Clark County, Washington · Septic Guide

Clark County Septic Guide: Permits, Inspections & Rules

Roughly 35,000 homes and businesses in Clark County run on a septic system. Clark County Public Health handles every permit, inspection record, and point-of-sale requirement for those systems. Here's how the program actually works, what it costs under the current fee schedule, and what to check before you buy, sell, or fix a system here.

Independent research, checked against Clark County and Washington state primary sources on July 22, 2026.

This page is general information, not legal or engineering advice. Fees and rules change. Confirm current requirements with Clark County Public Health or a licensed professional before you act on anything here.

Who Permits Septic in Clark County

One office runs the whole program: Clark County Public Health, Environmental Health Division, through its Onsite Sewage System (OSS) Program.

The OSS Program issues site evaluations, plan reviews, and installation permits, runs the operation-and-maintenance (O&M) inspection program, and tracks records for septic systems across the county. (clark.wa.gov — Site & Septic Systems, accessed July 22, 2026)

The program runs under Clark County Code Chapter 24.17, "On-Site Sewage (Septic) System Rules and Regulations," linked from the county's own program page. (codepublishing.com — Clark County Code Ch. 24.17) That chapter has to be at least as strict as the statewide floor set by WAC 246-272A. For how that state-county split works in general, see our Washington Septic Regulations guide.

For general questions, email the Environmental Health Division at [email protected]. For questions specific to the O&M inspection program, use [email protected] instead — it reaches the team that actually tracks inspection compliance. (clark.wa.gov)

2026 Permit and Application Fees

Clark County publishes a single fee schedule covering every Environmental Public Health program, septic included. The current one took effect January 1, 2026.

Selected OSS (septic) fees, 2026 Environmental Public Health fee schedule
FeeCodeAmount
Soil/Site Evaluation1011$1,580
Winter Evaluation1014$3,446
Additional Site Visit1015$574
Staking1021$430
Concurrency for Designer Evaluation1016$632
Plan Review & Permit — Conventional Gravity1017$632
Plan Review & Permit — Alternative System1018$718
Plan Review & Permit — Large System (over 1,000 gpd)1019$1,506
Repair of Failure — under 1,000 gpd1219$804
Repair of Failure — over 1,000 gpd1220$1,292
Septic Verification — under 1,000 gpd1311$502
Septic Verification — over 1,000 gpd1312$718
Voluntary Replacement (modification)1224$718
Expansion (modification)1317$718
Land Development Review (septic/wells)1614$1,148
Tank Only / Vault Toilet Installation1214$632
Hardship Waiver1411$574
Permit Re-issue (5-year, Site/Permit)1513$574
Permit Re-issue (1-year, Repair Permit Only)1523$574
Septic Release Letter1715$402
Notice to Title1719$214
DOH Waiver1820$430
Annual Septic Operating Permit (O&M)—$13.87
Annual Septic Operating Permit — Noncompliant—$24.48
Professional Certification Permit (Installer, O&M Specialist, or Pumper)—$273
Additional staff time, per hour, all programs—$189

(clark.wa.gov — 2026 Environmental Public Health fee schedule (PDF), effective Jan. 1, 2026, accessed July 22, 2026. This is a selected list of OSS-relevant line items, not the county's full fee schedule — pull the PDF directly for anything not shown here.)

A new site plan review and permit for a standard home runs into real money fast once you add up the pieces: the Soil/Site Evaluation alone is $1,580, staking is another $430, and the plan review and permit itself adds $632 for a conventional gravity system or $718 for an alternative one. The two "Annual Septic Operating Permit" lines are the yearly O&M fee every septic owner in the county pays, not a one-time permit cost. Which line you land on depends on your inspection compliance. More on that below.

How Often Your System Needs an Inspection

Clark County sets its required inspection interval by system type, not by a flat rule for every property.

Required O&M inspection frequency, by system type
System typeRequired inspection frequency
Conventional gravity (with or without a pump)Every 3 years. Owners can self-inspect, but only every other cycle — once every 6 years a certified O&M specialist has to do it instead.
Pressure distributionEvery 2 years. The statewide default for pressure distribution is annual; Clark County holds a waiver from the Washington Department of Health that lengthens the interval to every 2 years instead.
Alternative/advanced (sand filter, mound, Aerobic Treatment Unit, "Glendon," and similar)Annually.
Food establishmentsAnnually, regardless of the system type installed.

(clark.wa.gov — Site & Septic Systems and clark.wa.gov — Septic System Property Owners, accessed July 22, 2026.)

Inspection isn't pumping. Clark County Public Health says this directly: "CCPH does NOT require OSS pumping as part of inspection compliance. Pumping is a maintenance action." Passing an inspection and pumping the tank are two separate things, and only one of them is what the county actually checks for. (clark.wa.gov — OSS non-compliance fee)

Once an inspection is done, the report doesn't just sit in a filing cabinet somewhere. It becomes part of the county's record for your parcel, viewable through the Clark County Property Information Center covered in the Records section below.

What happens if you fall behind

The Clark County Board of Health built a specific consequence for missed inspections in 2025. If an OSS owner is more than one year past their required inspection date as of December 31, the county moves that property to the noncompliant fee tier the following year: $24.48 instead of $13.87, billed straight through the property tax bill rather than a separate invoice. (clark.wa.gov — OSS non-compliance fee, accessed July 22, 2026)

The dollar difference is small, but it puts a flag on file with the county, tied to your property tax bill, that stays until an authorized inspection clears it. Questions about your own inspection status go to [email protected].

Selling or Buying? What Clark County Requires Today

Clark County already runs its own point-of-sale septic rule, ahead of the statewide requirement that isn't active yet.

The county's own guidance is direct about it: "Realtors or homeowners should ensure that a current Report of System Status is on file with Clark County Public Health before listing a home for sale." A report counts as current for that purpose if it was completed within one year of the sale date. (clark.wa.gov — Site & Septic Systems; clark.wa.gov — Septic System Property Owners, accessed July 22, 2026)

In practice, that means don't wait until closing week to check your inspection status. If your last O&M inspection is more than a year old by the time you list, get a current one on file before a buyer's title company goes looking for it.

A statewide rule is coming too, but not yet. Starting February 1, 2027, Washington will require most home sellers with a septic system to get a third-party inspection before the sale closes, under WAC 246-272A-0270. That's separate from Clark County's existing Report of System Status rule above, and it isn't active for a closing today. Our Selling a House With a Septic System in Washington guide covers that statewide rule in full, including what changes and what your Form 17 disclosure already requires.

Finding Your Septic Records

Clark County runs its septic records through the same tool it uses for general property information: the Clark County Property Information Center. Search by street address or tax account number, then open the "Environmental" tab to see what the county has on file for that parcel. (clark.wa.gov — Site & Septic Systems)

The tool covers as-built drawings, permits, and inspection reports from November 2007 forward. If your system was permitted before that, the online record probably won't show it. Contact Clark County Public Health directly at [email protected] to ask about older records.

County Quirks Worth Knowing

Critical Aquifer Recharge Areas

Clark County designates most of the county west of the Cascade foothills as a Critical Aquifer Recharge Area (CARA), governed by Clark County Code 40.410 and in effect since August 1, 1997 (activities already legally established before July 31, 1997 are exempt). Category I covers land closest to public wells and carries the strictest rules; Category II is conditional. CARA rules prohibit untreated sewage waste disposal wells in Category I areas. If your property sits inside a CARA boundary, it's worth knowing before you plan a septic project. Community Development handles CARA questions at [email protected]. (clark.wa.gov — Critical Aquifer Recharge Area (CARA), accessed July 22, 2026)

No marine recovery area designation

Clark County borders the Columbia River, not Puget Sound. The marine recovery area and shellfish-protection zone rules that shape septic requirements in Puget Sound counties like Mason or Kitsap don't apply here.

How many systems this covers

Clark County Public Health puts the number at roughly 35,000 homes and businesses on septic systems countywide. (clark.wa.gov — Site & Septic Systems)

Pumping and Installation Costs

Clark County's published fee schedule covers what the county charges for permits, evaluations, and inspections — the table further up this page. It doesn't set what a private contractor charges to actually pump a tank or install a system. For statewide cost ranges on those jobs, see our Septic Pumping Cost in Washington and Septic Installation Cost in Washington guides.

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Sources

All sources accessed July 22, 2026. This page is general information about septic permitting in Clark County, Washington. It is not legal or engineering advice, and fees and rules change over time. Confirm current requirements with Clark County Public Health or a licensed professional before you act on anything here.