Hopkins County, Kentucky Building Permit Guide

Hopkins County has a local building inspection program. The fiscal court adopted minimum construction requirements by ordinance, and the Hopkins County Joint Planning Commission’s Building Permit Department at 67 North Main Street, Madisonville (270-825-4457, weekdays 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.) issues permits for the unincorporated county and the smaller cities. HBC’s county contact sheet, updated May 5, 2026, lists the City of Madisonville’s building and HVAC inspector for both city and county, and the county’s HVAC permit form is issued by the Office of the Building Official at the same address. Permits take five to seven business days once the file is complete.

What requires a building permit in Hopkins County?

The county’s permit package states the rule plainly: before any construction, alteration or repair other than ordinary repairs, get a permit. Ordinary repairs are nonstructural ones, and the package spells out that they do not include adding, altering, replacing or relocating water, sewer, drainage, gas, soil, waste or vent piping, electrical wiring or mechanical work. A house is covered: the residential fee schedule prices new homes, additions, basements and accessory buildings.

The agricultural exemption is narrower than lot size alone. The affidavit requires agricultural land as defined in KRS 132.010 (generally ten contiguous acres in farm production), a structure on that farm, owners who live on the land, and no use for retail trade, as a regular workplace for ten or more people or for timber processing or storage.

What the county decides and what the state holds

Locally, the fiscal court set the minimum construction requirements and the joint planning commission runs the permit office, addressing and subdivision review. The commission’s zoning page carries zoning ordinances only for Dawson Springs, Earlington, Hanson, Madisonville and Mortons Gap, and its residential fee schedule groups the unincorporated county with Nebo, St. Charles and Nortonville as places without zoning. The state reviews the larger buildings: under section 104.16 of the 2018 Kentucky Building Code, HBC handles assembly, business, factory and mercantile buildings for more than 100 people (church buildings only above 400 people and 6,000 square feet), all educational, high-hazard and institutional buildings, and anything over three stories or 20,000 square feet.

Hopkins County building department: who handles permitting

The joint planning commission was set up in 1967 by Hopkins County and the cities of Madisonville, Earlington, Hanson, Dawson Springs and Mortons Gap. Its planning director is Katie Wyatt, and it shares Madisonville City Hall’s address.

Cities in Hopkins County

The commission’s residential fee schedule names the cities its Building Permit Department serves, split by whether they have zoning. Madisonville keeps its own building permit desk.

Hopkins County permit types

One building application covers houses, additions, accessory buildings and commercial work. It asks for the PVA parcel number, zoning, the FIRM flood map panel and zone, the septic permit number, the electric and water utilities and any agricultural exemption number, and it comes with a notarized affidavit and a workers’ compensation verification sheet naming the general contractor and every subcontractor from excavating to roofing.

Residential permits

A house needs a copy of the deed or recorded plat, building plans drawn to scale (by a registered architect where that applies), a plot plan, the Hopkins County environmentalist’s approval of a site evaluation or existing septic system, the application, the affidavit and the workers’ compensation form. Calling 270-825-4457 for an appointment shortens the wait. The fee is worked out on the residential review fee worksheet from the outside dimensions, counting every area under roof.

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

Commercial permits

Commercial plans use the county’s plan review fee worksheet, with checks payable to the Hopkins County Joint Planning Commission, and a statement of special inspections from the designer where Chapter 17 of the Kentucky Building Code applies. Buildings over HBC’s thresholds go to the state through its SmartGov portal.

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

What comes before the building permit

• Construction-activity registration and septic. Where sewer is not available, the health department issues a site evaluation permit and a septic installation permit before the building permit, and it will not do the evaluation until the commission has issued a Certificate of Registration of Construction Activity.
• Address. The commission assigns 911 addresses from the driveway location; bring an exhibit showing it and allow five to seven business days.
• Driveway. State roads through District 2 of the Transportation Cabinet, county roads through the county road department, city streets through that city’s hall.
• Flood zone. A state stream construction permit and a local floodplain development permit from the commission are both needed before any work starts.
• Large sites. Clearing more than one acre means contacting the Division of Water office at 270-824-7529.
• Subdivision. New lots follow the Hopkins County subdivision regulations, or Madisonville’s inside that city.

Hopkins County permit costs and fees

The commission’s residential fee schedule (revised January 2020) applies in the unincorporated county and the cities it serves. Fees for accessory buildings depend on whether the place has zoning.

Worked example: a new house measuring 2,000 square feet under roof, garage and porch included, costs $125 + 2,000 × $0.08 = $285. A single heat pump adds a $105 HVAC permit; plumbing, electrical and septic permits are separate.

For commercial work the county worksheet charges the cost per square foot for the occupancy times the area, or for alterations 0.0025 of the cost or the area rate, whichever is less, plus a $50 administrative fee, with a minimum of $300 in all. The rates printed on the back of the worksheet are the 2006 Kentucky Building Code table (13 cents a square foot for business or mercantile, 14 cents for assembly); the state’s own 2018 code charges different rates with a $285 minimum, so confirm the current per-foot figure with the office. A refund is possible only before any plan review or inspection, less an administrative fee.

Trade permits and who may pull them

• Heating and air conditioning. Permits are issued on the county’s own HVAC form by the Office of the Building Official at 67 North Main, with fees set by the state HVAC board; the form asks for the contractor’s license number, heat gain, heat loss and equipment size. A homeowner may do his or her own HVAC work with a permit.
• Plumbing. Through the Hopkins County Health Department (270-821-5242). The state plumbing inspector’s office hours there are Monday, Tuesday and Thursday from 8 to 9:30 a.m. Central. The package says plumbing is installed under the supervision of a Kentucky licensed master plumber and inspected by the state inspector; HBC’s plumbing division also issues permits to homeowners for plumbing in their own residence.
• Electrical. Inspected separately from the building permit by a local electrical inspector; HBC’s sheet lists one for the county and the permit package names whom to call.
• Contractors. Kentucky has no general contractor license. The application asks for a business license number and proof of workers’ compensation for the general contractor and each subcontractor before a permit issues.

How to get a building permit in Hopkins County

Review, corrections and what causes delay

Processing takes five to seven business days after the submittal is complete; an appointment helps. On a septic lot the order matters: the health department cannot evaluate the site until the construction activity is registered, and the building permit waits for the septic permits. Changing window sizes, the intended use or the completion date without telling the inspector or the commission is grounds for revoking the permit, and a project still unfinished after six months must file a construction schedule and keep it updated or lose the permit and its fees.

Inspections in Hopkins County

Give the Building Official listed on the permit 24 hours’ notice. The building inspector checks three stages: the footer (clean, the right size and depth, rebar tied in place, before concrete; post holes if there is no footer), the rough frame after electrical and plumbing rough-in and before insulation or drywall, and the final before anyone moves in, once every electrical, plumbing and gas inspection has passed. A certificate of occupancy follows where it applies, and the inspector may add other inspections. Once construction is complete, a county GIS data collection vehicle visits the site to record 911 location data.

Kentucky building code

The fiscal court enforces the Kentucky Residential and Building Codes through the joint planning commission’s permit office and the county Building Official. Hopkins County participates in the National Flood Insurance Program (community 210112) with a current effective flood map dated May 16, 2008; Madisonville participates separately (210115) on the same map date.

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

Hopkins County permit search and official resources

No online permit search is posted. Permit, address and floodplain records are kept at the joint planning commission, 67 North Main Street; e-mail hcjpc@hopkinscounty.net or call 270-825-4457 to ask for a file. The commission also posts the county floodplain map and the Madisonville and county subdivision regulations.

• Hopkins County Joint Planning Commission
• Building permit package and inspection guide (2020)
• Residential building permit fee schedule (rev. 1/20)
• Commercial plan review fee worksheet (rev. 1/20)
• Agricultural exemption affidavit
• Hopkins County HVAC permit
• Hopkins County HVAC permit fees
• City zoning ordinances
• Subdivision regulations
• Addressing ordinance and guidelines
• Floodplain
• City of Madisonville zoning and engineering
• Madisonville building permit instructions
• Madisonville fee schedule (2022)
• HBC county contact sheet, Hopkins County (updated May 5, 2026)
• HBC building codes: state and local jurisdiction
• 2018 Kentucky Building Code, Fourth Edition
• HBC Division of Plumbing
• HBC SmartGov portal
• Kentucky Transportation Cabinet permits
• FEMA Community Status Book, Kentucky

Hopkins County permit FAQs

Do I need a permit to build a house in rural Hopkins County?

Yes. The joint planning commission issues building permits for the unincorporated county, and the Building Official inspects the footer, framing and final.

How much is a permit for a new house?

$125 plus 8 cents per square foot of area under roof, so a 2,000-square-foot house is $285.

Do I need a permit for a small shed?

A permit, yes; a fee, not always. In the unincorporated county, Nebo, St. Charles and Nortonville, an accessory building under 300 square feet is free and one of 300 to 500 square feet is $50. In the zoned cities anything under 500 square feet is $50.

Are farm buildings exempt?

Yes, outside city limits, if the land qualifies as agricultural under KRS 132.010, the building serves the farm the owners live on, and the notarized affidavit is filed.

How long does a permit take?

Five to seven business days after the submittal is complete. A new 911 address takes another five to seven business days.

Who issues plumbing and HVAC permits?

Plumbing goes through the Hopkins County Health Department (270-821-5242). HVAC permits are issued by the county Building Official at 67 North Main, $105 for the first residential system.

What if I start without a permit?

The building official adds a fee equal to the original permit fees, on top of them.

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