City of Callaway

A city address is usually permitted by the city, not the county — but not always, and some authorities keep building and hand electrical to someone else. Getting this wrong costs the whole submittal, because every requirement below belongs to whoever actually holds jurisdiction. Check the overlays in the same pass: an HOA, a historic district, a windstorm certification or a system-size cap can reshape the design, and all of them are cheaper to find now than after the array is laid out.

• Is this authority the AHJ for residential solar at this address? Yes. The City of Callaway's own Building Department (contracted to EPCI) is the AHJ for residential building and electrical permitting inside city limits, including rooftop PV; it is not delegated to Bay County. 85% · department page + Code of Ordinances
• What does this authority permit itself, and what does it delegate? The City permits and inspects Building, Electrical, Mechanical, Plumbing, Gas, Swimming Pool, Energy Efficiency, Unsafe Buildings, Amusement Device, Excavating/Grading, Housing, and Flood Prevention itself (Sec. 5-3), all operated day-to-day by contracted private firm EPCI. It does not delegate to Bay County. Contractor LICENSING shows a partial county/city split: the City/EPCI permit forms require both a state license number and a 'Competency Card #' (implied county-issued), and Sec. 5-23(1) requires a Bay County septic tank permit number where applicable. 75% · private-operator permit application form + Code of Ordinances
• Is a permit required for a residential rooftop PV system? Yes, a permit is required for residential rooftop PV. No solar/PV exemption exists anywhere in the City's or EPCI's material (confirmed absent by direct search of the codified ordinances for 'solar'/'photovoltaic', both zero hits with working positive controls). 78% · codified ordinance
• Is there a separate electrical permit, or is it combined? Separate. Electrical work is applied for on EPCI's 'MEP Application' (a single form with checkboxes for MECHANICAL / ELECTRICAL / PLUMBING, check the trade(s) that apply), distinct from the general 'Building Permit Application' used for structural/roof/new-building work. 80% · private-operator permit application form
• Is a HOA or architectural approval required first? Not found. No Callaway-specific document (OCR'd Building Permit Application, EPCI's Callaway forms page) states an HOA/architectural-approval precondition; the OCR text of the City's own Building Permit Application does not contain an HOA/deed-restriction disclaimer clause of the kind seen in some neighboring cities' forms. 45% · OCR'd building permit application (canvas-only PDF)
• Is there a historic-district review? No historic-district review exists. Sec. 15.750.9, titled 'Historical and architectural preservation,' is explicitly marked 'Reserved' in the current Land Development Regulations, despite historic preservation being named as a City goal elsewhere (Sec. 15.400). 88% · codified Land Development Regulations
• Is a wind or windstorm certification required? No local wind-speed minimum or separate windstorm certification requirement was found. Unlike neighboring Gulf County (140 mph 3-second gust) and Calhoun County (130 mph gust), Callaway's code carries no codified local wind-speed figure — a search for 'wind speed' across the whole code returns only generic zoning/road/tree definitions, none setting a wind design minimum. Design wind speed therefore follows the Florida Building Code's ASCE 7 map value for the site with no local override found. 68% · codified ordinance search (absence proven)
• Is a Specific Use Permit or Council approval ever required? No PV-specific Specific Use Permit or Council-approval requirement was found. A general 'Special Exception' mechanism exists (Sec. 15.305(8): City Commission may authorize 'a special exception or use as a permitted departure from the restrictions of these regulations,' with a $250 fee per Sec. 15.695(p)), but nothing in the zoning articles ties solar/PV installations to this process. 55% · codified Land Development Regulations
• Is there a system-size cap on residential generation? No system-size cap on residential generation was found. Code-wide searches for 'solar,' 'photovoltaic,' and 'renewable energy' all return zero results in the codified ordinances. 75% · codified ordinance search (absence proven)

Several authorities require the electrical permit to be pulled by a licensed electrician, or require the contractor to be registered with them BEFORE applying. Registration is not same-day. This is second on the list rather than fourth because it is the step most likely to stop the job before the drawings matter.

• Who is allowed to pull the electrical permit? The MEP Application requires a 'Company Name/License Holder's Name', State License Number and Competency Card #, i.e. a licensed electrical contractor pulls it in the ordinary case; a homeowner may also pull it under the codified owner exemption (see Q7). 75% · private-operator permit application form
• Must the contractor be registered with this authority before applying? Yes. EPCI's Callaway-specific page states contractors must 'Obtain a state license' AND be 'Registered with the Building Department', via a Contractor's Registration Application plus a Contractor's Letter of Authorization for employees who will apply for permits. 85% · private-operator city-specific page
• Is a homeowner permitted to self-install and self-permit? Yes. Codified Sec. 5-43 ('Electrical installation or maintenance by home-owner') expressly allows a homeowner to install/maintain electrical systems within his own property boundaries for his own/family's use, provided he still obtains a permit and pays the fee. The City's own Disclosure Statement form (given to self-permitting owners) separately cites the same right under FS 489.503(6) and the general owner-builder exemption FS 489.103(7). 92% · codified ordinance + private-operator disclosure form

Almost everywhere wants a site plan, a one-line or three-line electrical diagram, equipment cut sheets with listings, and a structural attachment detail. Build it against the published checklist rather than the last jurisdiction you worked in — the checklist is what the reviewer marks against.

• What documents make up a complete submittal? No PV-specific checklist is published. For a general Building Permit (structural) the current (2021-rev) checklist requires: Driveway/Ditch Permit if required; Site Plan; 1 electronic copy of a complete plan set (site, foundation, floor, elevations, wall section); completed Building Permit Application; Energy Forms; recorded Notice of Commencement; Flood Elevation Certificate if needed; fee paid; and (if self-permitting) a Homeowners Disclosure Statement. For electrical-only work (the ordinary PV case), only the MEP Application plus fee is evidenced as required by the codified text (Sec. 5-76), with drawings/specs required only 'whenever in the opinion of the electrical official' they are needed. 58% · private-operator checklist (general, not solar-specific)
• How many copies, and in what format? The current (2021-revised) checklist requires 1 ELECTRONIC copy of the complete plan set for submission, with a physical copy required only at permit pickup ('All submissions may be made electronically, however in order to obtain a permit, a physical copy must be submitted at the time of pickup'). This supersedes an older (2018) version of the same checklist which called for 2 complete physical sets. 70% · private-operator checklist (general, not solar-specific; dated revision)
• Is a site plan required, and what must it show? A site plan showing setbacks is required for a general Building Permit per both checklist versions; no PV-specific statement of what a rooftop-retrofit site plan must show was found, and a straightforward electrical-only PV permit (MEP Application) carries no explicit site-plan line item in the codified text. 52% · private-operator checklist (general, not solar-specific)
• Is a one-line / three-line diagram required? Conditionally yes: Sec. 5-76(c) requires drawings and specifications, in duplicate, drawn to scale, 'whenever in the opinion of the electrical official' they are needed to show the nature and character of the work — this is the mechanism by which a one-line diagram would be required for a PV interconnection, but it is official-discretion rather than an unconditional per-job mandate. 72% · codified ordinance
• Are string and conductor calculations required? Not named specifically anywhere; only the same official-discretion drawings/specifications clause (Sec. 5-76(c)) could require string/conductor calculations, and no PV-specific document states this requirement outright. 45% · codified ordinance (general, not solar-specific)
• Is a structural PE stamp required, and at what threshold? No Callaway-specific structural PE-stamp threshold was found (codified building-code chapter incorporates the Florida Building Code by floating reference with no separate local PE-stamp rule stated). Statewide floor: FS 471.003(2)(h) exempts electrical work valued at $125,000 or less with 600A or less aggregate residential service capacity from a PE stamp; by extension of the general floor, a comparable state-level structural exemption threshold applies absent a stricter local rule, which was not found here. 55% · Florida Statute (state floor, not a confirmed Callaway-specific rule)
• Is an electrical PE stamp required, and at what threshold? Same state floor as Q13: FS 471.003(2)(h), $125,000/600A. No stricter or different Callaway-specific electrical PE-stamp rule was found. 55% · Florida Statute (state floor)

Most authorities now take the whole application through a portal, and several states cap or constrain what a residential solar permit may cost. Check whether plan check is billed separately before you quote the job.

• Which permit portal does this authority use? No online permit-application portal was identified. Permit forms are downloaded as PDFs from epcicodeservices.com and submitted to EPCI's Panama City office by mail, email, or in person; a separate 'Submit an Inspection Request' web form exists for scheduling inspections only, not for applying for or paying for a permit. 78% · private-operator homepage
• Can the whole application be completed online? No. The application cannot be completed online; forms must be downloaded, filled out, and submitted (mail/email/in person) to EPCI's office. Only inspection REQUESTS use a web form. 75% · private-operator homepage
• What does a residential solar permit cost? No dedicated PV/solar fee line exists. A residential PV job is billed under the general 'Electric — New Structure, Additions & Alterations' category: $0.65 per $1,000 of total valuation, $40.00 minimum, per EPCI's current 'Callaway Building Department Fee Schedule' (Exhibit B, amended 02/12/19). 78% · private-operator fee schedule (Exhibit B, amended 2019)
• How is the fee calculated? Valuation-based: $0.65 per $1,000 of total valuation, $40.00 minimum, for the Electric category (new structure, additions, and alterations alike — one flat rate regardless of scope). 80% · private-operator fee schedule
• Is there a separate plan-check fee? No separate plan-check/plan-review fee applies to the Electric category specifically. Plan Review as its own fee line ($0.40/$1,000 residential, $40 min; or half the permit fee for Commercial) is listed only under the Residential Building (A.5) and Commercial Building (B.6) categories in the fee schedule, not under Electric (D.3) — implying a standalone electrical/PV permit is not charged a separate plan-review fee. 68% · private-operator fee schedule

Interconnection is a separate process from the permit and usually the longer pole. Where the utility does not depend on the permit being issued, running both at once is the single biggest saving available on a residential job.

• What is the stated plan-review turnaround? No residential plan-review turnaround is published by the City or by EPCI's standard permitting path. EPCI does advertise a related but DIFFERENT service — its FS 553.791 Private Provider plan-review option — with a 'typically within 5 business days' review and a statutory 20-business-day cap on permit issuance when a private provider is used; this is an owner-elected alternate track, not the standard AHJ timeline. 50% · private-operator service page (a different track from standard permitting)
• How long is an issued permit valid before it expires? An electrical permit becomes invalid unless work is commenced within 6 months of issuance, or if suspended/abandoned for 1 year after work is commenced; extensions of up to 90 days each may be granted for cause. 90% · codified ordinance
• Which utility handles interconnection here? Gulf Power Company, now Florida Power & Light (FPL) — specifically FPL's 'Northwest Florida' operating division, the direct successor to Gulf Power after the 2021 merger. Established from THREE independent points: (1) Callaway's own Ordinance Disposition Table lists an uncodified 2014 ordinance ('12-9-14 Grants Gulf Power Company the right to franchise') — the Ordinance-Index route, never carried into the codified Ch. 18 franchise chapter; (2) Callaway's current Land Development Regulations, Sec. 15.745.7 ('Street lights'), bases its cost estimate on 'the charges the City is Paying to Gulf Power Company Electric company'; (3) a code-wide search for 'Gulf Coast Electric' (the neighboring GCEC co-op that serves other Bay County municipalities) returns ZERO hits anywhere in Callaway's ordinances — ruling out GCEC for this City specifically, unlike Panama City, Lynn Haven, and Baker/Calhoun Counties, which all carry a GCEC franchise. fpl.com's own guidelines page for this address resolves to /northwest/, i.e. FPL's distinct Northwest Florida (former Gulf Power) region. 78% · Ordinance Disposition Table (uncodified ordinance index) + codified LDC + utility's own regional site
• Where does the utility sit in the sequence? The utility acts AFTER the City. Two independent, complementary sources: (1) Callaway's own codified Sec. 5-81 makes it 'unlawful for any public utility providing electrical power in the city to provide electrical power to either temporary or permanent installations... unless and until such time as the installation has been inspected and certified by the electrical official'; (2) FPL's own current Northwest Florida Net Metering Guidelines require the customer to submit proof of the local AHJ's permit approval/inspection sign-off before FPL will install the bi-directional meter, and state that 'operation of the renewable generation system, except for testing and inspection, prior to the installation of a new bi-directional meter is strictly prohibited.' 88% · codified ordinance + utility's own current guidelines (FPL Northwest Florida)

The NEC edition a jurisdiction enforces is often a cycle behind the newest one published, and local amendments sit on top of it. Rapid shutdown, conductor sizing and labelling all change between editions, so the edition in force is the first thing to establish, not the last.

• Which NEC edition is in force? Statewide floor: NEC 2020, effective 31 December 2023 (this is the answer to use for a current installation). BUT Callaway's own CODIFIED electrical article (Sec. 5-42) still names 'the National Electrical Code, 1984 Edition' by reference, adopted by Ord. No. 167 in 1976 and never updated since (the only amendment to Article III since then, Ord. No. 321 in 1985, only added the reinspection fee at Sec. 5-79, not a new NEC edition). This is an extreme, uncorrected fossil — the oldest local electrical-code citation found anywhere in this survey — and it predates NEC 690 (PV) and NEC 690.12 (rapid shutdown) by decades. Notably, Callaway's own Building Code article (Sec. 5-22) is a clean, current floating FBC adoption whose local amendments were affirmatively REPEALED in 2024 (see Q32) — so the electrical article's staleness is not for lack of any code-maintenance activity elsewhere in the same chapter. 85% · codified ordinance (local text is stale; state floor is the operative answer)
• Which building code edition is in force? Florida Building Code, 8th Edition (2023) — adopted by a FLOATING reference at Sec. 5-22 ('as amended from time to time by the Florida Building Commission'), so the local text auto-tracks the current statewide edition without naming a year. 90% · codified ordinance + private-operator homepage notice
• Which fire code edition is in force? Codified: 'Standard Fire Prevention Code, 1994 Edition' (Southern Building Code Congress International) plus NFPA 101 Life Safety Code, 1991 Edition (adopted via Florida Administrative Code Rule 4A-3.012, effective Oct. 30, 1991) — Sec. 7-17, last touched by Ord. No. 483 in 1995. This is another uncorrected fossil, predating NEC 690.12 rapid shutdown by more than two decades. The statewide floor (Florida Fire Prevention Code, 8th Ed. 2023, per this survey's baseline) is almost certainly what is actually enforced in practice, but no current Callaway Fire Department page confirming that edition update was found. 70% · codified ordinance (local text stale; state floor carried forward, reduced confidence)
• Are there local amendments to any of the above? Yes, for the Building Code — but in the direction of REMOVAL, not addition. Ordinance No. 1103, § 2 (adopted Sept. 24, 2024) REPEALED former Secs. 5-25 and 5-26, which had contained Callaway's own local administrative and technical amendments to the Florida Building Code (both derived from Ord. No. 1032, 4-13-21). Callaway therefore currently has a clean floating FBC adoption with NO local amendments, as of the 2024 repeal — the Panama City Beach 'de-amendment' pattern (Ord. 1639) repeated here. The Electrical Code (still 1984 NEC) and Fire Prevention Code (still 1994/1991 editions) carry no separate local-amendment activity of their own beyond their fossil base text. 85% · codified ordinance / editor's note
• What is the installation judged against? Structural/building aspects are judged against the Florida Building Code, 8th Edition (2023), floating adoption, with NO local amendments as of the 2024 repeal (see Q32). Electrical aspects are codified against the 1984 NEC text at Sec. 5-42, though the statewide floor (NEC 2020, effective 2023) almost certainly controls in practice under FS 553.73 preemption of local electrical-code adoption. 70% · codified ordinance

Ridge setbacks and roof access pathways are fire-service requirements and they constrain the array layout. They are the most common cause of a redesign after the fire department comments on a plan set.

Nothing recorded for City of Callaway on this step yet — 1 question checked and found unpublished. The guidance above is general.

Which rapid-shutdown rule applies follows directly from the NEC edition in force, and the initiation device has to be at a location the fire service can reach and identify. This is inspected, and it is labelled.

Nothing recorded for City of Callaway on this step yet — 1 question checked and found unpublished. The guidance above is general.

The NEC sets a baseline for permanent markings at the service equipment and the disconnecting means. On top of that, an authority may specify its own wording, and the utility may specify more again. Where any of them writes its own text, a generic off-the-shelf label set will not pass — this is the detail most often fixed on a return visit.

Nothing recorded for City of Callaway on this step yet — 6 questions checked and found unpublished. The guidance above is general.

Where the AC disconnect must sit relative to the meter is usually the utility's rule, not the building department's. Battery storage frequently carries its own permit, its own inspection and its own fire conditions.

• Where must the AC disconnect be, relative to the meter? Per FPL Northwest Florida's own current Net Metering Guidelines: Tier 1 (≤10 kW) systems require NO manual AC disconnect switch. Tier 2 (>10-100 kW) and Tier 3 (>100 kW) systems require a manual disconnect switch of the visible load-break type, mounted separate from but ADJACENT to the FPL meter socket, capable of being locked open with a single FPL padlock, and readily accessible to FPL personnel at all times. No City-specific AC-disconnect placement rule exists independently of the utility's own requirement. 85% · utility's own current guidelines (FPL Northwest Florida)
• Are batteries permitted, and under what conditions? Yes, batteries are permitted, under FPL Northwest Florida's own current policy (not a City-specific rule): battery storage equipment behind the customer's meter must be UL 1741-certified (NRTL), a placard reading 'Battery storage utilized in this facility' must be permanently affixed to the meter enclosure, and exported power from the battery to the grid is not allowed outside a Tier 3 fast-track study. Battery systems installed WITHOUT a renewable generation system and designed to charge from and operate interconnected with the grid must be reported to FPL via a Small Generator Interconnection Application. No City or EPCI document addresses batteries/ESS at all — the City's own Building Permit Requirements list names 'Generator' as a category but not 'Battery' or 'ESS'. 78% · utility's own current guidelines (FPL Northwest Florida) — NOT a City/AHJ document
• Is there a separate ESS permit or inspection? No separate ESS/battery permit or inspection type is named by the City or EPCI. EPCI's own Building Permit Requirements list includes 'Generator' as a named category but not 'Battery' or 'ESS', and the Fire Prevention Code (Ch. 7, read in full) contains no battery/ESS provision of any kind. 62% · private-operator services page (absence proven)
• Is a ground mount treated as a structure? No PV/solar-specific ground-mount provision exists. By default, a ground-mounted system would fall under the generic 'accessory structure' definition (Sec. 15.715.9), which requires at least 5 feet from any property line and 10 feet from the principal structure, and counts toward the maximum lot ground-coverage percentage (e.g., 47.5% under Sec. 15.755.8) — the same generic-accessory-structure default pattern seen elsewhere in this survey where no PV-specific ground-mount rule exists. 55% · codified Land Development Regulations (general, not solar-specific)

Booking is a portal, a phone call or an email depending on the authority, and the notice required is rarely zero. Book before the work is finished rather than after — the lead time, not the work, is usually what sets the date.

• How is an inspection booked? Inspections are requested by phone to EPCI's Panama City office (850-818-0213) or via a 'Submit an Inspection Request' web form on epcicodeservices.com; no online scheduling calendar or self-service booking system was found. 72% · private-operator homepage
• How much notice is required? 'Reasonable, advance notice' is required (no specific number of hours/days stated). Codified at both Sec. 5-5 (general construction) and Sec. 5-79(b) (electrical specifically): 'It shall be the duty of the electrician to give reasonable, advance notice to the electrical office when electrical work is ready for test or inspection.' 78% · codified ordinance

Some authorities inspect their own solar work; some delegate it, and a few do not inspect the PV equipment itself at all. Who is coming determines what they will look at.

• Does this AHJ perform its own final solar inspection? Yes — the City's own Building Department (operated by contracted firm EPCI) performs the final inspection; this function is not delegated to Bay County. 80% · department page + codified ordinance
• If delegated, to whom? Not delegated to another GOVERNMENT (Bay County has no role in city-limits building/electrical inspection). It IS, however, operationally outsourced to a PRIVATE firm: EP Consultants, Inc. ('EPCI'), per the City's own Building Permits page. Fire SUPPRESSION/emergency response remains a separate, genuinely in-house City of Callaway Fire Department function. 88% · department page

A rough-in or mid-roof inspection, where one is required, has to happen before the work it covers is closed up. Missing a stage means opening something back up, and it is the most expensive kind of correction.

• Which inspections are required, and in what order? For electrical work specifically: a roughing-in inspection (noted on the permit card with date and inspector's initials) followed by a final test/inspection, after which a Certificate of Approval is issued; the building may not be occupied, and per Sec. 5-81 the utility may not energize the installation, before that certificate issues. 82% · codified ordinance
• Is a rough-in or mid-roof inspection required? Yes — a roughing-in inspection is explicitly named and required at Sec. 5-80(a), distinct from and prior to the final inspection. 88% · codified ordinance

The approved plan set, the permit, and the equipment listings should be on site and reachable. Inspectors routinely verify that installed equipment matches what was approved, and that the labels are the ones the plan set promised.

• Is there a published inspection checklist? No PV-specific inspection checklist is published. Only generic Building Permit Application Checklists (2018 and 2021 versions) exist, covering submittal documents rather than field-inspection checkpoints. 70% · private-operator forms page (absence proven)
• Does the inspector verify labels and listings? Not explicitly itemized as a checklist item; inferred from the general duty at Sec. 5-79(a) that inspections must 'insure compliance with all of the requirements of this article' (which incorporates the adopted electrical code) and Sec. 5-79(d) that tests conform to the National Electrical Code as adopted — equipment listing/labeling compliance would fall under this general duty even though no separate 'verify labels' line is named. 50% · codified ordinance (general, not PV-specific)

Passing gives you a final or an equivalent sign-off. That is not the same as permission to operate: PTO comes from the utility, and who tells the utility the inspection passed varies. A system left switched off for weeks is usually waiting on this handover.

• What is issued on pass? A Certificate of Approval is issued by the electrical official and delivered to the owner upon satisfactory completion and final test; the building may not be occupied before the electrical system is complete and/or the certificate is issued (Sec. 5-80(b)). 85% · codified ordinance
• Who notifies the utility for PTO? Two complementary mechanisms rather than one clean answer: (1) the CUSTOMER/installer affirmatively notifies FPL — FPL's own Northwest Florida Net Metering Guidelines require the customer to submit a copy of the approved permit or a screenshot from the local AHJ's website showing the inspection sign-off, permit number, and building-department name, before FPL will install the bi-directional meter; (2) independently and in parallel, Callaway's own codified Sec. 5-81 forbids the UTILITY itself from providing power to the installation until the City's electrical official has inspected and certified it — a City-side gate that operates regardless of whether the customer has separately notified FPL. Unlike Lynn Haven's Sec. 14-101(a) (which puts the affirmative notification duty on the City's OWN inspector), Callaway's ordinance is phrased as a prohibition on the utility, not an inspector's outbound duty. 78% · codified ordinance + utility's own current guidelines (FPL Northwest Florida)
• Is there a re-inspection fee? Two different figures exist in two different current documents, an internal contradiction: the CODIFIED ordinance (Sec. 5-5 / Sec. 5-79(b), amended by Ord. No. 321 in 1985) sets $10.00 for the first reinspection and $25.00 for each subsequent one; EPCI's current Fee Schedule 'Exhibit B' (amended 02/12/19, item D.8) instead sets a flat $50.00 Re-inspection Fee with no first/subsequent distinction. Both are recorded; the more recently amended EPCI schedule likely governs current billing practice, but the codified figure has not been formally repealed. 72% · codified ordinance + private-operator fee schedule (conflicting)
• How are corrections issued and cleared? If the electrical official finds the work will not pass inspection, the contractor/electrician must make the necessary corrections and resubmit the work for inspection (Sec. 5-79(b)); if a permit application itself is refused as non-conforming, the refusal is given in writing with reasons upon request (Sec. 5-77(a)). 78% · codified ordinance