Glenn County Building Permit Guide (Unincorporated Area)

Permit Authority

Serves building permit administration for unincorporated Glenn County. Applicants are directed to Glenn County Planning, Environmental Health, Public Works, APCD, and the applicable fire authority before permit issuance.

Department

Glenn County Planning & Community Development Services Agency, Building Inspector

Address

225 N Tehama Street, Willows, CA 95988

Phone

(530) 934-6546

Email

gcbuilding@countyofglenn.net

Website

https://www.countyofglenn.net/government/departments/planning-community-development-services/building-inspector

Online Permit Portal

Application Process

1. Check zoning and planning requirements with the Planning Department before applying.
2. Check Environmental Health requirements, especially for well, septic, sewer, or similar site constraints.
3. Check Public Works requirements, including encroachment or related public-works permits if applicable.
4. Check Air Pollution Control District requirements for projects that may trigger APCD review.
5. Check with the applicable fire authority for district review requirements.
6. Verify the parcel flood zone; flood-zone projects may have added FEMA requirements and cost.
7. Prepare a complete development and building permit application package, including plans and all supplemental documents; incomplete submittals are not accepted.
8. Submit the package digitally to gcbuilding@countyofglenn.net, or submit in person per the county forms page.
9. After screening for completeness, pay the intake or plan review fee amount quoted by county staff.
10. County staff and, where applicable, outside agencies review the plans for code compliance; if corrections are issued, resubmit as directed.
11. After all county departments approve the project, pay final building permit fees.
12. The permit is issued to the property owner with owner-builder documentation, an authorized agent, a licensed contractor, or an authorized agent for the licensed contractor.

Source: Glenn County Planning & Community Development Services Agency, Building Inspector

General Requirements

Glenn County states a building permit is required for work such as decks and balconies; patio, porch, or deck covers of any size; storage or playhouse buildings over 120 square feet; accessory buildings; cabanas and gazebos; fences over 7 feet; carports; breezeways; garages; additions; remodeling; reroofing; spas, saunas, and hot tubs; woodstoves or fireplaces; electrical wiring or plumbing; demolition work; and any other work not specifically exempted in the California Building Code.

Required Documents

• Development permit application
• Plans
• All supplemental documents as a complete package
• Plot plan guidance items where applicable
• Engineering-required project documents where applicable
• Special inspection forms where applicable
• Solar documents where applicable
• Pool documents where applicable
• EV charger documents where applicable
• Single-family dwelling supporting documents where applicable

Permit validity

After construction starts, an inspection must be requested at least every 180 days so the project is not treated as suspended or abandoned; if the permit expires, a new permit and additional fee are required before work resumes.

Building code

Glenn County says it is operating under the 2022 California Title 24 codes, including the 2022 California Building, Residential, Electrical, Mechanical, Plumbing, Energy, Fire, Existing Building, Historical Building, Reference Standards, Administrative, Elevator Safety, and Green Codes.

Owner-builder

Owner-builders may pull permits using the county owner-builder form. The county distinguishes owner-as-worker, owner-as-contractor, and owner-as-employer, and warns of payroll, workers' compensation, and liability risks if unlicensed workers are hired.

Contractor requirements

Permits may be signed by licensed contractors or their authorized agents. The owner-builder materials warn owners to use California licensed subcontractors when acting as their own general contractor.

Fees

Minimum permit fee

Building permit fees use Glenn County adopted building fee tables; no single flat minimum building permit fee was separately posted in the reviewed county materials. The BSASRF surcharge is not less than $1.

Plan check fee

The county states staff will notify the applicant of the plan review fee after plans are screened for completeness; a separate fixed building plan-check amount was not identified on the reviewed building fee pages.

Permit fee formula

Valuation-based. The master fee schedule says building fees use the ICBO March/April 2002 "Building Standards" issue plus 25%, the 1997 Uniform Administrative Code, and 6% of the total fee. The county also posts construction valuation tables and base permit fee brackets used to calculate permit cost.

Reinspection fee

The inspection procedure sheet says cancellation after scheduling can trigger a reinspection fee if not called in before the inspection.

Penalty (no permit)

The reviewed countywide master fee schedule lists operating without a permit as double permit fee and delinquent charges of 25% at 30-59 days and 50% at 60+ days, though those penalty lines are not specifically labeled as building-division penalties.

Payment note

Applicants are told to pay intake fees after completeness screening and final permit fees after all county approvals, before issuance. The building page separately warns applicants about fraudulent wire-transfer emails.

Fees change. Verify current amounts at the official fee schedule.

Work That Does NOT Require a Permit

• One-story detached accessory structures, other than storm shelters, up to 120 square feet
• Fences not over 7 feet high
• Retaining walls not over 4 feet high measured from the bottom of the footing to the top of the wall, unless supporting a surcharge
• Water tanks supported directly on grade if capacity does not exceed 5,000 gallons and the height-to-diameter or width ratio does not exceed 2:1
• Sidewalks and driveways
• Painting, papering, tiling, carpeting, cabinets, counter tops, and similar finish work
• Prefabricated swimming pools less than 24 inches deep
• Swings and other playground equipment
• Window awnings supported by an exterior wall that project not more than 54 inches and do not require additional support
• Decks not exceeding 200 square feet, not more than 30 inches above grade at any point, not attached to a dwelling, and not serving the required egress door
• Listed cord-and-plug connected temporary decorative lighting
• Reinstallation of attachment-plug receptacles, but not the outlets therefor
• Replacement of branch-circuit overcurrent devices in the same location and capacity
• Low-voltage electrical work under 25 volts and not capable of supplying more than 50 watts
• Minor electrical repair work such as lamp replacement or connection of approved portable equipment to permanently installed receptacles
• Portable heating, cooking, or clothes-drying gas appliances
• Replacement of minor gas-equipment parts that do not alter approval or create an unsafe condition
• Portable heating appliances, portable ventilation appliances, portable cooling units, portable evaporative coolers, and certain piping within heating and cooling equipment
• Self-contained refrigeration systems containing 10 pounds or less of refrigerant or actuated by motors of 1 horsepower or less
• Portable fuel-cell appliances not connected to fixed piping or the power grid
• Limited plumbing leak repairs and fixture repairs where the work does not involve concealed defective piping replacement or rearrangement of valves, pipes, or fixtures

Important: Exemption from permit does not authorize work that violates the code or other laws. Glenn County's permit-required handout also says any other work not specifically exempted in the California Building Code requires a permit.

Inspections

How to Schedule

• (530) 934-8447 (phone)
• (530) 934-6546 (phone)

Inspection hours

Inspections are conducted Monday through Thursday; no inspections are conducted on Friday.

Time windows

Applicants may call the office after 9:00 AM on the requested inspection date for an approximate inspection window.

Typical inspection sequence: Typical inspection sequence includes foundation; ground plumbing; slab; underfloor; roof sheathing; shear panel or wall bracing; structural frame; wall and ceiling insulation; sheetrock nailing; scratch and brown coats for 3-coat stucco; high-pressure gas test or manometer as applicable; and final inspection. The county also lists miscellaneous inspections such as masonry, fireplace throat, shower pan, underground utilities, woodstove wall protection, and other inspections required by the Building Official.

Additional Resources

• Building code: Glenn County says it is operating under the 2022 California Title 24 codes, including the 2022 California Building, Residential, Electrical, Mechanical, Plumbing, Energy, Fire, Existing Building, Historical Building, Reference Standards, Administrative, Elevator Safety, and Green Codes.
• Verify contractor license: CSLB License Lookup
• Zoning information: View zoning info
• Owner-builder rules: View rules
• Permit Forms and Applications
• Building Permit Fee Resources
• Building Valuation and Fee Tables
• FEMA Flood Maps
• License lookup guide: California Contractor License Requirements
• Contract template: California Homeowner-Contractor Agreement