permitted construction at set stages: foundation, framing and final for a…

In unincorporated Walton County, every permitted building project moves through a fixed sequence of required…

Whitfield County Code § 5-37(8)(f) sets three required building inspections for permitted work: a foundation inspection…