Show All SSTS — Local Units of Government
This page provides LGU location information and assistance for LGUs with development and implementation of their SSTS program.
LGUs enforce Minn Rules Chapters 7080-7083 through their local SSTS ordinance and issue permits for systems designed with flows up to 10,000 gallons per day. There are approximately 200 LGUs across Minnesota, and depending on your location your LGU may be a county, a city, a township, or a sewer district.
LGU SSTs ordinances vary across the state. Some require SSTS compliance inspections prior to property transfer, require permits for SSTS repair and septic tank maintenance, and may have other requirements which are stricter than the state regulations. Therefore it’s important to check with your local government to determine the local SSTS requirements.
Local government contacts
Ordinance development
Counties are required by MN Stat. 115.55 to adopt a SSTS ordinance that complies with the MN Rules Chapter 7080-7083. Cities and townships with SSTS ordinances must effectively administer and enforce an ordinance that is administratively and technically as strict as the county ordinance. In some situations, cities and townships may adopt a conventional SSTS program if the county has adopted a performance program.
The 2011 Legislature passed a bill extending the deadline for counties to adopt their SSTS ordinance to February 4, 2014. LGUs have the option of choosing a Conventional or a Performance SSTS Ordinance, or, provided certain criteria are met, an Alternative Local Standards ordinance. Cities and townships have up to one year after their county adoption date to update their SSTS Ordinances.
- Model Ordinance Templates
Ordinance Submittal Checklist (wq-wwists5-11)
Inspection programs
Inspections are required for all new septic system construction and replacement. Existing systems must be inspected when there is a bedroom addition permit request (if the LGU has a permitting program for bedroom additions). Existing systems must also be inspected when any building permit or variance is requested for systems located in a shoreland area. Local ordinances or lending institutions may require inspections at other times, such as at property transfer.
- Compliance Inspections for New SSTS
- Compliance Inspections for Existing SSTS
- Existing System Inspection Form (wq-wwists4-31)
- Instructions for Compliance Inspection Form (wq-wwists4-31a)
- Vertical Separation Distance for Existing SSTS
- Bedroom Definition for Determining Subsurface Sewage Treatment System Size
- Guide to Septic System Disclosure at Property Transfer
- Policy on Utilizing Artificial Drainage Methods For Subsurface Sewage Treatment Systems
Comparison of Plumbing and SSTS Regulations (wq-wwists4-43)- SSTS and Building Setbacks (wq-wwists4-47)
Annual report
All local governments with ordinances submit an annual report using an online survey to the MPCA. LGUs complete the Annual Report by using an on-line survey; the link and instructions are sent to each LGU the beginning of January each year. The report data is submitted by February 1 for the previous calendar year. Results are used to observe statewide SSTS trends, like those below, and help MPCA with long-range planning efforts.
Septic tank installation fee
In 2003, the Minnesota Legislature passed a bill requiring SSTS installers to pay a $25 fee for each septic system tank they install on or after July 1, 2003. LGUs maintain a listing of tank installations throughout the year, which they submit to MPCA each January.
Installers, or homeowners if the LGU allows homeowner installation, must remit the total number of fees collected through the end of the calendar year to the MPCA by January 30th of the following year. For example, all fees for tanks installed in 2009 must be remitted to the MPCA by Jan. 30, 2010. All fee submissions must be accompanied by the MPCA tank fee submission form.
The money generated by the fees is used by the MPCA to increase the level of service we provide to SSTS professionals in the areas of new technology review, technical assistance for local governments, training individual sewage treatment system professionals, program planning, and enforcement under Minnesota Statutes, sections 115.55 to 115.58
Financial assistance
Increased funding for county SSTS programs was provided in the Clean Water Legacy (CWL) funding package approved by the 2006 Legislature. The following fact sheets will assist in answering questions about how CWL funding will affect Local Government SSTS programs.
SSTS educational stipends to counties for advanced design and advanced inspector
In FY10 and FY11, Educational Stipends were made available to counties that sent staff to the SSTS Advanced Design and Inspection Licensing Workshops.
These initial stipend funds have been claimed. Funding for the remainder of FY11 and beyond is pending; details will be provided on this site as they develop.
18 counties received the stipend in FY10, 12 counties in FY11.
Straight-pipe legislation
In 2006, legislation providing LGUs with an additional tool to require upgrades of straight-pipe systems was passed. Chapter 224, the Straight-Pipe Act, requires homeowners who do not correct straight-pipe discharges within ten months of notification to be subject to penalties of $500 per month for each month of subsequent noncompliance.
- Implementation of Straight-Pipe Law - fact sheet
- MPCA Enforcement
SSTS maintenance
Proper maintenance of SSTS is critical, especially for complex systems or systems on difficult sites. Databases or spreadsheets can be used to track required maintenance.
- Septic Tank Maintenance - Factsheet
- Septic Tank Maintenance Reporting Form
- SSTS Abandonment Form
- Metropolitan Council ISTS Management Database
- EPA - The Wastewater Information System Tool (TWIST) CD-ROM
