Green County, Kentucky Building Permit Guide

Green County has no local building inspection program on the state’s contact sheet, updated September 15, 2026. Commercial buildings, three-plus-unit apartments and other non-residential buildings go to the state Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction (HBC) for plan review and inspection before work starts, and the published sources show no local building permit for houses. What a house build does need runs through the Green County Health Department at 220 Industrial Park Road, Greensburg (270-932-4341): a $227 site evaluation and $271 septic permit, electrical release stickers, and the state plumbing inspector’s Wednesday office hour.

What requires a permit in Green County?

For a county without a local program, the state building code exempts only dwellings under the Kentucky Residential Code (houses, duplexes and townhouses); every other construction project goes to the state’s Division of Building Codes Enforcement for approval before it starts. Those homes must still meet the Residential Code, but they get no building inspections; only their HVAC systems, inspected by the state, and their wiring, inspected by the electrical inspector, are checked.

What the county decides and what the state holds

A Kentucky county can choose to run a building inspection program for the uniform state codes; Green County is not listed with one. HBC therefore holds plan review and inspection for every building other than a home anywhere in the county, Greensburg included, and it runs plumbing and HVAC permitting everywhere. Ask the Judge/Executive’s office whether the fiscal court has adopted any local building, floodplain or road requirement.

Green County building department: who handles permitting

HBC’s Green County contact sheet lists the state building, manufactured housing, electrical, elevator, HVAC, plumbing and boiler inspectors who cover the county, and the local health department for septic and plumbing permits. It sends electrical questions to the Judge/Executive’s office or the city office where the work is done.

Greensburg, the only city

Green County permit types

With no local building department, the permits a Green County project collects come from the state and the health department.

Residential permits

For a new house on an unsewered lot, the first permit is the health department’s. The owner applies for a site evaluation with a floor plan, digs two to four backhoe test pits 42 inches deep and 50 to 100 feet apart in the proposed system area, and tells the department they are ready. After the soil is evaluated, the owner receives a system write-up and a temporary electric sticker; a certified septic installer then applies for the septic permit with a detailed drawing. Recreational vehicles and mobile homes get no temporary sticker. The plumbing inspector receives a copy of the septic permit, which releases the water (plumbing) permit.

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

Commercial permits

Businesses, three-plus-unit apartment buildings, churches, schools and every other non-house building go to HBC’s Division of Building Codes Enforcement for plan review before construction, and HBC’s state building inspector inspects them. Plumbing plans for buildings serving the public are reviewed by HBC’s Division of Plumbing.

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

What comes before the building permit

• Lot size. Under the Lake Cumberland District Board of Health’s regulation, effective January 1, 2007, a lot created after that date for a home must have at least 22,000 square feet, and it is approved either because it will be served by approved public sewer and water or because it has 22,000 square feet of soil rated suitable or provisionally suitable for a septic system.
• Subdivisions. Anyone dividing land into three or more building lots needs the district health department’s approval first, with the plat and a topographic map submitted in duplicate.
• Public water. No water meter may be installed until an HBC plumbing permit has been issued, and where public water or sewer is available, connection is required.
• State roads. An entrance onto a state highway needs a Kentucky Transportation Cabinet permit from District 4.
• Flood zones. Green County participates in the National Flood Insurance Program; ask the Judge/Executive’s office about floodplain review before building in a mapped flood zone.

Green County permit fees

There is no local building permit fee because there is no local program; state plan review fees for non-house buildings are charged by HBC. The district health department and HBC publish these fees:

Trade permits and who may pull them

• Electrical. Contact the Judge/Executive’s office, or Greensburg’s city office for work in the city, for the local electrical inspector; the HBC sheet also lists the state electrical inspector for the county. Any electric service on property not served by municipal sewer needs an electrical release from the health department: a temporary release once the site is found suitable for septic, and a permanent one after the septic system passes. HBC licenses electricians, and an owner may wire their own home with a permit.
• Plumbing. HBC’s state plumbing inspector holds office hours at the health department on Wednesdays from 1 to 2 p.m. Central. HBC issues plumbing permits to licensed master plumbers or to homeowners for plumbing in their own personal residence.
• HVAC. Licensed contractors buy HVAC permits from HBC through the SmartGov portal, and a state HVAC inspector covers the county.
• Septic installers. Only a certified installer can apply for the septic permit; the district health department lists them.

How to get permits for a Green County project

Review, corrections and what causes delay

The site evaluation cannot proceed until the test pits are dug, and the septic permit waits for the installer’s detailed drawing. A lot under the 22,000 square foot minimum needs a variance from the district Board of Health, its director or a designee, granted only where hardship is shown and no public health nuisance results. Non-house buildings wait for HBC plan approval before construction can start.

Inspections in Green County

A house in Green County gets no building inspections under HBC’s rule for places without a local program. It does get the state HVAC inspection, the electrical inspection, the state plumbing inspections and the health department’s inspection of the septic system before it is covered, after which the permanent electric sticker is issued. HBC’s state building inspector inspects the commercial and other buildings HBC approved, and manufactured home installations have their own state inspector.

Kentucky building code

HBC enforces the 2018 Kentucky Building Code on non-house buildings in Green County; a house must still be built to the 2018 Kentucky Residential Code even without local inspections. FEMA’s Community Status Book lists Green County as participating in the National Flood Insurance Program, with a current flood map dated May 3, 2010.

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

Green County permit search and official resources

State plan approvals and trade permits are HBC records (HVAC permits run through HBC’s SmartGov portal); septic records are held by the Green County Health Department.

• HBC Green County inspector contact sheet
• HBC Contact an Inspector: county sheets
• HBC Building Codes: state and local jurisdiction
• HBC Division of Plumbing: permits and fees
• HBC Division of HVAC
• HBC SmartGov portal
• Green County Health Department
• New home on-site sewage disposal steps and fees
• Septic electric release stickers
• Lake Cumberland lot size regulation for private wastewater systems
• Certified septic tank installers
• KYTC district permit contacts
• FEMA Community Status Book, Kentucky

Green County permit FAQs

Does Green County issue building permits?

The state’s contact sheet lists no local building inspection program, so HBC reviews every building except houses, duplexes and townhouses.

Do I need a building permit for a house in Green County?

The published sources show no local building permit for a house; you still need septic, plumbing, HVAC and electrical permits and inspections.

How much does a septic permit cost?

$227 for the site evaluation and $271 for the septic permit, paid to the Lake Cumberland District Health Department.

How big must a lot be for a septic system?

Lots created after January 1, 2007 need at least 22,000 square feet, and without public sewer and water that area must be suitable or provisionally suitable soil, under the district Board of Health’s regulation.

When is the plumbing inspector in Greensburg?

Wednesdays from 1 to 2 p.m. Central at the health department, 220 Industrial Park Road (270-932-4341).

Why do I need an electrical release from the health department?

Any electric service on property without municipal sewer needs one; it confirms the septic site or system is approved.

Simplify Green 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 Green County permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.