Almost every guide to septic system regulations tells you to "get a permit" and then stops. The hard part is knowing which office — and the answer is not the one most people assume. In only 13 of the 51 US jurisdictions does a state agency issue a homeowner's septic permit directly. This page lists the permitting authority for all 51, each with a link to the government page it came from.
Who issues a residential septic permit, across all 51 jurisdictions:
| A county, city, district or town office | 21 |
| It varies within the state — some areas delegated, some not | 16 |
| A state agency, directly | 13 |
| No residential septic programme (District of Columbia — on public sewer) | 1 |
So in 38 of 51, applying to the state environmental or health department is either wrong or only sometimes right. The state agency usually writes the rules; a local office issues the permit and sets the fee.
Sorted alphabetically. The agency in the last column is the state-level programme — it is who to ask if you cannot work out which local office covers your parcel, and its page is where each row came from.
| State | Who issues your septic permit | Level | State programme & source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Your county health department | Local | Alabama Department of Public Health, Division of Community Environmental Protection |
| ADPH writes the rules; the county health department issues the permit and may set its own fee. | |||
| Alaska | Alaska DEC directly (regional offices) for most of the state; the Municipality of Anchorage and City of Valdez have their own additional local requirements source unreachable | It varies | Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation |
| DEC issues most permits statewide itself; Anchorage and Valdez are carve-outs with their own local process — check locally there. | |||
| Arizona | County environmental/health department — all 15 AZ counties are delegated by ADEQ to issue permits on its behalf source unreachable | Local | Arizona Department of Environmental Quality |
| ADEQ sets the statewide rule but never issues the permit itself — apply to your county, which issues on ADEQ's behalf. | |||
| Arkansas | Arkansas Department of Health, via its county-based Local Health Unit Onsite Environmental Specialist source unreachable | State | Arkansas Department of Health |
| Two permits needed (construction + operation); apply through the county health unit, but it's a state ADH program, not county government. | |||
| California | Your county or city environmental health department — a Regional Water Board only where no local programme exists | It varies | California State Water Resources Control Board |
| Local agencies permit under an approved Local Agency Management Program; the state steps in only where there isn't one. | |||
| Colorado | County or local public health agency | Local | Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (Water Quality Control Division/Commission) |
| State Reg 43 sets only the floor; every county/local health agency issues its own permits and may require stricter rules. | |||
| Connecticut | Local director of health (town or district health department) | Local | Connecticut Department of Public Health |
| For ordinary residential flow, the local director of health issues the permit, not the state — DPH steps in only for larger systems. | |||
| Delaware | DNREC Division of Water (state, direct — no county permitting layer) | State | Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control |
| Delaware is a true state-direct system: DNREC itself issues the site evaluation and construction permit, no county involved. | |||
| District of Columbia | No residential septic permitting programme — the District is served by public sewer | N/A | District of Columbia Department of Energy and Environment (DOEE) |
| DC is almost entirely on public sewer. DOEE's own licences-and-permits page lists wells, wetlands, storage tanks and lead — no septic permit of any kind. We found no residential onsite-wastewater programme; if you have a system here, ask DOEE directly. | |||
| Florida | Florida DEP directly in 16 Panhandle counties and Marion; your county health department elsewhere | It varies | Florida Department of Environmental Protection |
| The programme moved from the Health Department to DEP in 2021 and the transfer is still rolling out, so confirm who holds your county. | |||
| Georgia | County (or multi-county district) Environmental Health Office | Local | Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH), Environmental Health Section |
| DPH writes the statewide rule; your County (or district) Environmental Health Office issues the permit and certifies installers. | |||
| Hawaii | State Dept. of Health, Wastewater Branch (plans filed by a licensed engineer) | State | Hawaii Department of Health, Wastewater Branch |
| Hawaii has no county health depts — a licensed engineer files Individual Wastewater System plans directly with the State Wastewater Branch. | |||
| Idaho | One of Idaho's 7 multi-county Public Health Districts | Local | Idaho Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) |
| DEQ writes the statewide rule but delegates permitting, site evaluation, and inspection to Idaho's 7 multi-county public health districts. | |||
| Illinois | IDPH directly in most counties; ~90 local health depts as IDPH's agent or under local ordinance elsewhere | It varies | Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) |
| IDPH itself permits many counties directly; ~90 local health depts handle it elsewhere as IDPH's agent — confirm which applies to your county. | |||
| Indiana | Local (county/district) health department, via its health officer | Local | Indiana Department of Health (IDOH), Environmental Public Health Division |
| IDOH writes 410 IAC 6-8.3 statewide, but local health depts issue the ~15,000 permits/year and each sets its own installer rules. | |||
| Iowa | Local (county) board of health / environmental health department | Local | Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) |
| Local boards of health have primary responsibility for typical residential systems under DNR's minimum standards; DNR backstops if a county won't enforce them. | |||
| Kansas | County health/zoning/code office under its own adopted local code; KDHE directly where none exists | It varies | Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) |
| 103 of 105 counties adopted their own onsite-wastewater code meeting KDHE's Bulletin 4-2; the rest fall under KDHE's own K.A.R. 28-5 rules directly. | |||
| Kentucky | Local health department (certified onsite sewage disposal inspector) | Local | Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services, Department for Public Health, Environmental Management Branch |
| You apply through your local health department, not the state directly; site evaluation + certified installer required unless you qualify for a homeowner permit. | |||
| Louisiana | Parish Health Unit sanitarian (a Louisiana Dept. of Health field office in each parish) | State | Louisiana Department of Health (LDH), Bureau of Sanitarian Services, Onsite Wastewater Program |
| Parish Health Units are LDH's own regional offices (state program), not independent parish government; 57 of 64 parishes also layer their own local sewage ordinances on top. | |||
| Maine | Local Plumbing Inspector (LPI), appointed by the municipality (or by the state in unorganized territory) | Local | Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), Maine CDC, Subsurface Wastewater Unit |
| Permits come from your town's Local Plumbing Inspector, not a county office; DEP only takes over for large or variance systems. Page shows revision 12/3/2024. | |||
| Maryland | County Health Department / Local Approving Authority, under delegated state authority | Local | Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE), Wastewater Permits Program, On-Site Systems Division |
| MDE delegates permitting to county health departments statewide; MDE itself only co-reviews systems of 5,000 gpd or more. | |||
| Massachusetts | Your municipal Board of Health — not the county source unreachable | Local | Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection |
| Massachusetts permits at town level, not county: roughly 351 Boards of Health each issue the construction permit. | |||
| Michigan | Local (county or district) health department, under its own local sanitary code | Local | Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE), Onsite Wastewater Management Unit |
| Michigan is the notable outlier: there is no statewide septic code — each local health department writes and enforces its own sanitary code and permit process. | |||
| Minnesota | Local unit of government — county, city, or township — under state technical rules | Local | Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) |
| MPCA itself only permits large systems over 10,000 gpd; ordinary residential permits are issued locally, and every county must have an SSTS ordinance. | |||
| Mississippi | County Health Department (a Mississippi State Dept. of Health field office) / MSDH regional environmentalist | State | Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH), Division of On-Site Wastewater |
| Mississippi's county health departments are MSDH's own field offices, not independent county agencies — it is one statewide program. Page last reviewed 5/18/2021. | |||
| Missouri | Varies by county: the local health department (or other local agency under state contract or a county ordinance) in most counties, or the DHSS Onsite Program directly where no local authority exists | It varies | Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) |
| Authority is per-county (DHSS direct, contracted, or county ordinance) — confirm your county's jurisdiction before applying; DNR handles non-single-family lagoons. | |||
| Montana | County sanitarian / environmental health office (delegated under 50-2-116, MCA) issues the individual system permit in most counties; Montana DEQ separately reviews and approves subdivision sanitation (Certificate of Subdivision Approval) before parcels under 20 acres can be created | It varies | Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) |
| DEQ's role is subdivision-level sanitation review (<20-acre parcels); the actual construction permit for an individual system comes from your county sanitarian, not DEQ. | |||
| Nebraska | Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy (DEE) — but most residential systems need no state construction permit at all if they qualify for "Authorization by Rule"; a permit is required only for flows ≥1,000 gpd or sites that don't meet Authorization-by-Rule criteria | State | Nebraska Department of Water, Energy, and Environment (DWEE) |
| Most homes qualify for Authorization by Rule (no state construction permit needed); local zoning/building requirements may still apply separately. | |||
| Nevada | Local health authority — Southern Nevada Health District (Clark Co.), Northern Nevada Public Health (Washoe Co.), Central Nevada Health District (Churchill/Eureka/Mineral/Pershing) — or a county building department; NDEP's Bureau of Water Pollution Control directly in areas with no delegated local health authority | It varies | Nevada Division of Environmental Protection (NDEP) |
| Residential ISDS permits come from your county health district (or building dept where none exists), not from NDEP directly, for most homes. | |||
| New Hampshire | New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NHDES), Subsurface Systems Bureau — statewide, no county or municipal permitting layer | State | New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NHDES) |
| NHDES itself issues both the Approval for Construction and the Approval for Operation — apply to the state, not your town. | |||
| New Jersey | Municipal or county Board of Health (most contract the work to a local health department); NJDEP itself approves only where local authorities cannot approve a project under N.J.A.C. 7:9A | Local | New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) |
| Apply to your municipal or county Board of Health, not NJDEP directly — NJDEP writes the statewide rule but almost never issues the permit itself. | |||
| New Mexico | New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) Liquid Waste Program, via the applicant's local NMED field office | State | New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) |
| Statewide direct-state permitting — no county layer; submit your application to your local NMED field office. | |||
| New York | County (local) health department where the property is located not stated on source | Local | New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) |
| NYSDOH sets the statewide minimum design standard (Appendix 75-A); the permit itself is issued and enforced by your county health department, not the state. | |||
| North Carolina | County (local) health department, Environmental Health division — issues the Improvement Permit / Authorization to Construct | Local | NC Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), Division of Public Health, On-Site Water Protection Branch |
| NC DHHS sets the statewide rule (15A NCAC 18E); your county (local) health department's Environmental Health office issues the actual permit. | |||
| North Dakota | Local public health unit issues the installation permit (and sets local codes); ND DEQ separately licenses the installer | It varies | North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality (NDDEQ), Division of Water Quality |
| This is genuinely split: your LOCAL public health unit issues the permit and sets local septic codes, while DEQ licenses the installer statewide — no single statewide design rule is finalized yet. | |||
| Ohio | Your local city or general health district | Local | Ohio Department of Health / Bureau of Environmental Health |
| About 120 local health districts each issue permits and set their own fees; ODH receives none of it. | |||
| Oklahoma | Oklahoma DEQ directly — a regional DEQ Environmental Specialist assigned by property location reviews and issues the Authorization to Construct (ATC) | State | Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), Environmental Complaints & Local Services Division, On-Site Sewage Programs |
| DEQ itself issues the Authorization to Construct — there is no county health department in this process in Oklahoma. | |||
| Oregon | Oregon DEQ, or your county where DEQ has delegated the programme by agreement | It varies | Oregon Department of Environmental Quality |
| DEQ permits directly in Curry, Jackson and Josephine counties from its Medford office; in the other 33 counties it contracts with a local agent, who sets its own fee with a DEQ surcharge on top. Ask DEQ which applies to your parcel. | |||
| Pennsylvania | A 'local agency' — a municipality, a joint municipal agency, or in some places a county health department — acting through its certified Sewage Enforcement Officer (SEO) | It varies | Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), Bureau of Clean Water — Act 537 Sewage Facilities Program |
| No single, uniform local authority — PA delegates permitting to whichever local agency (municipality/joint agency/sometimes county health dept) exists in that area, each via its own certified SEO. | |||
| Rhode Island | Rhode Island Dept. of Environmental Management (DEM), Office of Water Resources — DEM reviews and stamps the application 'Approved' as the permit to install | State | Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM), Office of Water Resources |
| RI has no local health-department layer for septic — DEM itself reviews the design and issues the construction permit statewide. | |||
| South Carolina | Your local SCDES office (a state agency office, not county government) | State | South Carolina Department of Environmental Services (SCDES) — the environmental function formerly housed in DHEC |
| SCDES's own regional 'local offices' (a STATE agency, not county government) license installers and administer septic permitting statewide under Regulation 61-56. | |||
| South Dakota | County planning & zoning department (issues the local 'Individual Sewage Disposal Permit') | Local | South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources (DANR) |
| DANR sets the statewide design rule (ARSD 74:53:01), but it is your COUNTY planning/zoning department that actually issues the local sewage-disposal permit. | |||
| Tennessee | TDEC Division of Water Resources Environmental Field Office in most of the state — but in nine contract counties, your county or metro health department | It varies | Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), Division of Water Resources |
| TDEC issues the Subsurface Sewage Disposal System construction permit statewide through its Environmental Field Offices, except in the nine contract counties it names — Blount, Davidson, Hamilton, Jefferson, Knox, Madison, Sevier, Shelby and Williamson — which run their own permitting. That includes Memphis, Nashville, Knoxville and Chattanooga, so most urban Tennesseans apply locally, not to the state. | |||
| Texas | TCEQ, unless your county is a TCEQ-approved authorised agent — then the county | It varies | Texas Commission on Environmental Quality |
| Most populated Texas counties are authorised agents and issue their own permits; check yours before applying to TCEQ. | |||
| Utah | Local health department (delegated jurisdiction under state rule) in most counties; Division of Water Quality directly where no local program is delegated, and for larger systems not stated on source | It varies | Utah Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), Division of Water Quality |
| Rule R317-4 lets DWQ delegate or rescind a local health department's authority, so which office issues your permit is not uniform statewide. | |||
| Vermont | DEC Wastewater System & Potable Water Supply Program — one of five state regional offices (no county role) | State | Vermont Agency of Natural Resources, Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) |
| Vermont took universal statewide jurisdiction over wastewater permitting in 2007; homeowners apply straight to a DEC regional office, never a town or county. | |||
| Virginia | Local Virginia Department of Health district office (a state health district office, not county government) | State | Virginia Department of Health (VDH), Division of Onsite Water and Wastewater Services |
| VDH is organized into 35 local health districts, so the permit desk is local, but the issuing authority is a state agency, not county government. | |||
| Washington | County or multi-county Local Health Jurisdiction (LHJ) | Local | Washington State Department of Health (DOH), Wastewater Management Program |
| DOH writes the statewide rule but 35 Local Health Jurisdictions permit systems up to 3,499 gpd; DOH's own LOSS program only takes over above that flow. | |||
| West Virginia | Your local (county) health department — it takes the application and the fee and issues the permit | Local | West Virginia Department of Health, Bureau for Public Health, Office of Environmental Health Services (OEHS) |
| Under the state sewage rule (64 CSR 9) the permit is legally the Director of Health's, issued through local health departments acting as designees — so you apply locally, not to Charleston. The state's own application form SS-182A carries a 'For Health Department Use — Permit Issued By' block, and the local health department administers the perc test. | |||
| Wisconsin | County zoning/sanitary department acting as a DSPS-certified 'agent county'; DSPS directly for non-agent counties and state-owned POWTS | It varies | Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services (DSPS), Division of Industry Services |
| Not every county is a certified 'agent'; where a county isn't certified, or for state-owned systems, DSPS itself issues the permit under SPS 383.21. | |||
| Wyoming | Wyoming DEQ in Carbon, Niobrara, Platte and Weston counties (and Campbell for commercial); delegated local authorities elsewhere | It varies | Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality, Water Quality Division |
| DEQ issues directly in a handful of named counties only; everywhere else a delegated local authority holds the permit. | |||
Every row above was written from the linked government page and then re-read against that page by separate reviewers asking one question: does this page actually say this? It found real errors — a citation can resolve, sit on the right .gov domain, and still describe a different programme entirely. Two whole columns we had researched, the governing rule citation and installer-licensing rules, failed that check often enough that they are not on this page at all. What survived is the one question this page answers: who issues the permit. Rows that still could not be sourced are labelled below rather than quietly kept.
6 of the 51 rows carry a caveat, and they are two different caveats. 4 states — Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Massachusetts — block automated access to their own websites from every route available to us, so we could not read their citation ourselves; those are marked source unreachable. On 2 more — New York, Utah — we could read the state's page and it simply does not say who issues the permit; those are marked not stated on source and the row is our research read rather than a quote. Both are starting points. Confirm with the linked agency before you file.
No permit fees. We deliberately publish no fee figures. Septic permit fees are set by the county or town, not the state — two counties in one state routinely differ more than two states do. When we audited eight states for a state-published fee schedule, exactly one — Florida, under s. 381.0066 F.S. — had one; the rest set fees locally or do not publish them at state level. A national "septic permit cost by state" table would be mostly invention. Ask the office in your row what it charges; it is normally the smallest line in the job. Our septic cost calculator estimates the installation itself.
Not the whole rulebook. Septic system regulations also cover tank sizing, setbacks, soil and perc testing, inspection at sale, and installer licensing, and those genuinely vary by county even where the state issues the permit. This page answers one question — who issues it — and that is the one that decides where your application goes.
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Last checked 2026-09-01. Permitting authority moves when a state delegates or rescinds a local programme. If a row here is out of date, the linked government page is the authority, not us — how we work.