Bastrop County does not issue building permits or certificates of occupancy in unincorporated areas — but it goes further than most Texas counties. It operates a Development Services department that issues development permits covering floodplain, driveway, and OSSF work, and it imposes limited residential code requirements on new single-family houses, duplexes, and certain large additions.
The twist is enforcement. Those residential requirements exist, but the county does not inspect against them. The builder contracts privately with a qualified inspector, typically at foundation stage before concrete placement, at framing and mechanical before wall covering, and at completion. Requirement without county inspection is an unusual middle ground, and it catches builders who read "no building permit" as "no obligations."
Bastrop also carries an environmental constraint few Texas counties share: the Lost Pines Habitat Conservation Plan area, covering endangered Houston toad habitat. Development inside it requires participation in the plan for incidental take authorization, and that question appears directly on the county development application.
Covers unincorporated Bastrop County. The City of Bastrop, Elgin, Smithville, and the other incorporated municipalities run their own permitting under their own codes — confirm whether the parcel is inside a city limit before assuming county rules apply. In the City of Bastrop’s ETJ the City approves subdivisions, while the development permit comes from Bastrop County; an interlocal agreement sends subdivisions in ETJ Area B to Bastrop County Development Services instead.
Three questions decide a Bastrop County project before design starts. Is any part of the property in the FEMA 100-year floodplain? Is it inside the Lost Pines Habitat Conservation Plan area for the Houston toad? Does it comply with subdivision plat requirements or meet an exception? All three appear on the county’s own application, and all three can reshape a site plan after the fact if answered late.
What requires a county permit in Bastrop County?
Bastrop County sits between the two common Texas patterns. It does not issue building permits, but it does run a development permitting program, and it does impose limited residential code requirements without inspecting against them.
The document set for a county development or OSSF application is substantial: proof of ownership, a dimensioned site plan, a survey or plat, a soil evaluation report prepared by a licensed site evaluator or professional engineer, septic plan and specifications with setbacks, copies of other required permits such as a TxDOT driveway permit, and an easement release where construction crosses an easement.
County record required
- County development permit for external development in unincorporated areas
- On-site sewage facility permit, with soil evaluation by a licensed site evaluator or P.E.
- Floodplain authorization where any part of the property is in the FEMA 100-year floodplain
- Driveway permit — county, or TxDOT where access meets a state road
- Lost Pines Habitat Conservation Plan participation inside the Houston toad habitat area
- Subdivision plat compliance, or documentation of an exception
- Easement release where construction extends onto or across an easement
- Water well permit through the Lost Pines Groundwater Conservation District
No county building permit or inspection
- County building permit — not issued
- County certificate of occupancy — not issued
- County-performed construction inspections — inspections are private
- County trade permits for electrical, plumbing, or mechanical work
Short on time to read all of this?
Get a free quote →Bastrop County building department: who handles permitting
Bastrop County Development Services administers development permits, OSSF permitting, floodplain review, and driveway permits from 211 Jackson Street in Bastrop. It is a genuine development office rather than a scattered set of county functions, which makes Bastrop easier to navigate than most rural Texas counties.
Water wells sit outside county authority. The Lost Pines Groundwater Conservation District, created by voters in 2002, issues water well permits and oversees groundwater use across Bastrop and Lee counties.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Authority | Bastrop County Development Services |
| Office | 211 Jackson Street, Bastrop, TX 78602 |
| Phone | (512) 581-7176 |
| development.services@co.bastrop.tx.us | |
| Building permits | Not issued; development permits issued instead |
| Residential inspections | Private — builder contracts a qualified inspector |
| Habitat review | Lost Pines Habitat Conservation Plan, Houston toad |
| Water wells | Lost Pines Groundwater Conservation District |
Ask Development Services which records a specific parcel triggers before assembling anything. External development in the unincorporated county may require a development permit, floodplain review, driveway permit, and OSSF permit in combination, and the sequence matters more than the individual applications.
In 2025, building permits issued in unincorporated Bastrop County authorized 1,104 new privately owned housing units, 1,088 of them single-family homes, according to the U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey.
Bastrop County permits: record types and what each covers
The permit-type question works differently in a Texas county, and Bastrop is a hybrid. It issues no building permits and no certificates of occupancy, but it does run a development permitting program and it does impose limited residential code requirements — verified by a privately contracted inspector rather than by the county. The records below are what actually exist.
Not sure this scope needs a permit?
Get a free quote →What Bastrop County actually issues
| Record | What triggers it | Who administers it | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| OSSF permit to construct | Installing, altering, repairing, or extending an on-site sewage facility where no public sewer is available | Bastrop County Development Services | Required statewide; a site evaluation by a licensed site evaluator or engineer is part of the application |
| OSSF license to operate | Issued after the permit to construct requirements are met and the system passes inspection | Bastrop County Development Services | On a sale, the new owner should tell the permitting authority; TCEQ does not require an inspection |
| Floodplain development permit | Placing fill, setting a structure, or developing in or near a mapped special flood hazard area | County floodplain administrator | Substantial improvement and substantial damage rules attach to existing structures |
| Subdivision plat | Dividing land in the unincorporated county | Commissioners Court and county engineering | Road, drainage, and access standards apply |
| 911 address assignment | New structures and new access points needing an address | County addressing / emergency management | Usually a prerequisite for utility service |
| Right-of-way and driveway culvert | New or modified access onto a county road | County road and bridge / precinct | Culvert sizing set by drainage conditions |
| Water well registration | Drilling a water well | Lost Pines Groundwater Conservation District | Groundwater districts operate independently of the county |
| Limited residential code compliance | New single-family houses, duplexes, and certain large additions | Owner and builder, verified by a privately contracted inspector | County imposes the requirement but performs no inspections itself |
| Ch. 233 commercial / multifamily | New commercial buildings, public buildings and apartment buildings of four or more units, and substantial improvements, where the county has adopted a fire code | Commissioners Court | Scope is set by county order; confirm adoption before assuming it applies |
County reaches this
- On-site sewage facilities, everywhere in the state
- Floodplain development and substantial improvement
- Subdivision of land and county road access
- Addressing, and fire code where separately adopted
County generally does not
- Issue residential building permits in unincorporated areas
- Conduct residential construction inspections
- Issue a residential certificate of occupancy
- Enforce a residential building code absent a county order adopting one
Solar permits in Bastrop County
Inside Bastrop city limits the picture changes completely: the city permits solar like any other municipality. The jurisdiction question is the first question.
Roofing permits in Bastrop County
Bastrop County sits in Central Texas at roughly 105 to 115 mph ultimate design wind speed under the codes regional cities adopt, well outside any TDI windstorm requirement. Wildfire is the exposure that distinguishes this county — the 2011 Bastrop County Complex Fire burned for weeks, destroyed more than 1,600 homes, and reshaped how insurers and builders treat the Lost Pines. Roof assembly and ember-resistant detailing matter here for reasons the wind map does not capture.
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Call 1-855-478-4290 →Texas has no single statewide building code and no general contractor licence: state law sets base codes and each city adopts its own edition and amendments, while most counties issue no building permits for homes outside city limits. The statewide solar, HOA and roofing rules are on the Texas page. Texas rules
Bastrop County permit cost and fees
Bastrop County charges no building permit fee because it issues no building permit. Costs attach to the development permit, OSSF permitting and its required soil evaluation, floodplain authorization, driveway permits, and platting — plus the private inspection the residential requirements imply.
Budget the private inspector explicitly. Because the county imposes residential requirements but does not inspect, that cost sits with the builder and is frequently omitted from an early estimate, then discovered when a lender or insurer asks for documentation.
| Fee component | How it works |
|---|---|
| Building permit | None — not issued by the county |
| Development permit | County fee per the application fee schedule; non-refundable |
| OSSF permit | County fee plus licensed soil evaluation and septic design |
| Private inspections | Contracted by the builder; not a county charge but a real cost |
| Floodplain authorization | Survey delineating flood zones, floodway, and FIRM panel |
| Water well | Lost Pines Groundwater Conservation District fees, separate from the county |
Planning a Bastrop County build? Send us the parcel and scope and we’ll map which records apply — including floodplain, Houston toad habitat, and plat status — and the order they run in.
Bastrop County trade permits
There is no county trade permit program in unincorporated Bastrop County. Electrical, plumbing, and mechanical work is not permitted or inspected by the county, though the OSSF connection is permitted and the limited residential requirements reach mechanical systems at the framing stage of the private inspection sequence.
Electrical
No county permit or inspection. A TDLR-licensed electrician remains the standard, and the private inspection is the only verification that will exist.
Plumbing
No county permit for interior plumbing, but the septic system is permitted through Development Services with a licensed soil evaluation behind it.
Mechanical / HVAC
No county permit. Mechanical systems are covered at the framing-stage private inspection on qualifying residential work.
Inside a city limit
The City of Bastrop, Elgin, and Smithville permit and inspect trades normally. Jurisdiction determines everything.
Rather not deal with the Bastrop County building department?
Get a free quote →Bastrop County permit application: how to apply step by step
Check whether the property sits inside the City of Bastrop, Elgin, or Smithville. This changes the process entirely.
Is any part of the property in the FEMA 100-year floodplain? Is it inside the Lost Pines Habitat Conservation Plan area? Does it comply with plat requirements or meet an exception? These drive everything downstream.
Where floodplain is present, the survey must delineate flood zones, floodway, proposed footprints, drainage easements, and the correct FIRM panel. The soil evaluation must come from a licensed site evaluator or professional engineer.
Proof of ownership, dimensioned site plan, survey or plat, septic plan and specifications, location map, copies of other required permits including TxDOT driveway where applicable, and easement releases.
For new single-family, duplex, and qualifying large additions, contract a qualified inspector before construction — the sequence runs foundation before concrete, framing and mechanical before wall covering, and completion.
Complete the septic installation and inspection, put the maintenance contract in place for secondary treatment systems, and record any required affidavit with the county clerk.
Inspections in Bastrop County
Bastrop County does not perform construction inspections. For residential work covered by the county’s limited requirements, inspections are private — the builder contracts a qualified inspector, and the county neither schedules nor performs them.
The typical sequence for qualifying residential construction is foundation stage before concrete placement, framing and mechanical systems before drywall or similar wall covering, and completion of construction. For remodeling, inspections are performed as the scope warrants.
OSSF is inspected as part of the county permitting process, and secondary treatment systems require a continuing maintenance contract. Keep the private inspection reports — they are the only construction record that will exist.
Bastrop County permit search and official resources
- Bastrop County Development Services
- Bastrop County OSSF application
- Bastrop County development application
- TCEQ — on-site sewage facilities for homeowners
- Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation
Frequently asked questions
Want this handled start to finish?
Get a free quote →Who issues building permits in Bastrop County?
No one issues a building permit for residential construction in unincorporated areas — Bastrop County issues no building permits or certificates of occupancy. It did adopt residential building standards under Tex. Loc. Gov’t Code ch. 233, subchapter F (Commissioners Court resolution of September 14, 2009): a new single-family house or duplex, or an addition that raises its square footage or value by more than 50%, must substantially conform to the 2006 IRC or the IRC in force in the City of Bastrop, at the builder’s choice, with three inspections by a private inspector the builder hires. Development permits, on-site sewage, floodplain and driveway permits run through Bastrop County Development Services, and plats through the county’s platting process. Inside Bastrop city limits, the city permits normally.
How do I get a permit in Bastrop County?
Start by confirming the parcel is actually unincorporated, because that single question changes everything and a mailing address will not answer it. If it is, work the county’s own records: check first whether the county permit described above applies, then septic, since it constrains siting and carries the longest lead time, then floodplain, plat, addressing, and road access as the project triggers them.
What codes apply in Bastrop County?
Texas has no statewide building code, and Bastrop County has not adopted one for unincorporated areas, so no building code is enforced there. State rules still govern on-site sewage facilities, and the county’s floodplain ordinance governs development in mapped flood hazard areas. Trade work remains subject to state licensing through TDLR and the TSBPE. Inside city limits, the municipality’s adopted codes apply in full.
Does Bastrop County issue building permits?
No. Bastrop County does not issue building permits or certificates of occupancy in unincorporated areas. It does operate Development Services and issue development permits covering floodplain, driveway, and OSSF work, and it imposes limited building code requirements on new single-family houses, duplexes, and certain large additions — but it does not perform inspections against them. That combination is unusual and is the thing most often misunderstood about this county.
What is the Lost Pines Habitat Conservation Plan?
It is an endangered species program covering Houston toad habitat in Bastrop County, and it appears as a direct question on the county development application: whether the property is inside the plan area, and if so whether the applicant agrees to participate for incidental take authorization. Development inside the habitat area carries obligations that have nothing to do with building code and everything to do with federal species protection. Determine the answer before designing a site plan.
Who inspects construction in unincorporated Bastrop County?
A private inspector the builder contracts, not the county. Bastrop imposes limited residential code requirements on new single-family houses, duplexes, and certain large additions, but performs no inspections itself. The typical sequence is foundation before concrete placement, framing and mechanical before wall covering, and completion. Those private reports are the only construction record that will exist for a future lender, insurer, or buyer — keep them.
Do I need a permit to install solar panels in Bastrop County?
Ask the county first. Bastrop County issues its own permits in unincorporated areas (see who handles permitting above), so confirm whether a solar job needs one. The electrical work must be done by a TDLR-licensed electrician, and the utility runs its own interconnection review and Permission to Operate. Inside a city, the city’s solar permit applies. Under Tex. Prop. Code §202.010, a homeowners' association cannot ban a solar energy device outright, but it may require prior architectural approval and impose reasonable placement conditions.
Inspections are where schedules slip.
Get a free quote →Does a roof replacement require a permit in Bastrop County?
Ask the county first. Bastrop County issues its own permits in unincorporated areas (see who handles permitting above), so confirm whether a reroof needs one; the county floodplain rules can also reach the work through substantial improvement. Inside a city, the city’s roofing permit rules apply. Tex. Prop. Code §202.011 bars an HOA from prohibiting wind or hail resistant shingles.
What is the difference between a residential and a commercial permit in Bastrop County?
In a Texas county it is the difference between no county jurisdiction and possible county jurisdiction. Residential construction in unincorporated Bastrop County is largely outside county authority. New commercial, public-accessible, and multifamily buildings, plus substantial improvements, are the categories Local Government Code ch. 233 lets a county reach — but only where Commissioners Court has adopted that authority, so confirm it rather than assuming.
Do trade permits need to be pulled separately in Bastrop County?
Not in unincorporated Bastrop County — there is no county trade permit program and no county trade inspection. Electrical, plumbing, and mechanical work should still be performed by contractors licensed through TDLR and the TSBPE, and the septic connection is permitted and inspected separately. Inside city limits, trade permits work normally.
What happens if I file under the wrong permit type in Bastrop County?
Because Bastrop County does not run a building permit program, the more common failure is filing nothing at all — assuming that no building permit means no requirements, and missing the septic, floodplain, plat, or addressing record the project actually triggered. Those are enforced, and unwinding them after construction is materially harder than filing them in order.
Can I apply for all Bastrop County permit types online?
Yes, largely. Bastrop County has used the MyGovernmentOnline permitting and inspection system since January 7, 2021: applicants upload applications and supporting documents online and message Development Services staff there. Staff can also be reached at (512) 581-7176 or development.services@co.bastrop.tx.us. Expect a substantial document set and a non-refundable application fee.
Simplify Bastrop County permitting with Alliance Permitting
Development permits without building permits, residential requirements without county inspections, an endangered species habitat plan on the application form, and a wildfire history that shapes how the county thinks about rural development — Bastrop is procedurally unusual for a Texas county. Alliance Permitting is a permit expediter for Bastrop County: we answer the screening questions early and run the records in order.
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Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company: we prepare your paperwork, file it correctly, and coordinate with the authority having jurisdiction through issuance. We are not a contractor and do not perform licensed plan review or inspections; that work stays with your team and the jurisdiction.
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This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general informational purposes and reflects publicly available information believed accurate as of July 2026. Permit requirements, fees, and processes change; always confirm current details with Bastrop County Development Services before filing. This is not legal advice.