September 2026 retrospective: two effective dates
South Carolina project teams have two code dates to distinguish. Charleston County lists the 2026 accessibility standard, ANSI A117.1, as effective September 18, 2026. Columbia says it was informed on that date that ICC A117.1-2026 was available and directs projects to comply with the newly published edition. This retrospective covers that September event; neither webpage establishes its own September publication date.
The South Carolina Building Codes Council notice explains that the latest accessibility-standard edition is adopted by statute for municipalities and counties statewide. It identifies September 2026 as the publication month of the new edition. These sources establish the edition and timing, but do not provide a technical comparison of the old and new accessibility provisions.
Keep the January 2027 transition separate
The Council notice sets January 1, 2027 as the implementation date for the 2024 building, residential, fire, plumbing, mechanical and fuel-gas codes with South Carolina modifications, together with the 2023 National Electrical Code with modifications. That general-code transition should not be used to postpone checking the September accessibility change.
Columbia states that permit requests submitted after December 31, 2026 must follow the 2024 building-code editions. Local administrative procedures remain relevant: the Council notice distinguishes statewide code adoption from administrative policies that jurisdictions adopt locally.
Practical review for project teams
Before a new submission, ask the design team to confirm the accessibility edition referenced on the cover sheet, in details and in specifications. Record the reviewing department’s response alongside the project’s submission dates and code assumptions, and coordinate the separate January transition in the project schedule.
For applications already under review, vested applications or existing permits, obtain a project-specific answer from the reviewing department about the applicable edition and any required revisions. The cited notices do not resolve every transition scenario. This is an informational summary, not legal advice or a guarantee of compliance, permit approval or review timing.