PermitBaseMountain West

Unincorporated Albany County building permits

Verified

Department contacts, adopted codes, permit types, fees, and gotchas for Unincorporated Albany County, Wyoming.

Last verified 2026-07-01 · Source

Building department

Address
1002 S 3rd Street, Laramie, WY 82070
Phone
(307) 721-2568
Office hours
Mon–Fri (contact department for current hours)

Codes adopted

Wyoming has no statewide-mandated building code for general private construction. Under Wyoming Statute § 35-9-106, the Council on Fire Prevention and Electrical Safety in Buildings adopts minimum fire, building, mechanical, existing-building, and fuel-gas standards (not exceeding the International Codes), but § 35-9-121 makes local enforcement an opt-in delegation: a municipality or county must apply to the State Fire Marshal for local enforcement authority and adopt, by ordinance or resolution, standards equivalent to or more stringent than the state's — otherwise no local building code applies at all. In practice this produces exactly the fragmented picture that describes most of the state: some cities and counties (e.g., Laramie County, Natrona County) have adopted and enforce their own building codes, while many unincorporated county areas genuinely require no building permit for general construction. Electrical is different: under § 35-9-119(a)(i), the Chief Electrical Inspector (Wyoming State Fire Marshal's Office, Department of Fire Prevention and Electrical Safety) enforces the National Electrical Code statewide by default, EXCEPT in localities that have been separately granted their own certified electrical-enforcement authority under § 35-9-121(a) — so electrical permitting may be issued by the state program or by the local jurisdiction depending on which one currently holds delegated authority. Always confirm both the current building-code adoption status (if any) and which entity — state or local — issues the electrical permit with the specific jurisdiction before submitting plans.

Albany County has NOT adopted a countywide building code and does NOT issue a general IBC/IRC-style building permit for private construction in unincorporated areas. Under Wyoming's local-option delegation statute (W.S. § 35-9-121), county-level building-code enforcement authority is opt-in via application to the State Fire Marshal; Albany County has not taken that authority, so the State Fire Marshal's Office retains BOTH building and electrical jurisdiction countywide (WSFM 'Local and State Jurisdictions' chart, updated 5/11/2026, embedded at https://wsfm.wyo.gov/electrical-safety, lists Albany County BLDG INSP/PR = S and ELEC INSP/PR = S).The county's OWN site confirms this: Albany County Planning's permit menu and Land Use Permit Fee Schedule (https://www.albanycountywy.gov/253/Planning ; fee schedule PDF https://www.albanycountywy.gov/DocumentCenter/View/6249/Fee-Schedule) contain NO International Building Code / International Residential Code adoption and NO 'building permit' fee line — only zoning, floodplain, wastewater, subdivision, sign, tower, and wind/solar fees. The county's own application labels its zoning approval for new residential/commercial structures 'Zoning Certificate & Rural Address (Building Permit)' — i.e., the county's stand-in for a building permit is a ZONING review against the Albany County Zoning Resolution, not a state building-code plan review/inspection.The Albany County Zoning Certificate application (https://www.albanycountywy.gov/DocumentCenter/View/4521/Zoning-Certificate-Application) confirms review is 'by the Planning Department' for compliance with 'the Albany County Zoning Resolution' — land-use/setback/use compliance, not IBC/IRC structural or life-safety code compliance.Practical takeaway: if you are building in unincorporated Albany County, you generally do NOT need a county building permit for the construction itself, but you DO need the county's Zoning Certificate (a land-use/placement approval, sometimes informally called the 'building permit' by the county) plus any of the real exceptions below that apply to your project (floodplain, septic/small wastewater, driveway access, state electrical).

Permit types & fees

Zoning Certificate & Rural Address (county's "Building Permit" stand-in)

Albany County has no general building-code building permit; instead, new principal structures, additions, accessory structures, and structure-use changes in unincorporated Albany County require a Zoning Certificate from the Planning Department — a land-use/placement/setback review against the Albany County Zoning Resolution, not an IBC/IRC construction-code review. The county's own application literally labels this "Zoning Certificate & Rural Address (Building Permit)" — confirming it is the closest local analog to a building permit, but it is a zoning approval, not a state-code inspection permit.

Floodplain Development Permit

Required for any development (including new structures, substantial improvements, or grading) within a FEMA-designated Special Flood Hazard Area in unincorporated Albany County. Issued by the Planning Department under the Albany County Flood Damage Prevention Resolution.

Small Wastewater Treatment Facility Permit (Septic)

Required to construct, install, discharge, or modify an on-site (septic) wastewater system in unincorporated Albany County. Issued directly by the Albany County Planning Department (not the state DEQ) under the Albany County Wastewater Regulations; must be installed by a licensed installer, though property owners may install their own system under county guidance.

Driveway / Road Access (Approach License)

Any new driveway accessing a state, county, or city road in unincorporated Albany County requires an Approach License from the road authority that owns that road segment — the Wyoming Department of Transportation (state highways), the Albany County Road & Bridge Department (county roads), or the City of Laramie (city roads), depending on which road the driveway connects to. The Approach License (or equivalent access documentation) is a required attachment to the county's Zoning Certificate application.

Electrical Wiring Permit (State Program — informational)

Albany County has not been granted delegated electrical-enforcement authority, so electrical wiring permits and inspections in unincorporated Albany County are issued by the Wyoming State Fire Marshal's Office — Dept. of Fire Prevention & Electrical Safety (Chief Electrical Inspector) under W.S. § 35-9-119, enforcing the 2023 NEC statewide by default. This is not a county-issued permit; it is included here so applicants know who to contact.

Tips & gotchas

  • Short answer: NO, Albany County does not issue a general building permit for private construction in unincorporated areas — Wyoming's opt-in local-code-delegation statute (W.S. § 35-9-121) means building-code jurisdiction defaulted to the state, and Albany County never took it on (confirmed by the WSFM jurisdictions chart AND independently by the absence of any IBC/IRC building-permit fee line on the county's own Land Use Permit Fee Schedule).
  • What the county DOES require instead: a Zoning Certificate & Rural Address (the county's own paperwork literally parenthesizes this as "(Building Permit)") — this is a land-use/setback/placement review against the Zoning Resolution, not a construction-code inspection.
  • Real approvals that DO apply and are easy to miss: (1) Floodplain Development Permit if your parcel is in a FEMA-mapped flood zone, (2) Small Wastewater Treatment Facility permit (septic) if you're not on a public sewer, (3) a driveway Approach License from WYDOT / County Road & Bridge / City of Laramie depending on which road you access, and (4) electrical wiring permits/inspections through the Wyoming State Fire Marshal's state program (not the county).
  • Albany County does NOT permit water wells — contact the Wyoming State Engineer's Office (307-777-6163) instead.
  • Always confirm directly with Albany County Planning (307-721-2568 / planning@albanycountywy.gov) before starting work, especially if your property is near a mapped floodplain, inside the Aquifer Protection Overlay Zone (APOZ), or might fall within the City of Laramie's annexed limits (which IS a FULL building-permit jurisdiction — see the separate Laramie jurisdiction page).
  • A $200 late fee applies across multiple Albany County land-use permits (Zoning Certificate, Floodplain, Small Wastewater) if construction begins before the permit/authorization is approved — always get approval first.