Anaconda-Deer Lodge building permits

Building department

Address

ADLC Courthouse, First Floor, 800 Main Street, Anaconda, MT 59711 (local Building permits); Building Codes Bureau, PO Box 200517, Helena, MT 59620-0517 (state electrical/plumbing/mechanical permits)

Phone

(406) 563-4010 (Planning Dept, local Building permits) / (406) 563-4011 (Greg Bahr, Building Inspector) / (406) 841-2056 (State Building Codes Bureau — electrical, plumbing, mechanical)

Email

Contact via ADLC Planning Department website contact form (Building Inspector Greg Bahr); Building Codes Bureau email available via bsd.dli.mt.gov contact links

Office hours

Not published on the ADLC Planning Department page; contact (406) 563-4010

Website

Official site

Inspection guide

See how inspections work in Anaconda-Deer Lodge — sequence, scheduling & re-inspection fees.

Codes adopted

Montana adopts a single statewide building code by rule and, by default, enforces it directly — local governments only gain enforcement authority once the state certifies them. Under the Montana Building Codes Act (Mont. Code Ann. Title 50, Chapter 60), the Department of Labor & Industry's Building Codes Bureau adopts one state building code applicable everywhere (§ 50-60-203, codified further at Administrative Rules of Montana Title 24, Chapter 301) — currently the 2021 editions of the IBC, IRC, IMC, IFGC, IECC, IEBC, ISPSC, and UPC, with the 2020 NEC for electrical (effective statewide since 6/11/2022 per the Bureau's own Current Codes page). A city, county, or town may adopt and enforce its own building-code program under § 50-60-301, but its adopted code "may include only codes adopted by the Building Codes Bureau" — a local edition can never diverge from or be less stringent than the state's. Critically, under § 50-60-302, a local government cannot enforce ANY building code — even one it has formally adopted — until the Bureau certifies its program (requiring an approved code, a published fee schedule, an enforcement plan, and properly licensed or nationally certified inspectors); certification is granted per TRADE, not as one blanket designation. The Bureau's own "Certified City, County and Town Programs" list uses the key B=Building, P=Plumbing, E=Electrical, M=Mechanical, SP=Pool, W=Wildland-Urban-Interface — a jurisdiction can be certified for Building only while Electrical/Plumbing/Mechanical remain directly state-enforced within the same city limits (e.g., Havre, Anaconda-Deer Lodge), or certified across all trades (e.g., Billings, Missoula, Great Falls, Bozeman, Helena, Kalispell). Non-certified jurisdictions — most of Montana's unincorporated county land, since very few counties appear on the certified list — fall under direct enforcement by the state Building Codes Bureau (§ 50-60-304). Montana also exempts private homes and buildings of four or fewer dwelling units not serving transient guests from the state building-permit requirement entirely, though electrical, plumbing, and mechanical permits remain separately required regardless. Always confirm with the specific jurisdiction which trades it is certified for versus which remain directly state-enforced.

• Anaconda-Deer Lodge County is a MONTANA CERTIFIED LOCAL GOVERNMENT for BUILDING permitting only, RESIDENTIAL ONLY — per the Montana Building Codes Bureau's official 'Certified City, County and Town Programs' list (bsd.dli.mt.gov), entry: 'Deer Lodge County — B (residential only) — Greg Bahr — 563-4010 — County'. This matches the local Building Inspector's own webpage, which names Greg Bahr as Building Inspector.
• Electrical, plumbing, and mechanical permitting and inspection in Anaconda-Deer Lodge are NOT locally certified — these remain under DIRECT STATE ENFORCEMENT by the Montana Department of Labor & Industry, Building Codes Bureau (Employment Standards Division). This is explicitly confirmed on the ADLC Building Inspector page: 'The Building Inspector does not handle electrical, plumbing, or mechanical inspection and permitting. These are functions of the Montana Department of Labor and Industry.'
• Statutory basis for the certified-local-government model: a city, county, or town may adopt a building code by ordinance and enforce it locally ONLY if certified by the Building Codes Program as complying with applicable statutes/rules (current adopted code, current fee list, and enforcement plan filed and approved) — per ARM Title 24, chapter 301, subchapter 2 (Local Jurisdiction Administrative Rules) and Title 50, chapter 60, MCA (Local Jurisdiction Statutes). Absent local certification for a given trade (electrical/plumbing/mechanical here), the State Building Codes Bureau retains jurisdiction under Title 50, chapter 60, MCA.
• Statewide adopted codes (Administrative Rules of Montana, Title 24, chapter 301) apply as the substantive code baseline for both the locally-certified Building program and the state-enforced trades: 2021 International Building Code (IBC), effective June 11, 2022
• 2021 International Residential Code (IRC), effective June 11, 2022
• 2021 International Existing Building Code (IEBC), effective June 11, 2022
• ICC A117.1 Accessibility, 2017 Edition, effective June 11, 2022
• 2021 Uniform Plumbing Code (UPC), effective June 11, 2022 — enforced directly by the State Building Codes Bureau in Anaconda-Deer Lodge (not locally certified)
• 2021 International Mechanical Code (IMC), effective June 11, 2022 — enforced directly by the State Building Codes Bureau in Anaconda-Deer Lodge (not locally certified)
• 2021 International Fuel Gas Code (IFGC), effective June 11, 2022 — enforced directly by the State Building Codes Bureau
• 2020 National Electrical Code (NEC), effective June 11, 2022 — enforced directly by the State Building Codes Bureau in Anaconda-Deer Lodge (not locally certified)
• 2021 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC), effective June 11, 2022
• 2021 International Swimming Pool and Spa Code (ISPSC), effective June 11, 2022
• 2021 Wildland Urban Interface Code, effective June 11, 2022

Permit types & fees

• Residential Building Permit (New Construction)

  Required for new single-family homes, duplexes, townhouses, and other residential structures in Anaconda-Deer Lodge. Issued and reviewed LOCALLY by the ADLC Planning Department / Building Inspector (Greg Bahr) — Anaconda-Deer Lodge is a Montana-certified local government for Building permitting (residential only), per the state Building Codes Bureau's certified-jurisdiction list. Reviewed against the 2021 IRC/IBC (Administrative Rules of Montana, Title 24, chapter 301).

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• Residential Addition / Remodel Permit

  Required for additions, remodels, and structural alterations to existing residential structures in Anaconda-Deer Lodge. Uses the same local Building Permit Application and valuation-based fee table as new construction, issued by the ADLC Planning Department / Building Inspector.

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• Electrical Permit

  Required for electrical installations, alterations, service changes, and panel upgrades in Anaconda-Deer Lodge. Electrical permitting is NOT locally certified in Anaconda-Deer Lodge — it is issued and inspected DIRECTLY by the Montana Department of Labor & Industry, Building Codes Bureau, under the 2020 National Electrical Code (NEC), effective June 11, 2022.

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• EV Charger / EVSE Permit

  Required for installation of a residential electric vehicle charging circuit in Anaconda-Deer Lodge. Electrical permitting is NOT locally certified here — like all electrical work, an EV charger permit is issued and inspected directly by the Montana Department of Labor & Industry, Building Codes Bureau, under the 2020 National Electrical Code. The Bureau's fee schedule (BCP-1, Rev. 11/25) has no EV-charger/EVSE-specific line item — an EV charger circuit added to existing wiring is billed under the 'Interior/Exterior Wire or Rewire' category by number of added circuits.

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• Plumbing Permit

  Required for plumbing installations, alterations, and repairs in Anaconda-Deer Lodge. Plumbing is NOT locally certified in Anaconda-Deer Lodge — it is issued and inspected DIRECTLY by the Montana Department of Labor & Industry, Building Codes Bureau, under the 2021 Uniform Plumbing Code (UPC), effective June 11, 2022.

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• Mechanical / HVAC Permit

  Required for heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and fuel-gas installations in Anaconda-Deer Lodge. Mechanical is NOT locally certified in Anaconda-Deer Lodge — it is issued and inspected DIRECTLY by the Montana Department of Labor & Industry, Building Codes Bureau, under the 2021 International Mechanical Code (IMC) and 2021 International Fuel Gas Code (IFGC), both effective June 11, 2022.

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• Solar PV / Alternative Energy Permit

  Required for installation of rooftop or ground-mounted solar photovoltaic, wind, or hydro alternative-energy systems in Anaconda-Deer Lodge. Since electrical is state-enforced there, alternative-energy electrical connections are permitted directly by the Montana Building Codes Bureau via a dedicated Alternative Energy Permit application; the structural/roof-mounting scope falls under the local ADLC Building Permit.

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• Demolition Permit

  Required for demolition or removal of any structure in Anaconda-Deer Lodge. Issued locally by the ADLC Planning Department, with utility disconnection sign-off from the ADLC Water Department, ADLC Road Department, and Northwestern Energy (gas and electric).

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• Sign Permit

  Required for the creation, construction, alteration, or relocation of permanent signs in Anaconda-Deer Lodge, issued locally by the ADLC Planning Department. The live, currently-revised ADLC Business License Application (Rev. December 19th, 2025) explicitly warns applicants installing 'any sort of signage' that they must obtain an ADLC Sign Permit, confirming this is an active, currently-enforced local requirement. The most detailed source found for permit-application content and fees is a sign-regulations ordinance document still hosted on the county's own website — however, that PDF is captioned 'Signage-Ord_Sept2020_DRAFT' in its filename and the document body itself is unsigned, with blank Chairman/Clerk signature lines and blank 'First Reading,' 'Public Hearing,' and 'Final Adoption' date fields. No separately confirmed, formally-adopted final ordinance number or codified Municode chapter for sign regulations could be located. Treat the requirement to obtain a permit as verified and currently enforced; treat the specific fee figures and procedural details below as sourced from the best available document but carrying residual uncertainty about final-adopted form.

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• Fire Suppression (Sprinkler) / Fire Alarm Permit

  Anaconda-Deer Lodge does not issue a standalone local fire-sprinkler or fire-alarm permit, and no dedicated STATE fire-sprinkler/alarm application (comparable to the state's separate Electrical, Plumbing, and Mechanical BCP-1 forms) exists either. Anaconda-Deer Lodge's local Montana certification covers BUILDING permitting only, and only for RESIDENTIAL work — it does NOT extend to commercial buildings, so fire protection systems (which are almost always installed in commercial/multi-family occupancies) are not locally certified in ADLC. Instead, fire-suppression (sprinkler) system installation is captured directly on the Montana Building Codes Bureau's statewide 'Application for Building Permit' (BCP-1, Rev. 11/25) — that form's 'Type of Work' checkbox list includes an explicit 'Fire Suppression' option alongside New/Addition/Alteration/Change of Use, confirmed by direct inspection of the live form. Fire ALARM systems have no dedicated checkbox on that form and are typically captured either as 'Other' scope on the same Building Permit or, since alarm wiring is a low-voltage electrical scope, under the separately-required State Electrical Permit (electrical is also state-enforced, not locally certified, in Anaconda-Deer Lodge). Any contractor selling, installing, or servicing fire protection systems in Montana must hold an active Montana Fire Protection License (Business Entity and/or Individual Endorsement, Sell/Install/Service) issued by the DLI Fire Protection License Program — this is a statewide contractor-licensing requirement, not a per-project permit. Separately, the local Anaconda Fire Department (Fire Chief Brittain, (406) 563-2164) performs business Occupancy Inspections, requested via an Occupancy Information Form, covering general fire-safety/occupancy compliance for existing occupancies — this is distinct from, and does not substitute for, the state Building Permit's plan review of a new fire-suppression system installation.

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• Change of Use / Occupancy Permit

  Anaconda-Deer Lodge does not issue a standalone, free-standing 'Certificate of Occupancy' document. Occupancy/change-of-use compliance instead runs through two tracks depending on whether construction is involved. LOCAL TRACK (no construction — a new or changed business occupying an existing space as-is): the ADLC Business License Application (Rev. December 19th, 2025) functions as the county's de facto change-of-occupancy compliance check — no business may operate without a business license in hand, and the license itself requires sign-off from the Tri-County Sanitarian's Office, the ADLC Building Inspector (Greg Bahr), and the ADLC Code Enforcement Officer (Vern Tuss), each confirming compliance, plus review by the ADLC Planning Director and Chief Executive Officer. STATE TRACK (construction-related change of use — the occupancy classification of a building is actually changing, e.g., a warehouse converting to retail): the Montana Building Codes Bureau's statewide 'Application for Building Permit' (BCP-1, Rev. 11/25) includes an explicit 'Change of Use' checkbox under 'Type of Work,' confirmed by direct inspection of the live form. This state track applies in Anaconda-Deer Lodge because the county's local Building certification covers RESIDENTIAL construction only — commercial change-of-use construction is not locally certified and falls to the state Bureau, the same pattern used for electrical, plumbing, and mechanical work there.

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