Casey County, Kentucky Building Permit Guide

Casey County’s permit picture comes almost entirely from state and health-district sources. The state Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction (HBC) lists a local building inspector on its Casey County contact sheet, updated February 25, 2026, but gives only that person’s own e-mail and mobile number, and no county office, building ordinance or fee schedule is published online. Plumbing and HVAC permits are state permits, septic systems go through the Casey County Health Department in Liberty, and the county does not take part in the National Flood Insurance Program, which matters for anyone financing a building near a creek.

What requires a building permit in Casey County?

No Casey County building ordinance is published, so the published sources do not say which jobs need a county permit or whether a one-family house does. The sheet’s inspector entry shows that some local inspection exists, but it does not say what that inspector covers. The state rules are published, and they apply here whatever the local arrangement turns out to be.

Where a county has no single-family inspection program, the state says the builder must still meet the Kentucky Residential Code, and the only inspections a house receives are of its mechanical systems, by the state HVAC division, and of its wiring, by the local electrical inspector. Whether Casey County’s listed inspector adds building inspections of houses is the first question to ask.

What the county decides and what the state holds

Kentucky counties may enforce the state codes but may not write their own, so any Casey County program would apply the same Kentucky Building and Residential Codes. The state keeps the large and higher-risk buildings its code reserves to HBC, all plumbing and HVAC permits (Casey is not on the state’s list of local HVAC programs, updated May 13, 2025), manufactured home installation, elevators and boilers, and every trade license. The county’s own role, as far as published sources show, is local electrical inspection through the judge/executive’s office and its roads.

Casey County building department: who handles permitting

The Casey County sheet names a local building inspector, then the state building inspector, manufactured housing inspector, electrical, elevator, HVAC, plumbing and boiler inspectors assigned to the county; it gives no office address or office phone for the local inspector. With no county website, the reliable first call is the state: HBC’s portal support line, 502-573-0365, or its Building Codes section, 502-573-0373, which answers plan-review jurisdiction questions and can say how to reach the inspector.

Cities in Casey County

Liberty’s own zoning, if any, and any city permit rules are not posted with the state or health-district sources. Ask at the city office before building inside Liberty, and ask whether the county’s listed inspector works inside the city limits.

Casey County permit types and supporting documents

Most of the paperwork for a Casey County project is filed with state divisions through the SmartGov portal or with the health department in Liberty. The portal asks you first to decide whether a project is under local, expanded or state jurisdiction, which is why the jurisdiction call to HBC comes before anything else here.

Residential permits

For a new house, the documents the published sources ask for are septic ones: a floor plan showing bedrooms, laundry, kitchen and baths, signed by the owner, builder or developer, goes in with the septic site application. Plumbing is permitted to a licensed master plumber, or to an owner doing the work personally in a home they live in or are building for themselves; the owner files an affidavit before work begins and may get only one new-home permit in five years. HVAC permits are bought by licensed or authorized people. A manufactured home is set up under the state’s manufactured housing section, which assigns an inspector to the county.

Building or remodeling a home here? Alliance handles home building permits, so the crew isn't waiting on the counter.

Commercial permits

Shops, churches, offices, apartments and other non-house buildings follow the Kentucky Building Code’s split between local and state review. The largest and higher-risk buildings go to HBC with full construction documents; for anything smaller, confirm with HBC whether Casey County’s local inspector or the state takes the review, because no county page describes the local program’s scope. Commercial plumbing has its own state plan review and permit, and modular buildings need a state-approved site plan, foundation and tie-down details.

For tenant improvements and new commercial builds, Alliance handles commercial permit filing through issuance. More on this: commercial building permits explained.

What comes before the building permit

• Lot size. A lot created after January 1, 2007 for a home on septic must have at least 22,000 square feet under the Lake Cumberland District Board of Health regulation.
• Subdivision. Three or more building lots need health district approval first; the plat and a topographic map are filed in duplicate.
• Septic. Site evaluation and permit at the Casey County Health Department.
• Sewer and water. Where public sewer or water is available, the lot must connect, and no water meter may be set without a state plumbing permit.
• Deeds and plats. Recorded at the County Clerk’s office on Campbellsville Street.
• State road access. A Kentucky Transportation Cabinet permit for an entrance, a culvert change or a utility line in a state highway right-of-way, through the District 8 permits office in Somerset.

Casey County building-permit costs and fees

No Casey County building permit fee schedule or fiscal court fee order is published; ask the local inspector or the judge/executive’s office for any county charge in writing before you budget. The fees that are published are the state’s plumbing fees, in force since March 1, 2022, and the health district’s septic fees:

Worked example. A three-bedroom house on septic with 14 plumbing openings pays $227 for the site evaluation, $271 for the septic permit and $50 + (14 × $14) = $246 for the state plumbing permit: $744 before the HVAC permit, which the portal prices when the contractor buys it, and any local electrical inspection fee. State plan review fees apply to buildings HBC reviews.

Trade permits and who may pull them

• Electrical. The state portal does not issue electrical permits for private property. The Casey County sheet sends applicants to the county judge/executive’s office, or to the city office for work in Liberty, to reach the local electrical inspector; a state electrical inspector is also assigned to the county. Before the utility energizes an unsewered building, the health department must issue an electric release sticker: a temporary one once the site is found suitable for septic (not for RVs or mobile homes) and a permanent one after the system passes inspection.
• Plumbing. State permit and inspection; the health department cannot issue plumbing permits, but the state plumbing inspector holds desk hours there on Monday mornings from 8:00 to 9:30 Eastern. The septic permit comes first, because the plumbing inspector writes the water permit only after receiving a copy of it. A farm dwelling and farm buildings on 10 acres or more outside Liberty’s limits can qualify for the state farmstead exemption if the land is in bona fide agricultural use and registered with the PVA.
• HVAC. A state HVAC permit is required for all new construction and is sold only to licensed or authorized applicants; the state HVAC inspector for the county inspects.
• Licenses. HBC licenses electricians, master and journeyman plumbers and HVAC contractors. Kentucky has no state general-contractor license, and no Casey County contractor registration is published.

How to apply for permits in Casey County

Review, corrections and what causes delay

The septic sequence sets the pace on rural sites: the soil cannot be evaluated until two to four backhoe pits, 42 inches deep and 50 to 100 feet apart, are dug and the health department is told they are ready, and the permanent electric release waits for the installed system to pass. Unanswered jurisdiction questions are the other common stall, since a project filed with the wrong office has to start over; settle who reviews it before drawings are finished.

Casey County building inspections and final approval

On a state-reviewed building, HBC’s inspector checks the work against the approved plans. The septic system is inspected by the health department after installation, plumbing by the state plumbing inspector, heating and cooling by the state HVAC inspector, and wiring by the local electrical inspector. Manufactured homes, elevators and boilers have their own state inspectors on the county sheet. Ask the local building inspector which building inspections, if any, a house in Casey County receives and whether any certificate is issued at the end.

Kentucky building code in Casey County

Casey County appears in FEMA’s Community Status Book among the communities that do not participate in the National Flood Insurance Program: a flood hazard map was identified, the sanction date is December 13, 1975, and the current flood hazard map is dated May 23, 2023. As a result, federally backed flood insurance is not available in unincorporated Casey County, and federally backed loans and grants for buildings in mapped flood zones are restricted. Check the flood map before buying or building near a river or creek, and ask a lender early.

Kentucky has one mandatory statewide building code that local governments may not add to. Cities and counties enforce it and run zoning. The state reviews plans for larger and higher-risk buildings, and the local program reviews smaller ones. Kentucky rules

Permit search and official resources

State building, HVAC and plumbing permits for Casey County projects are applied for and tracked in the SmartGov portal. Recorded deeds and plats are kept by the County Clerk, whose office also offers a free alert service that e-mails owners when a deed or mortgage is recorded in their name. Septic permit records sit with the health department.

• State contact sheet for Casey County inspectors (Feb. 25, 2026)
• State inspector contact sheets, all counties
• State building codes: local and state jurisdiction
• State Division of Building Code Enforcement
• State SmartGov permit portal
• State plumbing permits and fees
• State plumbing FAQ: homeowner and farmstead rules
• State HVAC permits
• State list of local HVAC jurisdictions
• Casey County Health Department
• New home on-site sewage steps and fees
• Septic electric release stickers
• Lot size regulation for septic lots
• Health district note on plumbing permits
• Casey County Clerk
• Kentucky Transportation Cabinet permits
• KYTC district permit offices
• Kentucky highway districts by county
• FEMA Community Status Book, Kentucky

Casey County building permit FAQ

Does Casey County have a building inspector?

The state contact sheet updated February 25, 2026 lists one, with personal contact details only; ask HBC at 502-573-0373 how to reach the inspector and what the inspector covers.

Can I buy flood insurance in Casey County?

Not federally backed flood insurance in the unincorporated county, because Casey County does not participate in the National Flood Insurance Program.

Where do I get a septic permit?

The Casey County Health Department in Liberty (606-787-6911): $227 for the site evaluation, then $271 for the permit, applied for by a certified installer.

Can I do my own plumbing?

Yes, in a home you live in or are building for yourself, with a state homeowner permit and affidavit taken out before work begins.

How big must a new septic lot be?

At least 22,000 square feet for a lot created after January 1, 2007.

Who handles electrical inspections?

The local electrical inspector, reached through the county judge/executive’s office or the Liberty city office.

Why will the power company not connect my new house?

An unsewered building needs a health department electric release sticker first.

Simplify Casey County permitting with Alliance Permitting

Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company in Kentucky. We prepare your paperwork, file it correctly and coordinate with the permitting authority through issuance. We are not a contractor and we do not perform licensed plan review or inspections; that work stays with your licensed team and the jurisdiction.

This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Casey County permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.