Building permits, zoning and land rules in Harrison County, Texas

An ordinary single-family home on unincorporated Harrison County land does not need a general county building permit¹. Construction or substantial improvements in a flood hazard area require a floodplain development permit before work or structure placement begins². Harrison County publishes a $20 application fee for residential and commercial floodplain development; residential application fees are non-refundable^11,12. The residential packet requires plans, proof of ownership, directions and a FEMA Elevation Certificate prepared by a professional engineer or land surveyor². Floodplain inspections occur before construction and after completion; give at least 2 working days’ notice for the initial inspection, and submit approved as-built plans if the permitted design changes². These inspections do not establish a general countywide home-inspection program².

For floodplain development permits, contact Harrison County Road & Bridge at 3800 Five Notch Road in Marshall, (903) 935-4868¹³. For county septic permits and subdivision, mobile-home, RV or tiny-home park applications, contact Harrison County Environmental Health at 2005 Warren Drive in Marshall, (903) 935-4870, Ext. 1362¹⁰. The county’s ordinary-home building-permit answer applies to unincorporated Harrison County¹. Inside Marshall and Hallsville, city zoning applies^3,4. County Environmental Health administers OSSF permitting, but Marshall’s ordinance also requires a septic permit from the city plumbing inspector; ask both offices how the approvals fit together for a Marshall address^5,6.

Unincorporated Harrison County has no county zoning rule setting minimum dwelling size, minimum lot size, setbacks, lot coverage or building height⁹. Septic, floodplain and subdivision requirements still apply^5,7,11. Marshall and Hallsville administer city zoning inside their limits^3,4. Marshall’s Zoning Board of Adjustment handles zoning appeals, exceptions and variances, while its Planning and Zoning Commission considers zoning changes and special-use permits^14,15. Marshall also reviews subdivision plats inside the city and within one mile of its limits¹⁵. County Environmental Health remains the county OSSF office, and Marshall separately requires a city plumbing-inspector septic permit^5,6.

Harrison County Environmental Health requires a septic permit to construct, install, alter, extend or repair an OSSF unless an exception applies, and requires a site evaluation by a TCEQ-licensed Site Evaluator or professional engineer⁵. The acreage-based exception requires a tract of at least 10 acres with only a single-family dwelling, all system parts at least 100 feet from property lines, effluent disposal on the property, no nuisance or groundwater pollution, and compliance with other construction standards⁵. Homeowner installation has separate ownership, skill and no-sale-or-lease conditions; commercial and multifamily systems require permits and licensed installers⁵. County OSSF applications require planning materials, site and soil evaluation, directions, any applicable recorded affidavit and a two-year service contract; Authorization to Construct lasts 1 year, and the system must be inspected before covering¹⁶. Only 6.5% of county soils lack severe conventional-drain-field limitations, so evaluate wastewater feasibility early¹⁷. Ask Environmental Health for the current septic-permit fee: the published consumer-health schedule covers food businesses, day care and related inspections, not OSSF permits¹⁸.

Unincorporated Harrison County has no county zoning rule restricting RV or tiny-home occupancy or imposing a minimum dwelling size⁹. A subdivision, mobile-home park, RV park or tiny-home park has a county development application, and its roadway must admit the largest EMS vehicles^5,10. Off-grid living still requires compliance with septic rules, including a county OSSF permit unless an exception applies⁵. We could not confirm every acceptable off-grid sanitation arrangement; ask Environmental Health about the proposed system. Inside Marshall and Hallsville, city zoning applies^3,4. County Environmental Health handles county OSSF approvals, and Marshall’s plumbing inspector also has a septic-permit requirement^5,6.

1. Establish the parcel’s city-limit status; Marshall and Hallsville have municipal zoning, while the county ordinary-home building-permit answer applies to unincorporated land^1,3,4.

1. Check flood status with Road & Bridge and obtain any required floodplain development permit before work or structure placement^11,13.

1. Arrange the septic site evaluation and county OSSF application unless an exception applies; inside Marshall, address the plumbing inspector’s septic permit too^5,6.

1. Obtain a TxDOT driveway permit before state-highway right-of-way work¹⁹.

1. Before subdividing outside city limits, resolve county plat approval or the conditional agricultural exemption^7,8.

1. Schedule floodplain final inspection and OSSF inspection before covering the septic system^2,16.

Resolve wastewater feasibility and floodplain status before buying: only 6.5% of Harrison County soils lack severe conventional-drain-field limitations, and floodplain development needs county approval^11,17. Dividing unincorporated land into 2 or more parts can trigger county subdivision regulations even with metes-and-bounds descriptions; covered plats require Commissioners Court approval before recording⁷. Preliminary plat filing costs $100 and requires submission at least 15 days before a regular court meeting⁷. Qualifying agricultural, farm, ranch, wildlife-management or timber divisions may be exempt if no streets or other shared/public-use areas are laid out; losing the qualifying use brings platting requirements back, and the exemption does not remove septic or floodplain rules⁸. The effective property-tax rate is about 1%, with a median annual bill of $1,811¹⁷. We could not confirm private-well permit or mandatory utility-connection rules; ask the water provider or groundwater authority serving the parcel.