SB 437: State Building, Plumbing, and Electrical Codes; acknowledgement of an applicant's use of a private professional provider to conduct a plan review or inspection; provide

The House Committee on Governmental Affairs offers the following substitute to SB 437:

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

To amend Part 2 of Article 1 of Chapter 2 of Title 8 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to state building, plumbing, and electrical codes, so as to provide for building inspection procedures for residential properties; to provide for schedules of certain fees; to provide for certain notifications; to provide for acknowledgment of an applicant's use of a private professional provider to conduct an inspection and that such inspection may proceed regardless of whether the local governing authority had performed its own inspection; to permit in person or virtual inspections; to provide for a shorter period for local governing authorities to approve applications; to prohibit local governing authorities from charging convenience fees; to provide for procedures to use a private professional provider for inspection; to provide for an acknowledgment; to authorize prequalification; to provide for prequalification procedures; to authorize permit denial; to provide procedures for permit denial; to provide for immunity; to prohibit more stringent requirements; to provide for certain stop orders; to provide for complaint procedures; to provide for definitions; to provide for related matters; to provide for an effective date and applicability; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:

SECTION 1.

Part 2 of Article 1 of Chapter 2 of Title 8 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to state building, plumbing, and electrical codes, is amended by adding a new subsection to Code Section 8-2-26, relating to local enforcement, inspectors, and building permits, to read as follows:

"(h)(1) Notwithstanding subsection (g) of this Code section, this subsection shall apply to residential structures, including, but not limited to, single-family residences, townhomes, and condominiums three stories or less.

(2) As used in this subsection, the term:

(A) 'Complete application' means a submitted plan, application, or request for inspection that contains all of the information and supporting documentation required by the county or municipality for it to make the determination as to whether the plan, application, or request is in compliance with regulatory requirements.

(B) 'Private professional provider' means a:

(i) Professional engineer who holds a certificate of registration issued under Chapter 15 of Title 43;

(ii) Professional architect who holds a certificate of registration issued under Chapter 4 of Title 43; or

(iii) Qualified inspector as such term is defined in Code Section 8-2-26.1 who is not an employee of or otherwise affiliated with or financially interested in the person, firm, or corporation engaged in the construction project to be reviewed or inspected.

(C) 'Regulatory fee' means payments, whether designated as permit fees, application fees, or by another name, that are required by a local government as an exercise of its police power, its regulation of business, and as a part of or as an aid to regulation of construction related activities under this chapter.

(D) 'Regulatory requirements' means the requirements determined by a county or municipality to be necessary for approval of plans, permits, or applications under this chapter; provided, however, that, with respect to any application, such requirements shall include the state minimum standard codes most recently adopted by the Department of Community Affairs and any locally adopted ordinances and amendments to such codes; applicable zoning ordinances and conditions; design standards; and other state and local laws, regulations, and ordinances applicable to the application in question.

(3) Each county or municipality which imposes regulatory fees or regulatory requirements within its jurisdiction shall establish and make available a schedule of such regulatory fees and regulatory requirements which shall include a list of all documentation related to compliance with such regulatory requirements, including the requirements necessary for submittal of a complete application. The amount of any regulatory fee shall approximate the reasonable cost of the actual regulatory activity performed by the local government and shall be subject to the provisions of paragraph (6) of Code Section 48-13-5.

(4) No later than five business days after receipt of any application related to regulatory requirements, a local building official of a county or municipality shall notify each applicant as to whether the submitted documents meet the requirements of a complete application and shall acknowledge whether an applicant retained a private professional provider to provide the required inspection, allowing the applicant to proceed with the inspection irrespective of whether the county or municipality has conducted an inspection. Except as otherwise provided in this paragraph, time spent by a county or municipality determining whether an application is complete shall count toward the total 15 business days for inspection. If a local building official determines that the application is not complete, the applicant shall be provided written notice identifying the items that are not complete. The 15 business-day time period is tolled when the application is rejected as incomplete. If within 15 business days after the county or municipality has provided notice that the application is incomplete the permit applicant submits revisions to address the identified deficiencies, the local building official shall have an additional five business days to review the application for completeness.

(5) At the time a county or municipality notifies the applicant that a complete application has been accepted, it shall also notify such applicant as to whether the personnel employed or contracted by such county or municipality will be able to provide inspection services within two business days of receiving a valid written request for inspection.

(6) The applicant shall have the option of retaining, at its own expense, a private professional provider to provide the required inspection, conducted in person, or virtually, for residential single construction trades, such as structural, plumbing, mechanical, or electrical and consisting of ten or less inspections, in accordance with the provisions of this Code section irrespective of whether the county or municipality determines that the personnel employed or contracted by such county or municipality can provide regulatory action or inspection services within the time frames required under paragraph (5) of this subsection. If the applicant elects to utilize the services of a private professional provider, the regulatory fees associated with such regulatory action shall be reduced by 50 percent and such reduced amount shall be paid to the county or municipality in accordance with such jurisdiction's policies. The local governing authority shall not charge any convenience fees when an applicant retains a private professional provider to provide the required inspection.

(7)(A) An applicant using a private professional provider pursuant to paragraph (6) of this subsection shall notify the local governing authority in writing at the time of the permit application, or by 2:00 P.M. two business days before the first scheduled inspection by the local governing authority that a private professional provider has been contracted to perform the required inspection. This notice shall include:

(i) The services to be performed by the private professional provider;

(ii) The name, firm, address, telephone number, and email address of the private professional provider performing such services;

(iii) A directory of licensed individuals who are eligible to perform such services;

(iv) The private professional provider's professional licenses or certification numbers;

(v) A certificate demonstrating professional liability insurance coverage in place for the private professional provider's firm, the private professional provider, and any duly authorized representative in the amounts required by this subsection; and

(vi) A written acknowledgment from the applicant in substantially the following form:

'I have elected to use one or more private professional providers to provide building code inspection services on the building or structure that is the subject of the enclosed permit application, as authorized by O.C.G.A. Section 8-2-26(g). I understand that the county or municipality may not perform the required building inspection to determine compliance with the applicable building codes, except to the extent specified in said codes. Instead the required building inspections will be performed by the licensed or certified personnel identified in the application. The law requires minimum insurance requirements for such personnel. By executing this form I acknowledge that I have made an inquiry regarding the competence of the licensed or certified personnel and the level of their insurance and am satisfied my interests are adequately protected. I agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless the county and/or municipality, and their building code enforcement personnel from any and all claims arising from my use of these licensed or certified personnel to perform building code inspection services with respect to the building or structure that is the subject of the enclosed permit application.'

(vii) The commissioner shall promulgate a notice form on the department website that meets the requirements of divisions (i) through (vi) of this subparagraph.

(B) If the applicant makes any changes to the listed private professional providers or services to be provided by such private professional providers, the applicant shall, within one business day after any change or within two business days of the next scheduled inspection, update the notice to reflect such changes.

(C) A change of private professional provider named in the permit application does not require a revision of the permit, and the local governing authority shall not charge a fee for making such change.

(8) Any inspection conducted either in person or virtually by a private professional provider shall be no less extensive than inspections conducted by county or municipal personnel.

(9) The person, firm, or corporation retaining a private professional provider to conduct an inspection shall be required to pay to the county or municipality which requires the inspection the regulatory fees and charges which are required by paragraph (6) of this subsection.

(10) All private professional providers providing inspection services pursuant to this subsection shall secure and maintain insurance coverage for professional liability (errors and omissions) insurance. The limits of such insurance shall be not less than $1 million per claim and $1 million in aggregate coverage for any project with a construction cost of $10 million or less and $2 million per claim and $2 million in aggregate coverage for any project with a construction cost of more than $10 million. Such insurance may be a practice policy or project-specific coverage. If the insurance is a practice policy, it shall contain prior acts coverage for the private professional provider. If the insurance is project-specific, it shall continue in effect for two years following the issuance of the certificate of final completion for the project. A local enforcement agency, local building official, or local government may establish, for private professional providers working within that jurisdiction, a system of registration listing the private professional providers within their stated areas of competency. The permit applicant shall verify compliance with the insurance requirements of this paragraph.

(11) The private professional provider shall be empowered to perform any inspection required by the governing authority of any county or municipality, including, but not limited to, inspections for footings, foundations, concrete slabs, framing, electrical, plumbing, heating ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC), or any and all other inspections necessary or required to determine compliance with all regulatory requirements and for the issuance of a building permit or certificate of occupancy by the governing authority of any county or municipality, provided that the inspection is within the scope of such private professional provider's area of competency; and provided, further, that a qualified inspector acting as a private professional provider shall only be empowered to perform an inspection within an area for which such qualified inspector has been issued a certification, license, or completion of training provided for in paragraph (2) of subsection (a) of Code Section 8-2-26.1. Nothing in this Code section shall authorize any private professional provider to issue a certificate of occupancy. Only a local governing authority shall be authorized to issue a certificate of occupancy.

(12) Upon submission by the private professional provider of a copy of his or her inspection report to the local governing authority, said local governing authority shall be required to accept the inspection of the private professional provider without the necessity of further inspection or approval by the inspectors or other personnel employed by the local governing authority unless said governing authority has notified the private professional provider, within two business days after the submission of the inspection report, that it finds the report incomplete or the inspection inadequate and has provided the private professional provider with a written description of the deficiencies and specific regulatory requirements that have not been adequately addressed.

(13) A local governing authority may provide for the prequalification of private professional providers who may perform inspections pursuant to this subsection. No ordinance implementing prequalification shall become effective until notice of the governing authority's intent to require prequalification and the specific requirements for prequalification have been advertised in the newspaper in which the sheriff's advertisements for that locality are published, and by any other methods such local authority ordinarily utilizes for notification of engineering, architecture, or construction related solicitations. The ordinance implementing prequalification shall provide for evaluation of the qualifications of a private professional provider only on the basis of the private professional provider's expertise with respect to the objectives of this subsection, as demonstrated by the private professional provider's experience, education, and training.

(14) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to limit any public or private right of action designed to provide protection, rights, or remedies for consumers.

(15) If the local building official determines that the building construction does not comply with the applicable regulatory requirements, the official may deny the permit or request for a certificate of occupancy or certificate of completion, as appropriate, or may issue a stop-work order for the project or any portion thereof as provided by law, after giving notice to the owner, the architect of record, the engineer of record, or the contractor of record and by posting a copy of the order on the site of the project and opportunity to remedy the violation within the time limits set forth in the notice, if the official determines noncompliance with regulatory requirements, provided that:

(A) A local building official shall be available to meet with the private professional provider within two business days to resolve any dispute after issuing a stop-work order or providing notice to the applicant denying a permit or request for a certificate of occupancy or certificate of completion; and

(B) If the local building official and the private professional provider are unable to resolve the dispute or meet within the time required by this Code section, the matter shall be referred to the local enforcement agency's board of appeals, if one exists, which shall consider the matter not later than its next scheduled meeting. Any decisions by the local official, if there is no board of appeals, may be appealed to the Department of Community Affairs as provided in this chapter. The Department of Community Affairs shall develop rules and regulations which shall establish reasonable time frames and fees to carry out the provisions of this paragraph.

(16) The local government, a local building official, and local building code enforcement personnel and agents of the local government shall be immune from liability to any person or party for any action or inaction by an owner of a building or by a private professional provider or its duly authorized representative in connection with inspection services by private professional providers as provided in this subsection.

(17) No local enforcement agency, local code official, or local government shall adopt or enforce any rules, procedures, policies, qualifications, or standards more stringent than those prescribed in this subsection. This subsection shall not preempt any local laws, rules, or procedures relating to the plan submittal process of local governing authorities.

(18) Nothing in this subsection shall limit the authority of a local code official to issue a stop-work order for a building project or any portion of such project, which may go into effect immediately as provided by law, after giving notice and opportunity to remedy the violation, if the official determines that a condition on the building site constitutes an immediate threat to public safety and welfare. A stop-work order issued for reasons of immediate threat to public safety and welfare shall be appealable to the local enforcement agency's board of appeals, if one exists, in the manner provided by applicable law. Any decisions by the local official, if there is no board of appeals, may be appealed to the Department of Community Affairs as provided in this chapter.

(19) When performing inspection services, a private professional provider is subject to the disciplinary guidelines of the applicable professional licensing board with jurisdiction over such private professional provider's license or certification under Chapters 4 and 15 of Title 43, as applicable. Any complaint processing, investigation, and discipline that arise out of a private professional provider's performance of inspection services shall be conducted by the applicable professional licensing board. Notwithstanding any disciplinary rules of the applicable professional licensing board with jurisdiction over such private professional provider's license or certification under Chapters 4 and 15 of Title 43, any local building official may decline to accept inspection services submitted by any private professional provider who has submitted multiple reports which required revisions due to negligence, noncompliance, or deficiencies.

(20) Nothing in this subsection shall apply to inspections exempted in Code Section 8-2-26.1.

(21) To the extent that a provision of this Code section conflicts with requirements of federal laws or regulations or impairs a county's or municipality's receipt of federal funds, such provision shall not apply."

SECTION 2.

This Act shall become effective on July 1, 2026, and shall apply to all inspections occurring on or after such date.

SECTION 3.

All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.