Oak Ridge
City code enforcement
2024 IRC
Ord. No. 28-2024
Appendix BE was not specifically adopted, and optional provisions are excluded. RRNC is optional.
01
A modest median can hide a high house
These are the Tennessee Radon Testing dashboard’s Anderson County tooltip values with Year set to “All,” covering 2022–2023 tests.
Average2.1pCi/L
Median1.4pCi/L
Maximum6.2pCi/L
0 pCi/L10 pCi/L
The Anderson tooltip was checked on two loads: average 2.1 and maximum 6.2 appeared both times; median 1.4 appeared on the second load after being blank on the first. The dashboard offers no CSV export, so these tooltip values remain provisional. Its pre/post charts are East Region aggregates, not Anderson County counts. Open the Tennessee dashboard.
Zone and county averages do not clear a house.
EPA recommends testing every home regardless of zone. Zone 1 signals broad potential; only a correctly run test can describe the air in a specific home. Read EPA’s zone guidance.
02
Oak Ridge is settled. Two jurisdictions are not.
The city’s 2024 code makes optional provisions inapplicable. Clinton’s amendment exhibit and the county’s final resolution text were not publicly available.
Clinton
City code enforcement
2021 IRC
Ord. #686 · March 2024
Appendix AF status is unknown because Exhibit II is on file with the city recorder but absent from the public PDF.
Unincorporated Anderson County
County Building & Codes
2018 I-codes proposed
Resolution 23-08-1123
Committee approval is documented; final passage, effective date and any IRC appendix list were not found online.
Oak Ridge’s code is current through August 20, 2026 and expressly excludes optional or recommended provisions. The county operates its own permit and inspection department, so unincorporated Anderson County does not rely on the State Fire Marshal’s residential permit program. Sources: Oak Ridge City Code, Title 12; Clinton Title 12; August 14, 2023 committee minutes; county Building & Codes.
Two record requests close the local gaps
For Clinton, ask whether Exhibit II to Ordinance #686 adopts 2021 IRC Appendix AF: 865-259-1180 or codes@clintontn.net. For an unincorporated address, ask Anderson County Building & Codes whether Resolution 23-08-1123 passed and which IRC appendices it adopts: 865-457-6244.
03
Four questions before you own the air
“Built to code” does not answer the radon question. Oak Ridge does not require the appendix, and the public record leaves Clinton and unincorporated-county status unresolved.
Test during due diligence
Use a radon inspection contingency in the purchase contract and leave enough time to review a follow-up test or mitigation estimate. A disclosure statement is not a measurement.
Name the jurisdiction
Confirm whether the parcel is in Oak Ridge, Clinton, or unincorporated Anderson County. Oak Ridge also crosses into Roane County, so a mailing address alone may not settle the governing office.
Ask for system evidence
For a new home, request plans and permit records showing whether radon-control features were installed voluntarily. Do not treat “new construction” or a vent pipe as proof of a safe result.
Verify after mitigation
If a result is elevated and a system is installed or activated, use a post-mitigation test to confirm performance. East Region totals cannot substitute for the home’s result.
Tennessee transaction rule
Tennessee requires a disclosure or buyer-waived disclaimer for one-to-four-unit residential property and disclosure of known material defects. Radon is not a standalone required field; inspection contingencies remain the practical buyer safeguard.
No local radon rule found
This review found no Anderson County, Oak Ridge, or Clinton radon-specific rule for public buildings, schools, or real-estate transactions beyond Tennessee norms. That is a public-record finding, not proof that no unpublished policy exists.
How do I find a certified radon professional in Anderson County?
Tennessee doesn't license radon testers or mitigators, so national certification is the best way to check qualifications. The Tennessee Radon Program points residents to two directories: search them by ZIP code and widen the radius if nothing is listed nearby.
We don't recommend or rank companies. Before you hire, check the certification number in the directory yourself and ask for a follow-up test after any system is installed. Questions to ask a radon professional.
04
Quick answers
What the available records establish—and what is not yet confirmed.
Is Anderson County a high-radon area?
EPA maps Anderson County as Zone 1, its highest-potential category. Tennessee’s 2022–2023 dashboard showed a 2.1 pCi/L average, 1.4 median and 6.2 maximum. Those provisional tooltip values describe submitted tests, not every home.
Are new homes in Oak Ridge radon-ready by code?
Not as a result of the radon appendix. Oak Ridge’s 2024 IRC adoption does not specifically adopt Appendix BE, and the city code says optional or recommended provisions do not apply.
What about Clinton?
Clinton adopted the 2021 IRC through Ordinance #686 in March 2024. The ordinance places amendments in Exhibit II, but that exhibit was not included in the public code PDF; Appendix AF status is therefore unknown.
What about unincorporated Anderson County?
August 2023 committee minutes show Resolution 23-08-1123 advancing a 2018 I-code adoption. Public sources reviewed did not confirm full-commission passage, an effective date, or any appendix list. Confirm the project address with county Building & Codes.
Does a seller have to provide a radon result?
No Anderson-County-specific radon disclosure rule was found. Tennessee’s general residential disclosure law covers known material defects but does not make radon a standalone field; buyers should use a radon inspection contingency and obtain a current test.
Sources & verification notes
- Tennessee Radon Testing dashboard — Anderson tooltip checked on two loads, October 16, 2026; no CSV export was available.
- EPA Map of Radon Zones and EPA Map of Radon Zones: Tennessee — zone definition and Anderson County designation.
- Oak Ridge City Code, Title 12 — 2024 IRC adoption, Ordinance No. 28-2024, and state-required exclusion language.
- Clinton Title 12 — 2021 IRC adoption through Ordinance #686; amendment exhibits not included.
- Anderson County Operations Committee minutes, August 14, 2023 — Resolution 23-08-1123 advanced to full commission.
- Anderson County Building & Codes and State Fire Marshal residential permits — local enforcement and state-program context.
- 2018 IRC Appendix F, Radon Control Methods — appendix reference.
- NRPP Find-a-Pro and NRSB Find-a-Pro — reviewed October 16, 2026.
- Tennessee Residential Property Disclosure Act summary — disclosure and inspection-contingency context.
Research completed October 16, 2026. Open questions: Clinton’s Appendix AF status; final passage, effective date and appendix list for Anderson County Resolution 23-08-1123; Oak Ridge Ordinance No. 28-2024’s effective date; and the Tennessee dashboard’s county sample size. The tooltip figures cannot be independently cross-checked.