Bountiful, Utah Building Permit Guide

Inside Bountiful city limits, the Bountiful City Building Department at 795 South Main Street issues building permits and inspects the work, with applications filed in the City’s CityInspect portal. For a new house the adopted FY2027 schedule charges a $500 application fee that is credited to the permit, a permit fee based on ICC valuation data and a single-family plan review fee of 29% of the permit fee.

What requires a building permit in Bountiful?

New buildings, additions, remodels and accessory structures need a Bountiful building permit, and the City’s forms and policies add these specific cases:

Moving more than 10 cubic yards of soil without a building permit still needs a grading permit, and any digging or concrete work in a public street or sidewalk needs an encroachment and excavation permit from the Engineering Department.

Who issues Bountiful building permits?

The Building Department shares an office and phone line at City Hall with the Engineering Department. It reviews plans, issues permits and carries out inspections; Engineering reviews retaining walls, grading and work in the public right-of-way. Don Simons is the Building Official. Planning and zoning approvals come from the Planning and Economic Development Department (801-298-6190).

The City permits only land inside its own boundary. A parcel across the line belongs to the neighboring city or, if it is unincorporated, to Davis County’s Community and Economic Development office; the City’s interactive map shows where the boundary runs.

Applying through CityInspect

Bountiful moved all permit applications to CityInspect. Register once from the Building page (the City posts a step-by-step help sheet), choose the Building Department module and start a new application; the same account also holds Engineering, Planning, business licence and code enforcement modules. Payment can be made in the portal or at 795 South Main Street, and card payments carry a 3% processing fee.

Forms and policies the Building Department posts with the portal link:

• Owner Builder Form, the state certification for an owner building or remodeling their own home, filed with the City.
• Bond forms for new homes, existing homes (additions, renovations and retaining walls), new commercial buildings and retaining walls.
• Change of Contractor Form, notarized by the owner and the new contractor’s qualifier.
• Permit Reinstatement Form for a permit that expired before the work was finished.
• Reroof Policy, Change of Service-Electrical Policy, Residential Handrails and Guards and the Design Criteria sheet.
• Pool Submission Requirements with a pool TDH calculator, and solar packets for net-metered panels and battery systems.

Bountiful permit fees for 2026–27

Building fees are part of the City’s FY2027 schedule of fees, adopted with the budget by Ordinance 2026-06 on June 9, 2026. The building permit fee itself follows the fee table of the 1997 Uniform Administrative Code, applied to a valuation built from current ICC building valuation data, and the State permit fee is added where it applies.

Before a permit is issued the City also takes a refundable street damage cash deposit: $4,000 per driveway approach for a new house or multi-family building, $5,000 for new commercial, $2,000 for a house addition, $3,500 for a commercial remodel or addition, and $2,000 for a retaining wall, pool, accessory building or deck over 500 sq ft. The bond forms still posted on the Building page quote an older per-foot deposit; the FY2027 amounts are the adopted ones. For a new house the deposit is held for a year after occupancy, then released once the curb, gutter, sidewalk and approach pass inspection.

Starting work without a permit leads to a stop work order and an investigation fee equal to the permit fee, unless the City Engineer approves less.

Electrical, plumbing and mechanical work

Trade work is permitted and inspected by the same Building Department, through the same portal. Plumbing, mechanical and electrical rough-ins are inspected as part of a building permit, and stand-alone jobs get their own permit.

• Electrical services. Many older Bountiful homes have meters with no disconnect. Replacing an interior service panel, or any work that pulls the meter, triggers an upgrade of the meter equipment under the City’s Change of Service policy, written jointly by Engineering, Building and Bountiful City Light & Power.
• Solar and batteries. Applications go through CityInspect with a $50 application fee paid before submittal, a one-line diagram on the Light & Power sample form and an engineer’s roof analysis. The battery-system packet routes review through Planning, Engineering and Building, South Davis Metro Fire and Light & Power, and Light & Power sets the solar meter after the inspection is approved.
• Re-roofs over solar. A licensed E200, E201 or S202 contractor removes and reinstalls the array under an over-the-counter electrical permit; a changed layout needs a new solar permit.

What to submit

Bountiful posts project-specific requirements rather than one master checklist. Plans must follow the City’s Design Criteria sheet (revised July 1, 2026): the 2021 International Residential Code with Appendices AE and AQ for one- to four-family dwellings and townhomes, the 2024 International Building Code and companion 2024 codes with the 2023 National Electrical Code for commercial work, a 30-inch frost depth, 140 mph design wind speed and Seismic Design Category D2.

New homes must have all cuts and fills graded no steeper than 2:1, or retained by walls built under a separate permit, before the City grants occupancy.

How to get a Bountiful permit: 6 steps

Bountiful inspections

Inspections are booked by phone at 801-298-6125, not through the portal. Have the application number from the top right of the permit, the site address, the on-site contact’s name and phone number, the inspection type and your preferred day ready. Inspections run Monday to Thursday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; because City offices close on Fridays, a Friday inspection must be requested by the Tuesday before.

The printed permit and the full set of approved plans must be on site. Inspectors will not enter a home or back yard unless the contractor, the homeowner or the owner’s representative aged over 21 is there.

If the City cannot inspect within three business days of a request, you may use one of its contracted third-party inspectors (WC-3 Code Consultants, the North Salt Lake City Building Department or the Farmington City Building Department), but only after telling the City and getting its confirmation that it cannot inspect in time.

A residential re-roof is inspected at the sheathing, the ice barrier and the final. Retaining walls 4 feet and taller need the engineer of record’s inspection reports before the City’s final. A permit becomes invalid if work is not started and inspected within 180 days, or stops for 180 days; reinstatement needs the Building Official’s approval and may bring in newer codes.

Local Bountiful rules that matter

Wildfire area: the City Council adopted a Local WUI Area map on December 9, 2025. New houses, major remodels and re-roofs inside it follow the International Wildland-Urban Interface Code, starting with a Fire Hazard Severity Form that sets the ignition-resistant construction class. No part of Bountiful is in the State’s High-Risk WUI.

Code update: on July 14, 2026 the Council adopted Ordinance 2026-07, which brought the City’s construction-code chapter into line with the State codes and adopted the International Property Maintenance Code.

Water and storm drain fees: water development impact fees run from $1,102.80 for a 3/4-inch meter in areas with pressurized irrigation to $2,205.60 where there is none, and installing a 3/4-inch lateral and meter costs $1,500. The storm water impact fee for single-family development is $2,100 per acre.

Work in the street: encroachment and excavation permits start at $75 for the first 100 feet plus $30 for each further 100 feet, and double when work starts without one. Contractors need a $20,000 annual excavation bond, $3 million of liability cover and, for concrete street work, an S-260 or E-100 licence.

Power: electricity comes from the City’s own Light & Power utility, which signs the net-metering agreement for solar.

Utah building code

Utah adopts one construction code for the whole state; cities and counties enforce it, and any local amendments are set by the Legislature. Utah rules

Official Bountiful permitting resources

• Bountiful Building Department: CityInspect link, forms and contacts
• Bountiful 2026–2027 Adopted Budget with the FY2027 fee schedule
• Bountiful Code and Design Criteria (July 2026)
• Bountiful inspection scheduling sheet
• Bountiful Building Inspection Policy and third-party inspectors
• Bountiful Reroof and Roof Repair Policy
• Bountiful Retaining Wall Requirements
• Bountiful Pool Submission Requirements (July 2026)
• Bountiful Local Wildland Urban Interface page
• Bountiful Engineering: encroachment and excavation permits
• Bountiful Planning applications
• Utah State Construction Code editions
• Utah Division of Professional Licensing

Bountiful permit FAQs

Who issues building permits in Bountiful?

The Bountiful City Building Department at 795 South Main Street (801-298-6125), with Engineering handling retaining walls, grading and street work.

How much is a building permit for a new house in Bountiful?

There is no flat price. The permit fee comes from the 1997 Uniform Administrative Code table applied to an ICC-based valuation; add 29% of that fee for plan review and the State fee. The $500 application fee paid up front is credited to the total, and the street damage deposit and impact fees are separate.

Do I need a permit to re-roof?

Yes for a re-roof or recover: an over-the-counter permit costing $150 plus a $1.50 state fee, with three inspections. Small repairs under the City’s size limits need no permit.

Do I need a permit for a retaining wall?

Yes for any wall 4 feet or taller, measured from the bottom of the footing, and for closely tiered shorter walls. The design must be stamped by a Utah engineer.

Can I schedule inspections online?

No. Call 801-298-6125, Monday to Thursday; ask by the Tuesday before for a Friday inspection.

Can a homeowner pull a permit?

Yes, by filing the state Owner Builder Form with the application for a home the owner will use.

How much is the street damage deposit?

Under the FY2027 schedule, $4,000 per driveway approach for a new house and $2,000 for a house addition, refunded after the City inspects the public improvements.

Simplify Bountiful permitting with Alliance Permitting

Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company in Utah. We prepare your paperwork, file it correctly and coordinate with the permitting authority through issuance. We are not a contractor and we do not perform licensed plan review or inspections; that work stays with your licensed team and the jurisdiction.

This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Bountiful permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.