The Cobb County Fire Marshal's Office is staffed by 28 full-time employees and 1 part-time employee organized into three primary work groups: Plan Review, New Construction Inspections, and Existing Building Inspections. The division is led by the Division Chief-Fire Marshal and each of these work groups is led by a Captain-Deputy Fire Marshal. See our organizational chart below for more details.

Title 25, Chapter 2, of the Official Code of Georgia (O.C.G.A.) allows the Safety Fire Commissioner of Georgia to adopt rules and regulations to promote fire safety. The primary task of the Fire Marshal's Office (FMO) is enforcing these "Rules and Regulations for the State Minimum Fire Safety Standards" as adopted by the State Fire Commissioner.

These rules and regulations are adopted under Chapter 120-3-3 "Rules and Regulations of the Safety Fire Commissioner" and known as "Rules and Regulations for the State Minimum Fire Safety Standards." Other 120 Rules are also adopted for specific areas of fire safety code adoption and enforcement. Certain National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standards and the International Fire Code are adopted under these 120 rules. According to 25-2-4 O.C.G.A., these codes have the "force and effect of law."

For local enforcement purposes, Cobb County adopts these state minimum standards by reference in Cobb County Code 54-54. The FMO also enforces local fire protection ordinances found in Chapter 54 of the Cobb County Code.

Based on Title 25, Chapter 2 O.C.G.A., the FMO has three major responsibilities:

1. Conduct fire & life safety inspections of existing buildings and structures.
2. Review plans and specifications for proposed buildings and structures, issue joint building permits with the Building Departments when plans are approved, and conduct fire & life safety inspections of such buildings and structures.
3. Issue joint Certificates of Occupancy with the Building Departments of Cobb County, Acworth, Kennesaw, and Powder Springs, when all appropriate inspections have been approved.

The Cobb County Fire Marshal's Offices utilizes adopted codes and ordinances to ensure:

1. Recognized and potential fire and life safety hazards are identified and mitigated.
2. Reliable egress for occupants from structures.
3. Fire protection and life safety systems are installed and maintained to operate in an effective manner.
4. Buildings are accessible and "user-friendly" to help responding fire crews quickly mitigate any fire or life safety emergency.

If you are unable to locate the information you need or have any additional questions or comments, please feel free to contact the Cobb County Fire Marshal's Office at (770) 528-8310 or email the Fire Marshal's Office at FMOinspections@cobbcounty.org.

Staff

• Chief Nick Dawe, Fire Marshal/Division Chief
• Deputy Fire Marshal Matt Johnson, Supervisor for New Construction
• Deputy Fire Marshal Josh Davis, Supervisor for Special Events & Fire Marshal Obligations
• Deputy Fire Marshal Chad Collins, Supervisor for Existing Annual Inspections
• Deputy Fire Marshal Rock Toler, Supervisor for Plan Review

Fire Marshal's Office Organizational Structure

• State Fire Marshal's Office
• State Fire Marshal's Office Rules and Regulations

• 2017 Annual Fire Prevention Report
• 2016 Annual Fire Prevention Report
• 2015 Annual Fire Prevention Report