Unincorporated Sheridan County building permits

Building department

Address

224 South Main Street, Suite 428, Sheridan, WY 82801

Phone

(307) 674-2920 or (307) 675-2420

Email

publicworks@sheridancountywy.gov

Office hours

Mon–Fri 8:00am–5:00pm (Sheridan County general office hours per the sheridancountywy.gov site footer, re-confirmed 2026-07-16; not separately published as Public-Works-specific hours)

Website

Official site

Inspection guide

See how inspections work in Unincorporated Sheridan County — sequence, scheduling & re-inspection fees.

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.

• NO countywide building code / NO general building permit for private construction in unincorporated Sheridan County. Per the Wyoming State Fire Marshal's 'Local and State Jurisdictions' chart, Sheridan County (county-level row) is listed BLDG INSP/PR = STATE and ELEC INSP/PR = STATE — the county has NOT taken general countywide building-code delegation under W.S. § 35-9-121, so the State Fire Marshal / state program has building and electrical jurisdiction across most of unincorporated Sheridan County.
• IMPORTANT NUANCE (confirmed on the county's own site): Sheridan County DOES have an adopted 'Building Standards, Sheridan County, Wyoming' rule (adopted Nov. 18, 1991; last amended May 16, 2023, filed as County Clerk doc. #2023-785780) that adopts the 2021 International Building Code, 2021 IRC, 2021 IMC, 2021 IFGC, 2021 IPC, 2021 International Fire Code, the 2022 National Electrical Code, and the Uniform Code for the Abatement of Dangerous Buildings — but ARTICLE I, Section 3 (Applicability) confirms this code applies ONLY within a mapped 'Sheridan County Building Standards Area' (a defined zone around/adjoining the City of Sheridan shown on the Appendix A Planning Map), PLUS specific legacy subdivisions the BOCC imposed permitting/inspection on before Dec. 5, 2006, all NEW subdivisions approved after Dec. 5, 2006, and any structure built under a Conditional Use Permit. It does NOT apply countywide.
• Farms and ranches on 40 acres or more of deeded land are specifically EXEMPT from the Building Standards code entirely (Article I, Sec. 3(b)(1)), as are county hospitals, mines/oilfield/refinery facilities, and railway buildings.
• Where the Building Standards DO apply (the mapped area / qualifying subdivisions / CUP structures): a building permit is required before construction of any building/structure valued over $5,000 (Article III, Sec. 1), enforced by the Sheridan County Building Official.
• Where the Building Standards do NOT apply (the vast majority of unincorporated Sheridan County — rural and agricultural land outside the mapped area): there is no county building permit for private construction; a Zoning Permit (land-use/setback compliance, not a structural building-code permit) is still required countywide for new construction or change of use.
• Electrical: wiring permits/inspections are issued by the Wyoming State Fire Marshal's Office — Dept. of Fire Prevention & Electrical Safety (Chief Electrical Inspector), not Sheridan County, per the county's own Zoning Permit application which directs applicants doing new electrical work to WSFM.

Permit types & fees

• Zoning Permit

  The baseline land-use permit required countywide in unincorporated Sheridan County before new construction, additions, accessory structures, or a change of use — regardless of whether the parcel falls inside the mapped Building Standards (building-code) area. Verifies zoning district compliance, setbacks, access, and floodplain location; is NOT a structural building-code review outside the mapped Building Standards Area.

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• Building Permit (Sheridan County Building Standards Area ONLY)

  A true structural building-code permit under the adopted 2021 I-Codes package IS required, but ONLY for structures within the mapped 'Sheridan County Building Standards Area' (a zone around/adjoining the City of Sheridan — see Appendix A Planning Map), specific legacy subdivisions the BOCC already imposed permitting/inspection on before Dec. 5, 2006, all subdivisions approved after Dec. 5, 2006, and any structure built under a Conditional Use Permit. Outside that defined area, unincorporated Sheridan County generally has NO county building permit for private construction. COMMERCIAL SCOPE (re-verified 2026-08-01 against the recorded Building Standards ordinance itself): this single permit covers COMMERCIAL construction too — Article I, Sec. 3(a) applies the rules to 'all structures' in the covered areas with no commercial/residential distinction, Article III, Sec. 1 requires the permit for 'any building or structure' valued over $5,000, and the 2021 International Building Code (the commercial code) is adopted in whole under Article II, Sec. 1. Sheridan County has NO separate commercial building permit, commercial fee line, or commercial-specific process anywhere in the county — the ordinance, the county's Building in the County page, and its Required Permits page were each checked directly and none distinguishes commercial from residential. Commercial projects OUTSIDE the covered areas get no county structural permit at all; they are governed by the countywide Zoning Permit plus, for qualifying occupancies, mandatory Wyoming State Fire Marshal fire/life-safety plan review and a state Permit to Construct under W.S. § 35-9-108 (see tips).

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• Flood Plain Development Permit

  Required countywide (including outside the Building Standards Area) for development activity within the mapped Special Flood Hazard Area, under Sheridan County's Rules and Regulations Governing Flood Plain Management. Covers new construction, substantial improvements, fill placement, and other development in the floodplain.

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• Septic / Small Wastewater System Permit

  Required countywide for installation of a new conventional septic tank and leachfield system (or other small wastewater disposal system) in unincorporated Sheridan County, under the county's Rules and Regulations Governing Wastewater Systems (aligned with WY DEQ Water Quality Rules and Regulations Chapter 25).

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• Driveway / Road-Use (Access) Permit

  Required countywide for any driveway or subdivision road entering a Sheridan County-maintained road; issued by Sheridan County Engineering at no charge. Driveways accessing a STATE highway instead require a WYDOT access permit, not a county permit.

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• Electrical Permit (State Program)

  Electrical wiring permits and inspections for unincorporated Sheridan 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, not by Sheridan County. Sheridan County's own Zoning Permit application directs applicants with new electrical work to the state program.

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• Solar PV Permit

  Sheridan County has no dedicated solar permit or fee category. A residential rooftop or ground-mounted PV installation is processed under the same baseline Zoning Permit ($150) required countywide for any new construction or accessory structure, verifying setbacks and zoning-district compliance — no solar-specific accessory-use classification or setback distance was found published in the county's zoning materials. A true structural building-code permit additionally applies ONLY if the parcel falls within the mapped Sheridan County Building Standards Area (near the City of Sheridan), a pre-2006 legacy subdivision the county already permits, a post-2006 subdivision, or a Conditional Use Permit structure — otherwise the county has no structural building-code review at all for private construction. Electrical interconnection is handled by the Wyoming State Fire Marshal's Office (WSFM) — Dept. of Fire Prevention & Electrical Safety, not the county, per the same statewide mechanism documented in this jurisdiction's Electrical Permit entry.

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• EV Charger / EVSE Permit

  Unincorporated Sheridan County does not run its own electrical inspection program — electrical wiring permits are issued by the Wyoming State Fire Marshal's Office (WSFM), Dept. of Fire Prevention & Electrical Safety, under W.S. § 35-9-119, confirmed by the county's own Zoning Permit application, which routes new electrical work to the state program. An EV charger/EVSE installation therefore requires a State of Wyoming Electrical Wiring Permit through WSFM, not a county permit. WSFM publishes no distinct EV charger/EVSE fee line; a residential EVSE circuit is billed under the same standard wiring permit and residential service inspection fee structure used for all electrical work.

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• Sign Permit (WYDOT Outdoor Advertising Permit — no county-level sign permit)

  Sheridan County's own official Required Permits page (which lists only Building & Zoning, Driveway, Septic, and Flood Plain permits) and its Land Use Fee Schedule (adopted Oct. 4, 2011) contain no county-issued sign permit or sign-specific fee line. A sign large enough to qualify as new construction or an accessory structure would fall under the same baseline countywide Zoning Permit ($150, documented in this jurisdiction's Zoning Permit entry). The one confirmed, distinct sign permit that DOES apply is the Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) Outdoor Advertising Permit, a state-level permit required for off-premise advertising signs (billboards) visible from a state highway or interstate — separate from, and not administered by, Sheridan County.

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• Fire Sprinkler / Fire Alarm Permit (State Program)

  Sheridan County and its constituent volunteer rural fire protection districts (Big Horn, Clearmont, Dayton, Sheridan Area Rural, Story, and Tongue River) do not run a fire-protection-system plan-review or permitting program of their own. Installation, addition, or alteration of a fire alarm, fire sprinkler, fire suppression, or special hazard system anywhere in Wyoming — including unincorporated Sheridan County — is permitted and inspected by the Wyoming State Fire Marshal's Office (WSFM), Dept. of Fire Prevention & Electrical Safety, the same state agency that runs the electrical wiring permit program already documented in this jurisdiction's Electrical Permit entry.

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• Change of Use / Certificate of Occupancy

  Sheridan County does not operate a separate, standalone 'change of use' permit or issue its own Certificates of Occupancy for private construction. The county's own official Required Permits page folds change of use directly into the existing Building Permit & Zoning Permit line item — 'Construction of any new building, or addition to, or change of use of existing building' — meaning a change of use is processed through the SAME Zoning Permit ($150, documented in this jurisdiction's Zoning Permit entry) required countywide for new construction, or through the Building Permit (documented in this jurisdiction's building-permit-limited-area entry) if the parcel falls within the mapped Building Standards Area, a qualifying subdivision, or a Conditional Use Permit structure. Where a true Certificate of Occupancy or Letter of Compliance IS issued for a structure in unincorporated Sheridan County — i.e. one subject to Wyoming State Fire Marshal fire/life-safety plan review, such as a public building or a structure with a permitted fire alarm/suppression system — WSFM itself issues that certificate upon completion and passing of all required inspections, the same state mechanism documented in this jurisdiction's Fire Sprinkler/Alarm Permit entry.

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