Unincorporated Uinta County building permits
VerifiedDepartment contacts, adopted codes, permit types, fees, and gotchas for Unincorporated Uinta County, Wyoming.
Last verified 2026-07-01 · Source
Building department
- Address
- Uinta County Courthouse, 225 9th Street, Evanston, WY 82930-3415
- Phone
- (307) 783-0301 (Evanston); (307) 782-7432 (Bridger Valley); (307) 783-0318 (Planning & Zoning direct)
- Office hours
- Monday–Friday, 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM
- Website
- Official site
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.
Permit types & fees
Land Use Certificate (Zoning / Use Approval)
Uinta County has NO general building permit or building code for private construction in the unincorporated county. Instead, new construction or alteration of a structure on unincorporated land requires a Land Use Certificate — a zoning/land-use compliance approval issued by the Planning Department under the Uinta County Land Use Plan Resolution 23-02 (adopted per W.S. Title 18, Ch. 5, § 18-5-201). This is NOT an IBC/IRC construction permit — there is no county plan review against a building code and no county construction-progress inspections (footing, framing, MEP rough-in, final) for ordinary private construction.
Floodplain Development (Use Certificate in Special Flood Hazard Area)
A Use Certificate (the same Land Use Certificate mechanism, applied to flood-hazard areas) must be obtained BEFORE any construction or development begins within an area of special flood hazard shown on the FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Maps for unincorporated Uinta County. Administered by the Planning Department under Chapter 4 (Flood Hazard Area Overlay District) of the Uinta County Land Use Resolution.
Road / Driveway Access Permit
Required to construct any new access (driveway) onto a county road right-of-way in unincorporated Uinta County. Issued by Uinta County Planning & Zoning, subject to the Uinta County Road Access Encroachment Resolution; the Road & Bridge Foreman may add stipulations and performs the final inspection.
Small Wastewater (Septic) Permit
A Small Wastewater Permit is required for construction, installation, or modification of a small wastewater (septic) system in unincorporated Uinta County. Administered directly by Uinta County Planning & Zoning under the Uinta County Small Wastewater Regulations (amended December 2016), consistent with Wyoming's Environmental Quality Act framework for small wastewater systems.
Electrical Permit (State Program)
Uinta County does NOT run its own electrical inspection program at the county level. Per the WSFM 'LOCAL AND STATE JURISDICTIONS' chart, Uinta County unincorporated = ELEC INSP/PR: S/S, so electrical wiring permits for private construction in unincorporated Uinta County are issued by the Wyoming State Fire Marshal's Office — Dept. of Fire Prevention & Electrical Safety (Chief Electrical Inspector) under the statewide default program (W.S. § 35-9-119), enforcing the 2023 NEC.
Tips & gotchas
- Unincorporated Uinta County has NO countywide building code and NO general building permit for private residential/commercial construction — the county has not taken building-permit delegation under W.S. § 35-9-121, and the State of Wyoming retains building jurisdiction (WSFM chart: BLDG INSP/PR = S/S).
- This page covers ONLY unincorporated Uinta County. The City of Evanston is a SEPARATE incorporated jurisdiction within Uinta County that DOES run its own building department, issue its own building permits, and perform its own construction inspections — if your property is inside Evanston city limits, use the 'evanston' jurisdiction page instead, not this one.
- Even though there is no general building permit, real county approvals STILL apply in unincorporated Uinta County: a Land Use Certificate (zoning/use approval, $25–$50) for new construction or alteration; a Use Certificate before any construction in a mapped Special Flood Hazard Area; a Road Access Permit ($25) for any new driveway/access onto a county road; and a Small Wastewater (septic) Permit ($150) for any septic system work, administered directly by Uinta County Planning & Zoning.
- Electrical wiring work is inspected and permitted by the Wyoming State Fire Marshal's Office (Chief Electrical Inspector) under the statewide default program — not by Uinta County — per the WSFM jurisdictions chart classification (ELEC INSP/PR = S/S) and the absence of any county electrical program on the county's own site.
- Uinta County's Resolution 24-44 ('adopting the 2024 ICC-Codes International Building Code') is a FIRE-PREVENTION code delegation under W.S. § 35-9-121 (the county acting as delegated authority of the State Fire Marshal for fire-code purposes), not a general building-permit-issuing delegation for private construction — do not read this resolution as evidence the county issues IBC/IRC construction permits.
- Confirm current fees, forms, and process directly with Uinta County Planning & Zoning (307-783-0318) before applying, since Land Use Certificate and Access Permit fees are administrative amounts set by the department rather than a codified fee ordinance.