In Tarpon Springs, “small project” is not permission to start. The City’s Building Development page says owners and contractors must obtain approval from the Building Official before proceeding with work they want treated as exempt under Florida’s 2026 law.
Build the request around the whole project. The record should answer the property, scope, value, excluded-work, and documentation questions before it asks the City for a written decision.
The eight-field exemption request
| Field | Evidence to retain | Stop condition |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Authority | City-boundary result and responsible Building Development office | A Tarpon Springs mailing address alone |
| 2. Property | Record that identifies the single-family dwelling and parcel | Different use or unresolved authority |
| 3. Flood status | Current property-specific source and City confirmation | Property partly or wholly in a Florida Building Code flood hazard area |
| 4. Complete scope | One description covering labor, materials, demolition, repair, and related work | Vague “minor repair” label |
| 5. Total value | Contract and itemized cost breakdown | Exactly $7,500 or more under the small-work wording |
| 6. Excluded work | Explicit check for electrical, plumbing, structural, mechanical, and gas work | Any excluded scope remains in the project |
| 7. Project integrity | Written confirmation that the file covers the entire construction project | Dividing one project to avoid permitting |
| 8. City decision | Submitted request, attachments, receipt, and Building Official response | No written approval yet |
The City’s implementation notice describes the value boundary as less than $7,500. That means a $7,500 project is not inside the wording. It also places exterior window and door replacement, roofing, soffits, and structural modifications among the structural examples that do not qualify for this small-work exemption.
Value cannot erase excluded scope
The official Florida bill summary separates value from scope. Outside a flood hazard area, qualifying work on single-family residential property can fall under the exemption; electrical, plumbing, structural, mechanical, and gas work remains excluded.
Use a scope table before totaling the contract:
| Contract component | Trade or structural question | Evidence attached | City classification |
|---|---|---|---|
| Preparation/demolition | Does it alter structural or regulated systems? | Itemized description | Blank until answered |
| Materials/install | What is installed, attached, replaced, or moved? | Product and work description | Blank until answered |
| Related work | Is electrical, plumbing, mechanical, gas, roofing, window/door, or soffit work present? | Related estimate/plan | Blank until answered |
Do not remove a component from the file merely to reduce the displayed total. The enacted HB 803 record prohibits dividing a construction project to evade permit requirements.
Keep other approvals in separate rows
A building-permit exemption answers a narrow question. The City’s ordinary page separately describes floodplain review and electronic plan review. Zoning, drainage, easements, setbacks, utility work, product approvals, association review, and private covenants may answer different questions.
For each one that might apply, retain:
- the responsible authority or private entity;
- the exact question asked;
- the document submitted;
- the dated response and conditions; and
- the closeout evidence.
Do not rename all of those records “the permit.” A City exemption decision does not silently grant an association approval, alter an easement, or decide whether a different trade permit is required.
Do not start on the submission receipt
The clean chronology is complete project → property/flood check → excluded-scope check → itemized value → written request → written City decision → other approvals → retained completion record.
An uploaded form or email receipt proves delivery, not approval. If scope or value changes after the decision, update the full record and return to Building Development rather than extending the earlier decision yourself.
Source and method
Local Service Ledger reviewed Tarpon Springs’ current page and implementation notice with Florida’s chapter record and official bill summary on August 12, 2026. We converted the overlapping boundaries into eight evidence fields. We did not classify a property, project, contract, or exemption.