A building permit in Brookings is issued by the city’s Building Services division, part of Community Development, which reviews and inspects construction against the codes it has adopted by ordinance: the 2021 International Building, Residential, Mechanical, Fire and Property Maintenance Codes, with the 2015 Uniform Plumbing Code and 2020 National Electrical Code inspected by the state commissions. Because South Dakota has no statewide building code, this is a city standard; state law now names the 2024 International Building Code as the edition a locally adopted non-residential standard must comply with (SDCL 11-10-5).
Two Brookings rules catch projects out. The building permit must be issued before footings are poured — the city asks to be called for a footing inspection — and a permit obtained late can carry an investigation fee of double the permit fee, so starting work first is an expensive shortcut. And the city licenses the trades on top of the state: an electrician or plumber must hold a City of Brookings licence as well as the state one, even though the permit and inspection are the state's.
This guide covers the city of Brookings, in Brookings County. The city’s building permit is also required on nonagricultural land in the Joint Jurisdictional Area, roughly three miles around the city. Other work outside the city limits falls to the county, which runs its own building permit program, so confirm which authority holds the address before filing.
The permit comes before the footings, or the fee doubles. Because Brookings requires the building permit to issue before footings are poured and can charge an investigation fee of double the permit fee for a late permit, the cheapest path is to have the permit in hand and the footing inspection booked before any concrete is ordered.
What requires a building permit in Brookings?
So in Brookings the questions are whether a building code is enforced at all, which edition it is on, and that the permit must issue before footings are poured, and that a late permit can carry an investigation fee of double the permit fee.
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Get a free quote →Typically permit required
- A City of Brookings building permit from Building Services, issued before footings are poured
- A City of Brookings trade licence for the electrician and plumber, in addition to the state licence
- An electrical permit and inspection from the South Dakota Electrical Commission, or from the city in Sioux Falls and Rapid City
- A plumbing permit from the South Dakota Plumbing Commission, or from the city in Aberdeen, Brandon, Rapid City, Sioux Falls and Spearfish
- State Fire Marshal review where the project is a school, a day care centre, a group family day care home, or a fuel or LP-gas storage installation
- A locally adopted building code to design and build to, where the jurisdiction enforces one
Often exempt
- Minor work the adopted code places below the permit threshold, where zoning setbacks still apply
- A local building permit in a jurisdiction that has adopted no building code — much of unincorporated South Dakota
- State Fire Marshal review for occupancies outside its narrow statutory list
- Ordinary repairs the adopted code places below the permit threshold, where a code applies
- Small accessory structures where the local code's own exemption reaches them
Whether a building code is enforced where you are building
Brookings enforces the International Building and Residential Codes it has adopted by ordinance and runs a strict permit sequence: the building permit must be issued before footings are poured, and failing to get a permit on time can trigger an investigation fee of double the permit fee. The city also layers its own licensing on the trades — electricians and plumbers must be licensed by the City as well as the state, even though the state inspectors and state commissions handle the permits and inspections.
South Dakota has no state-enforced building code: each city or county decides whether to adopt one. The state Electrical and Plumbing Commissions permit and inspect those trades, except in a few cities that run their own inspections. South Dakota rules
Who handles permitting in Brookings?
The city of Brookings is served by the Building Services division at the City-County Government Center, which issues building permits, enforces the adopted codes, runs plan review and schedules inspections. Electrical and plumbing permits come from the state commissions, though the contractor must also hold a City of Brookings trade licence.
Not sure this scope needs a permit?
Get a free quote →| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Authority | City of Brookings Building Services |
| Office | City Hall, 520 3rd Street, Brookings, SD 57006 |
| Phone | (605) 692-6629 for building and footing inspections |
| Portal | SmartGov (ci-brookings-sd.smartgovcommunity.com) for applications, fees and inspection requests |
| Permit sequence | The building permit must be issued before footings are poured |
| Trades | Electricians and plumbers licensed by the City as well as the state; permits from the state commissions |
In 2025, building permits issued in Brookings authorized 296 new privately owned housing units, 94 of them single-family homes, according to the U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey.
Permit types
Residential permits
Houses, additions, alterations, decks and garages inside the city need a building permit from Building Services, and the application asks for the owner, general contractor, electrician, plumber and mechanical contractor along with a scaled site drawing showing setbacks. The permit must issue before footings, and the electrical and plumbing run through the state with a city trade licence on top.
Commercial permits
Commercial and multi-family projects are reviewed under the city’s 2021 International Building Code, with a plan review the city asks about a week for. Schools, day care centres for 21 or more children, group family day care homes (13 to 20 children) and fuel or LP-gas storage installations additionally need State Fire Marshal plan approval, and the double-fee investigation penalty for a late permit applies to commercial work as much as residential.
The state permits that run regardless of local code
In Brookings the electrical and plumbing permits are pulled from the state commissions and inspected by state inspectors, but the contractor must also hold a City of Brookings licence for the trade.
South Dakota licenses electricians and plumbers at state level but has no state general contractor licence; a city may add its own. South Dakota rules
Brookings permit costs and fees
Brookings scales its building permit to the project and offers an online cost estimator. The cost dimension particular to the city is the investigation fee — double the permit fee — that a permit obtained late can carry, alongside the state trade permits.
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Call 1-855-478-4290 →| Item | Fee or rule |
|---|---|
| Building permit | Scaled to the project; the city offers an online permit-cost estimator |
| Late-permit penalty | An investigation fee of double the permit fee where a permit is obtained late |
| Plan review | The city asks for about one week for plan review on submittals |
| Electrical and plumbing | Permitted by the state commissions; a City of Brookings trade licence is also required |
A late permit is a double-fee decision. The Brookings investigation fee of double the permit fee turns a missed permit into a direct, avoidable cost, so on any Brookings project the permit belongs in hand before the footings rather than chased after the pour.
Trade permits and who may pull them
Permit required
- Electrical — by a licensed electrician, or by the owner in their own owner-occupied home or farmstead, permitted and inspected by the South Dakota Electrical Commission (by the city in Sioux Falls and Rapid City)
- Plumbing — by a licensed plumber, or by the owner in their own home, permitted and inspected by the South Dakota Plumbing Commission (by the city in Aberdeen, Brandon, Rapid City, Sioux Falls and Spearfish)
- Mechanical and fuel gas — under the code edition the city has adopted, where it enforces one
- Fire protection — to the standard the State Fire Marshal or the city fire code sets for the occupancy
Typically exempt
- Building trades in a jurisdiction that enforces no building code, beyond the state electrical and plumbing permits
- Like-for-like replacement not amounting to a new installation
Rather not deal with the building department?
Get a free quote →Electrical and plumbing permits come from the state commissions, except in a few cities that issue their own. South Dakota rules
How to apply for a Brookings building permit
Cities with building departments enforce their adopted code; many counties and small towns enforce none, and then there is no local building permit.
The city inside its limits, the county in unincorporated areas only if it has adopted a code, or no one for building work.
Where a code applies, state law sets the edition, but each city makes its own amendments — Sioux Falls and Rapid City are not the same.
From the South Dakota Electrical Commission and Plumbing Commission, except in the few cities that run their own electrical or plumbing inspections.
Required for schools, day care centres, group family day care homes and fuel or LP-gas storage installations.
City or county inspections where a code is enforced, state electrical and plumbing inspections except in the few cities that do their own, then the certificate of occupancy where a code applies.
Review, corrections and what actually causes delay
The Brookings delays that recur are sequence and licence delays: footings poured before the permit issued, which invites the double fee, or a trade contractor who holds the state licence but not the City one. Getting the permit before the pour, booking the footing inspection, and confirming the city trade licences keep the Building Services review moving.
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Get a free quote →Inspections in Brookings
Where a city enforces a code, inspections follow the sequence in its adopted edition — footing, foundation, framing, rough trades, insulation and final — requested from the city against the permit number. Electrical and plumbing inspections are separate: they are carried out by the state commissions, and their approvals are what the city and, where it is involved, the State Fire Marshal rely on. Where a jurisdiction enforces no building code, the state electrical and plumbing inspections may be the only ones the work receives. A certificate of occupancy closes the file where a code is enforced. In Brookings the building inspections run through Building Services against the permit number, starting with the footing inspection the city asks to be called for; the electrical and plumbing inspections are carried out by state inspectors, and their approvals are relied on at closeout.
Brookings permit search and official resources
- City of Brookings Building Services — the permit application, the footing-inspection rule and the cost estimator
- City of Brookings permit reports — the monthly report of building permits issued in the city
- South Dakota Electrical Commission — statewide electrical permits, electrician licensing and inspections
- South Dakota Plumbing Commission — statewide plumbing permits and plumber licensing
- South Dakota State Fire Marshal (Department of Public Safety) — plan review for schools, day care centres, group family day care homes and fuel storage
Frequently asked questions
When does the building permit have to be issued?
Before footings are poured. Brookings requires the building permit in hand before the footing pour and asks to be called for a footing inspection. Pouring first can trigger an investigation fee of double the permit fee.
What is the double-fee penalty?
Failing to get a permit on time in Brookings can result in an investigation fee of double the permit fee. It applies to residential and commercial work alike, which makes starting without a permit an expensive shortcut.
Inspections are where schedules slip.
Get a free quote →Do electricians and plumbers need a city licence?
Yes. In Brookings an electrician or plumber must be licensed by the City as well as by the state, even though the electrical and plumbing permits come from the state commissions and the inspections are done by state inspectors.
Which building codes does Brookings enforce?
The 2021 International Building, Residential, Mechanical, Fire and Property Maintenance Codes, adopted by ordinance with local amendments (Ordinance 23-008). State law now names the 2024 International Building Code as the edition a locally adopted non-residential standard must comply with (SDCL 11-10-5); confirm the city’s current editions with Building Services.
Who issues the electrical and plumbing permits?
The South Dakota Electrical Commission and the South Dakota Plumbing Commission, which also inspect the work through state inspectors. The city's role on the trades is the additional local licence.
Does the State Fire Marshal review my project?
Only for the occupancies within its narrow reach — schools, day care centres for 21 or more children, group family day care homes (13 to 20 children) and fuel or LP-gas storage installations. Most ordinary Brookings projects do not draw a State Fire Marshal review.
Simplify Brookings permitting with Alliance Permitting
21+ years of working real jurisdictions is what tells you that Brookings rewards sequence: the permit has to beat the footings, a late permit can double the fee, and the trades need a city licence on top of the state one. Our team gets the permit issued before the pour, books the footing inspection, lines up the city trade licences alongside the state permits, and tracks the submittal through Building Services to closeout — corrections included.
Ready to break ground in Brookings sooner?
Send us the scope and the parcel. We confirm the review path with the City of Brookings Building Services division, assemble the submittal, file it, and track it through issuance — corrections included.
More South Dakota permitting guides
More South Dakota permitting guides
This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Brookings permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.