Administrative overview · FIPS 01129
Washington County permit authority
The first compliance decision is jurisdictional: identify the office with statutory authority over your parcel, then use its filing and inspection sequence to keep the project moving.
Jurisdictional status
Municipal Fallback
This profile identifies a handoff outside the county’s ordinary structural permitting lane.
Required jurisdiction check
Confirm the controlling local or state authority before filing.
The record is marked Municipal Fallback. That means the county profile should be treated as a routing brief: incorporated municipalities, a state building department, or a state fire marshal may control plan review, permits, and inspections. Contact the named agency below and verify the parcel’s jurisdiction before paying a fee or scheduling field work.
Responsible agency
Washington County Commission / Town of Chatom Building Official (municipal fallback)
For a project in or near Washington County, this office is the identified point of contact for permit intake, statutory code enforcement, plan review coordination, and inspection release conditions. Confirm the parcel’s boundary and project type before relying on the county lane.
Direct contact
251-847-2208 (Washington County Commission); 251-847-2858 (Town of Chatom)
Call before mobilizing if the project has a boundary, occupancy, fire, septic, or utility question.
Permit counter
Washington County Courthouse, 45 Court Street, Chatom, AL 36518; Town of Chatom Hall, 44 West Front Street, Chatom, AL 36518.
Operating hours
Washington County offices: Monday-Friday, 8:00 AM-4:30 PM. Town of Chatom’s reviewed site lists public hours of Monday, Tuesday and Thursday 8:00 AM-5:00 PM and Wednesday and Friday 8:00 AM-4:00 PM.
Review expectation
Chatom’s zoning ordinance gives the Building Official up to 10 working days to determine whether an application is complete; no full permit-review timeline was published.
Compliance workbench
Choose the next project decision.
Apply online
Open the verified digital gateway, application form, and review timeline.
Open guide →Fees & penalties
Understand fee schedules, enforcement exposure, and stop-work liabilities.
Open guide →Codes & exemptions
Read the code framework, minor-work exemptions, and inspection lane.
Open guide →Agency website
Visit the primary public source for current notices and contact changes.
Open guide →Source trail
Official sources for this profile
Use these direct agency or licensing links to confirm current instructions before you file, pay, or schedule work. External pages control if their information differs from this directory.
Project questions
Frequently asked questions for Washington County
Who handles permitting for this jurisdiction?
This record is marked Municipal Fallback. Confirm whether a city, state agency, or other local authority controls the parcel before filing.
How should I begin an application?
No verified online portal was located in the reviewed public materials. Contact 251-847-2208 (Washington County Commission); 251-847-2858 (Town of Chatom) and request the current application route before preparing a final submittal.
How long might review take?
Chatom’s zoning ordinance gives the Building Official up to 10 working days to determine whether an application is complete; no full permit-review timeline was published.
How are inspections scheduled?
For Town of Chatom projects, the zoning ordinance requires the owner or agent to notify the Building Official when a project is ready for occupancy; the final inspection is due within three days after notification. No countywide inspection-scheduling phone or portal was published.
Which codes and exemptions should I review?
N/A for a countywide building-code program. No Washington County building department or countywide building-code schedule was found in the reviewed official sources. Chatom’s zoning ordinance requires development and construction to comply with its zoning and other applicable development regulations within town limits. N/A. The reviewed Washington County and Chatom materials did not publish a general minor/cosmetic building-permit exemption list.