Emergency Repair Authorization Process

The emergency repair authorization is for temporary and permanent repairs of severely damaged buildings following natural or human-induced disasters (fire, flooding, explosion, hurricane, tornado, or blizzard) to accelerate the restoration process to habitable conditions for human occupancy.

Applying

Building Permit applications are to be completed online. Please go to Momentum portal and enter the information directly into the County’s Permitting System.

Temporary Stabilization

• Following an emergency incident resulting in damage to a building, the property owner needs to contact:
  1. The Fire Department, Fire Prevention and Life Safety Office, Special Hazards Section at 301-583-1830 and request a situation report.
  2. The DPIE Inspections Division and request a structural inspection of the property and a damage report (See “Exhibit 1 — Sample Damage Report.”)
• The property owner must retain professional engineering assistance to assess the structural condition and stability of the building and develop a plan to stabilize the building on a temporary basis.
• The property owner may begin temporary work to secure the building (which does not require a permit, pursuant to Subtitle 4) which includes placing tarps on roofs; boarding up windows and doors; removing loose or potentially hazardous building material; and/or removing other debris.
• The property owner must hire a licensed contractor to perform temporary building stabilization to prevent further building deterioration. The property owner shall do the following and comply with the following permitting requirements:
  • Remove and replace waterlogged drywall.
    • Requires a demolition permit. Submit plans for demolition, pay permit fees, and obtain a demolition permit.
    • Demolition permit must be applied for within three (3) business days following the emergency stabilization work.
    • Submit a copy of the DPIE Damage Report with the demolition permit application to notify DPIE’s Permit Office that this is an emergency repair.
    • DPIE’s Permit Office will issue the demolition permit in five (5) business days.
  • Install structural supports for emergency building stabilization.
    • Requires a building permit for construction. Submit plans for building stabilization, pay permit fees, and obtain building permit.
    • Building permit must be applied for within three (3) business days following the emergency work.
    • Submit a copy of the DPIE Damage Report with the building permit application to notify DPIE’s Permit Office that this is an emergency repair.
    • DPIE’s Permit Office will issue the building permit in five (5) business days.
• Once the building is stabilized, the property owner must retain professional engineering assistance to assess the condition of the building and provide a structural certification attesting to the emergency repairs being performed in accordance with the approved stabilization plan.
• The temporary stabilization work must be inspected relative to approved plans.
   

Permanent Repair, Reconstruction, or Improvement

Once the temporary stabilization has occurred, the property owner must do the following to permanently repair the building.

• The property owner must retain professional engineering assistance to design and prepare plans for the permanent repair, reconstruction, or improvement to the building.
• The property owner must obtain DPIE building and other trade permits, as applicable, for the permanent repairs using an expedited permitting process:
  • Submit plans for permanent repairs with the Building Permit application and pay permit fees.
  • Plans are reviewed by DPIE or on-call plan review staff.
  • DPIE’s Permit Center will issue a Building Permit authorizing permanent repairs based on approved plans within ten (10) business days of receipt of the permit application with complete set of plans from the applicant.
• The property owner must hire a contractor to perform the permanent repairs. 
• The property owner must hire a third-party inspector to promptly inspect and certify the permanent repairs made by the contractor.
• The property owner must request a final inspection from the DPIE Inspections Division using the County’s Interactive Voice Response system (IVR) at 301-755-9000 between the hours of 7 a.m. - 11 p.m., Monday through Friday or by scheduling an inspection online. For additional Inspections information, view DPIE's Schedule an Inspection webpage.
• DPIE issues final Use and Occupancy Permits authorizing building occupancy by owner or tenant.
   

For More Information

• For more information and requirements on Commercial projects, visit the Commercial Building Permits page.
• For more information and requirements on Residential projects, visit the Residential Building Permits page.