In unincorporated Jerome County the Jerome County Building Department, in the courthouse at 300 N. Lincoln, reviews plans, issues building permits and inspects. Every building permit also needs a County zoning permit, and the Zoning Administrator has to approve it before the file moves to the building staff. You can apply in the County’s iWorQ portal or on paper, the County issues its own mechanical permits from $65, and inspections need 24 hours’ notice on 208-324-9115. Inside Jerome city limits the permit comes from the City instead.
When does Jerome County require a building permit?
The County’s application says a building permit is needed before any construction begins. For residential property the Building Department gives four tests, and meeting any one of them means a permit.
A permit is needed for
- Remodels and additions
- A structure over 200 sq ft
- A structure with utilities installed in it, such as electricity or plumbing
- A structure permanently fixed to the ground
- A structure of any size attached to an existing building
- Manufactured homes, on a foundation or block-set
- Roof-mounted and ground-mounted solar panels
- Signs, commercial buildings and commercial modular buildings
- A change of occupancy, residential or commercial
Zoning permit only
- A detached one-story accessory structure of 200 sq ft or less, which is exempt from the building permit but may still need a zoning permit
- Agricultural buildings, which need a zoning permit and an AG siting permit but no building permit
Starting before the permit is issued can cost double fees.
Who issues building permits in Jerome County?
The County’s Building Safety staff provide inspection, plan review and investigation for the unincorporated county, and for any city that has signed an intergovernmental agreement with the County for building code services. Rick Kirsch is the Certified Building Official.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Department | Jerome County Building Department |
| Address | 300 N. Lincoln, Jerome, ID 83338 (the County page gives Room 200; its forms print Room 208) |
| Office phone | 208-324-9262 (fax 208-324-9263) |
| buildingdept@co.jerome.id.us | |
| Inspection line | 208-324-9115 |
| Planning and Zoning | 208-324-9116 |
| Building Official | Rick Kirsch |
Short on time to read all of this?
Get a free quote →Jerome County has three incorporated cities. The area of impact around the City of Jerome is County territory for permits and zoning: on April 7, 2026 the City passed Ordinance No. 1252, which repealed its own area-of-impact chapter (Municipal Code 17.110) and declared the subject to be within Jerome County’s jurisdiction.
| City | Who issues building permits |
|---|---|
| Jerome | The City of Jerome. Its Building Safety Department at 152 East Avenue A (208-324-8189) does its own plan review, permit issuance and inspections. |
| Hazelton | Start with the City Clerk at Hazelton City Hall, 246 Main Street (208-829-5415). The City says building permits are required for just about anything you build, attach or renovate, and asks owners to inquire there before doing any work. |
| Eden | The published sources do not say. The County lists the City of Eden at 235 W. Wilson Avenue (208-825-5776); ask there, or ask the County whether Eden has a building services agreement. |
Jerome County applications: iWorQ portal or paper
The County offers both routes. Its iWorQ citizen portal takes residential and commercial building permit applications with uploaded plans, and the same forms can still be printed from the Applications page and brought to the office.
- Residential Building Permit Application, which includes the Building and Zoning Permit Application and the residential checklist.
- Commercial Building Permit Application and Commercial Modular Building Application.
- Project Valuation Form, signed by the applicant.
- Mechanical Permit Application.
- Foundation Manufactured Home and Block Set Manufactured Home applications.
- Roof Mounted and Ground Mounted Solar Panel applications.
- Sign Permit Application.
- Change of Occupancy Packets, residential and commercial.
- Permit Extension Request Form.
- Agricultural Building Zoning Permit checklist and application, from Planning and Zoning.
A permit is not valid until the Building Official has signed it and the fees are paid. It lapses if work does not start within 180 days of issue or stops for 180 days, and extensions of up to 180 days each can be granted on written request.
Jerome County permit fees
The County does not post its building permit fee table. What it does publish is how the fee is built: you declare a project value on the Project Valuation Form, counting materials and labor but leaving out land and the electrical, mechanical and plumbing work, and the application shows a plan review fee, a building permit fee and, for a new site, an address number charge. The mechanical permit fees are printed in full on the County’s Mechanical Permit Application.
Not sure this scope needs a permit?
Get a free quote →| Item | Fee |
|---|---|
| New home, up to 1,500 sq ft of living space | $130 |
| New home, 1,501 to 2,500 sq ft | $195 |
| New home, 2,501 to 3,500 sq ft | $260 |
| New home, 3,501 to 4,500 sq ft | $325 |
| New home over 4,500 sq ft | $325 plus $65 per additional 1,000 sq ft or part |
| Other residential installation: remodel, retrofit, gas test, shop, manufactured home | $65 |
| New duplex | $260 |
| New multi-family, 3 or more units | $130 per building plus $65 per unit |
| Commercial system up to $10,000 | 2% of the system cost plus $60 |
| Commercial system $10,001 to $100,000 | $260 plus 1% of the cost over $10,000 |
| Commercial system over $100,000 | $1,160 plus 0.5% of the cost over $100,000 |
For example, the mechanical permit for a new 2,000 sq ft house is $195, and a $40,000 commercial HVAC system pays $560.
Double fees may be charged whenever construction starts before the building permit is obtained.
Mechanical, electrical and plumbing permits in Jerome County
Mechanical permits come from the County. The building application states that mechanical permits are available at the Jerome County Building Department, and the County inspects mechanical work on the same line as its building inspections. New homes must email Manual S and J calculations to the Building Department, and unvented fuel-burning appliances are not allowed.
Electrical and plumbing permits come from the State of Idaho. They are issued by the Idaho Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses (DOPL), whose main number is 208-334-3233; the toll-free state line printed on the County application is an older number. DOPL’s permit map draws the same line: HVAC permits link to the County’s applications for unincorporated Jerome County and to the state’s online services inside Jerome, Eden and Hazelton.
Rather talk it over?
Call 1-855-478-4290 →A fire department letter is required when the project is more than 150 ft from the main road, and an access road built to the fire department’s requirements has to be in before construction.
What to submit to Jerome County
Items marked with an asterisk on the County checklist are always required; the rest depend on the project.
Paperwork
- Building and Zoning Permit Application
- Summary sheet from the Assessor’s Office
- One set of plans, or two if connecting to city sewer and water
- Property deed, for the individual lot and block
- Manual S and J HVAC calculations, for new homes
- Engineered truss drawings from the supplier
- Site plan with scale, north arrow, property lines, structures, setbacks, well, septic and drain field, access, easements, parking, canals and ditches
Agency letters
- Health department permit number, or a city letter for sewer and water
- Highway district letter or access permit
- Fire department approval beyond 150 ft from the road
- Canal company sign-off, for example North Side Canal Company
Plan standards: sheets between 18 x 24 inches and 24 x 36 inches, at a minimum scale of 1/4 inch, with pages numbered and stapled. The plans must show the wall bracing design with a schedule, the energy compliance path with R-values, smoke and carbon monoxide detector locations, at least one fully dimensioned cross-section from footing to roof, and all four exterior elevations. Shear walls over 10 ft high need an Idaho engineered design.
County design criteria: 115 mph wind speed with exposure C, a 30 psf ground snow load, seismic design category C, a 24-inch frost depth, 1,500 psf presumed soil bearing and Climate Zone 5B. The County amends Table R301.5 to require a 40 psf live load in habitable attics and sleeping rooms.
Rather not deal with the Jerome County building department?
Get a free quote →How to get a Jerome County building permit: 6 steps
A lot inside Jerome goes to the City’s Building Safety Department; in Hazelton or Eden, ask the city first.
Septic from the health district, access from the highway district, and fire and canal letters where they apply.
Both are required paperwork for every residential application.
Fill in the Building and Zoning Permit Application and the Project Valuation Form and attach the plans.
The Zoning Administrator approves the zoning permit before the Building Department starts on the plans.
The permit is valid once it is signed by the Building Official and paid for; inspections need 24 hours’ notice.
Jerome County inspections
County inspections are requested on 208-324-9115 with 24 hours’ notice, or by contractors through the permit search in the iWorQ portal using the contractor access code printed on the permit. You may ask for a morning or an afternoon visit, but the County does not guarantee the time.
The County inspects siting, footings, foundations, mechanical, framing, insulation, sheetrock and the final. Electrical and plumbing inspections are requested from the State through DOPL’s online services, or by phone on its inspection line, 208-332-4700. It is the permit holder’s duty to tell the Building Official when work is ready, and no building may be occupied until the Building Official has issued a Certificate of Occupancy.
The owner is also responsible for grading the lot so surface water drains away from the foundation, at least 6 inches of fall in 10 ft.
Local Jerome County details that matter
Septic: South Central Public Health District issues septic permits; its Jerome office is at 951 East Avenue H (208-324-8838). The health district permit number goes on the application.
Roads: access permits come from the highway district, not the County. The County’s agency list gives the Jerome Highway District (208-324-4601) and the Hillsdale Highway District in Hazelton (208-829-5449) for access permits, and the Idaho Transportation Department for state highways.
Canals: the application asks for the canal company’s name and sign-off wherever canals, ditches or irrigation cross the site. The North Side Canal Company is on 208-324-2319.
Agricultural buildings: they need a zoning permit and an AG siting permit only, applied for on Planning and Zoning’s Agricultural Building Zoning Permit checklist.
Want this handled start to finish?
Get a free quote →Addresses: the application has its own fee line for address numbers at a new site.
Manufactured homes: the County applies the 2019 Idaho Manufactured Home Installation Standard and has separate applications for homes on a foundation and block-set homes.
Idaho building code
Idaho’s building codes are set statewide and enforced by the cities and counties that run a building program: the 2018 International Building Code and the Idaho Residential Code (based on the 2018 IRC), the 2018 Idaho Energy Conservation Code, the 2023 National Electrical Code, and a state plumbing code based on the 2015 Uniform Plumbing Code rather than the International Plumbing Code. Idaho’s adopted codes
Official Jerome County permitting resources
These are the primary sources behind this guide. Codes, fee schedules and procedures change — confirm the position for your filing date.
- Idaho DOPL trade permits
- Idaho DOPL building codes
- City of Jerome building forms and packets
- Jerome County Planning and Zoning
- Jerome County Building Department
- Idaho DOPL building FAQ
- Jerome County building applications
- Jerome County Building Department iWorQ portal
- Jerome County Residential Building Permit Application and checklist
- Jerome County Mechanical Permit Application (fees)
- Jerome County design criteria
- South Central Public Health District offices
- City of Jerome Ordinance No. 1252 (area of impact left to Jerome County, April 7, 2026)
Inspections are where schedules slip.
Get a free quote →Jerome County building permit FAQs
Do I need a building permit for a shed in Jerome County?
Not for a detached one-story structure of 200 sq ft or less, unless it is attached to another building, has utilities or is permanently fixed to the ground. It may still need a zoning permit.
Do agricultural buildings need a building permit in Jerome County?
No. They need a zoning permit and an AG siting permit only.
Who issues building permits inside the City of Jerome?
The City of Jerome Building Safety Department, not the County.
How do I apply for a Jerome County building permit?
Through the County’s iWorQ portal, or with the printed forms at 300 N. Lincoln in Jerome. Zoning is reviewed first.
How much is a mechanical permit in Jerome County?
$130 to $325 for a new home depending on living area, and $65 for other residential installations.
How do I schedule a Jerome County inspection?
Call 208-324-9115 at least 24 hours ahead. Electrical and plumbing inspections go through the State: use DOPL’s online services or its inspection line, 208-332-4700.
Who issues septic permits in Jerome County?
South Central Public Health District, whose Jerome office is on 208-324-8838.
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More Idaho permitting guides
This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Jerome County permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.