KRS 198B.060: Local enforcement of Uniform State Building Code -- Workers'

compensation coverage requirement -- Informal hearing -- Appeal.

(1) Each local government shall employ a building official or inspector and other code

enforcement personnel as nec essary, or shall contract for inspection and code

enforcement services in accordance with subsections (8) and (11) of this section to

enforce the Uniform State Building Code within the boundaries of its jurisdiction,

except that permits, inspections, and c ertificates of occupancy shall not be

mandatory for single -family residences unless a local government passes an

ordinance requiring inspections of single-family residences.

(2) (a) Local governments shall be responsible for the examination and approval or

disapproval of plans and specifications for churches having a capacity of four

hundred (400) or less persons, and six thousand (6,000) or less square feet of

total floor area, and buildings of no more than three (3) stories in height,

exclusive of attic a nd basement, which do not contain more than twenty

thousand (20,000) square feet of floor area, and are not intended for

educational, institutional, or high hazard occupancy; or assembly, business, or

industrial occupancy in excess of one hundred (100) per sons, except churches

as stated in this subsection, or for use as a frozen food locker plant as defined

in KRS 221.010.

(b) Local governments shall be responsible for the issuance and revocation of

building permits, licenses, certificates, and similar docu ments which cover

activities within their area of responsibility, and the inspection of all buildings

pursuant to this chapter and the Uniform State Building Code. Each local

government issuing a building or demolition permit or an initial certificate of

occupancy on a new structure shall send a copy of the permit or certificate to

the commissioner for his or her use in maintaining an accurate housing

inventory for Kentucky.

(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (a) of this subsection or the

provisions of KRS 162.060, local governments may have jurisdiction for plan

review, inspection, and enforcement responsibility over buildings intended for

educational purposes, other than licensed day -care centers, but only when

agreed to in writing by the loca l government and the department. Copies of

documentation related to plan review, inspection, and enforcement shall be

provided to the Kentucky Department of Education at the time they are issued

to the district. Any agreements relating to expanded jurisdic tion in effect on

July 14, 2022, may be amended accordingly.

(3) Urban-county governments may determine service districts within their boundaries

within which farm dwellings and other farm buildings, not used in the business of

retail trade or as a place of regular employment for ten (10) or more people, shall be

exempt from the requirements of the Uniform State Building Code. The

determination may be reviewed and altered by the department.

(4) (a) With the exception of single -family dwellings, the departme nt shall be

responsible for the examination and approval or disapproval of plans and

specifications for all buildings which are not the responsibility of local

governments. The department may issue and revoke permits, licenses,

certificates, and similar do cuments within its area of responsibility, and shall

have concurrent jurisdiction with local governments for the inspection of all

buildings pursuant to this chapter and the Uniform State Building Code.

(b) If the commissioner determines that the local jur isdiction is not adequately

performing any portion of its program, the department may preempt that

portion of a local program, except that the department shall not preempt or

assert jurisdiction for the enforcement of the code on single -family dwellings.

The commissioner shall explain his or her reasons for preemption in writing

and provide a copy to the local jurisdiction.

(c) The local jurisdiction may appeal the preemption directly to the

commissioner, and the department shall review the appeal according to the

procedures found in subsections (8) to (10) of KRS 198B.070. No preemption

by the commissioner shall take place until a final decision has been issued in

an appeal under this subsection.

(d) If the department preempts any portion of a local program, it shall collect the

fees applicable to that portion of the program.

(5) (a) Any local government may petition the commissioner requesting that

additional plan review functions be allocated to that local government. The

petition shall include evidence of the local government's capability to perform

additional plan review functions.

(b) The commissioner, after review of the petition and supporting evidence, may

grant or deny to the local government a ny part of a request for additional

responsibility. If the commissioner denies any part of a petition, he or she

shall explain his or her reasons for denial in writing, and provide a copy to the

local government.

(c) A local government may appeal the denia l directly to the commissioner, and

the department shall review the appeal according to the procedures found in

subsections (8) to (10) of KRS 198B.070.

(d) If the local government is granted additional responsibility by the

commissioner, the department sh all hold concurrent jurisdiction over the

additional responsibility, but the local government shall collect any fees for

functions it performs pursuant to the additional responsibility.

(6) Any local government may also petition the commissioner requesting that plans and

specifications inspection, building inspection, and approval responsibility relating

to the application of local plumbing permits for local installations be allocated to

the local government. The petition shall not be granted unless the loc al government

has demonstrated to the commissioner that it can perform these functions in

accordance with KRS 198B.050 to 198B.090.

(7) The commissioner shall expedite the review of plans and specifications by

assigning responsibilities and coordinating review activities among the department's

various functional divisions so as to prevent unnecessary duplication in the review

of plans and specifications.

(8) No building shall be constructed in this state until a local building official and an

official repre senting the department, if the department has jurisdiction, issue a

permit for the construction. Nothing in this subsection shall require a single -family

dwelling to be permitted or inspected unless a local government has established a

building inspection program as set out in this section.

(9) The local building official or the representative of the department shall issue a

permit if the proposed building satisfies the requirements of the Uniform State

Building Code and if the party desiring to construct t he building has complied with

all other legal requirements concerning the location and construction of the

building. The applicant for a building permit, by the act of applying for the permit,

shall be deemed to have consented to inspection by the local go vernment or the

department, of the building during construction and upon the completion of

construction for the purpose of determining that the building is constructed in

compliance with the Uniform State Building Code.

(10) (a) No permit for building, con struction, reconstruction, renovation, demolition,

or maintenance or for any activity related to building, construction,

reconstruction, renovation, demolition, or maintenance shall be issued by any

building department or by any political subdivision of th e Commonwealth of

Kentucky to any person seeking the permit unless the person shall assure, by

affidavit, that all contractors and subcontractors employed, or that will be

employed, on activity covered by the permit shall be in compliance with

Kentucky req uirements for workers' compensation insurance according to

KRS Chapter 342 and unemployment insurance according to KRS Chapter

341.

(b) Any person who fails to comply with the assurances required under paragraph

(a) of this subsection upon such finding by a court of competent jurisdiction,

shall be fined an amount not to exceed four thousand dollars ($4,000) or an

amount equal to the sum of all uninsured and unsatisfied claims brought under

the provisions of KRS Chapter 342 and unemployment insurance claims for

which no wages were reported as required by KRS Chapter 341, whichever is

greater.

(c) The penalty imposed in paragraph (b) of this subsection shall be enforced by

the county attorney for the county in which the violation occurred.

(11) A certified el ectrical inspector shall be employed by, or contracted for, or

contracted with a local government having responsibility over buildings described

in this section as part of its building inspection program. After a certified electrical

inspector has been pro vided for by the local government or the department, no

utility shall initiate permanent electrical service to any new building, or any

building which has been moved, until a final certificate of approval has been issued

by a certified electrical inspector . Unless the department shall notify the utility in

writing as to which buildings are subject to department approval, it shall be

presumed by the utility that the building is subject to the jurisdiction of the local

government. However, nothing in this sec tion shall prohibit the supply or use of

necessary electrical services during the construction and testing process.

(12) This section shall apply to industrialized building systems, but destructive

disassembly of industrialized building systems which carry a seal of approval

pursuant to a manufactured building law in the state in which they were

manufactured, which seal of approval is accepted by the department, shall not be

performed in order to conduct the tests or inspections.

(13) No building on which c onstruction was begun nor any industrialized building

system on which site preparation and assembly were begun after the Uniform State

Building Code became effective shall be occupied until the local building official or

a representative of the department issues a certificate of occupancy certifying that

the building was constructed in conformance with the standards of the Uniform

State Building Code, or assembled or installed in conformance with applicable

instructions. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to require a certificate of

occupancy to be issued for any single -family dwelling unless a local government

has established jurisdiction for the enforcement of the Uniform State Building Code

under this section.

(14) A local government may associ ate with other local governments, and may seek the

technical assistance of other agencies or area development districts in order to

provide for the local enforcement of the Uniform State Building Code.

(15) Local governments or associations of local govern ments may contract with a

person, firm, or company to perform the plans and specifications inspection or

building inspection functions required of the local government by the provisions of

this section if:

(a) The person performing the plans and specificat ions inspection is certified by

the department as having successfully completed the test requirements

provided by KRS 198B.090 to practice as a certified plans and specifications

inspector;

(b) The person performing the building inspection is certified by the department

as having successfully completed the test requirements provided in KRS

198B.090 to practice as a certified building inspector;

(c) The person, firm, or company does not have a conflict of interest between its

plan review or inspection functi ons and any other employment or business

activities;

(d) The person performing the plumbing inspection is certified by the department

as having successfully completed the requirements provided in KRS 318.140

to practice as a certified plumbing inspector; and

(e) The person, firm, or company does not have a conflict of interest between its

plan review or inspection functions and any other employment or business

activities.

(16) If the department has reason to believe that an inspector is not enforcing, or is

improperly enforcing, the provisions of the Kentucky building codes, it shall

conduct an informal hearing to review the inspector's procedures and return in

written form the required corrections resulting from the hearing to the inspector, or

may take action to suspend or revoke the inspector's certificate.

(17) If the inspector fails to comply within sixty (60) days of a written notification from

the department that specifies the required corrections, the department shall suspend

the inspector's certifica tion until the inspector complies. Any action to suspend or

revoke an inspector's certificate may be appealed to the department, and upon

appeal an administrative hearing shall be conducted in accordance with KRS

Chapter 13B.

(18) Each local government and the department may establish a schedule of fees for the

functions performed under this chapter. The fees shall be designed to fully cover,

but shall not exceed, the cost of the service performed. Fees payable to the

department shall be paid into the State Treasury and credited to a trust and agency

fund to be used by the department in carrying out this chapter. No part of this fund

shall revert to the general fund of the Commonwealth.