Search the current record before anyone digs
Pima County provides two useful starting points. Its land-permitting search can show basic current record information and status, while the Septic Records Portal provides PDF copies of many newer digitized files and scans of original hard-copy records.
Searches can use an address, parcel number or project activity number. If the expected document is not online, the county records page explains how to request help locating it.
What a record may help you understand
A permit record may show the approved tank, disposal area, reserve area, system type, design flow or inspection history. That can help a service professional plan tank access, compare visible components with the approved layout and avoid unnecessary exploratory excavation.
A record is not proof of current condition. Landscaping, unrecorded work and decades of property changes can make field verification necessary.
- Approximate tank and drain-field location
- System type and approved design
- Permit or activity references
- Historical inspection documents
- Design capacity or bedroom assumptions when recorded
- Primary and reserve disposal areas when shown
Construction Authorization comes before installation
Pima County regulates construction and replacement of onsite wastewater systems. A proposed system is reviewed for site conditions, design, setbacks and the applicable general permit before Construction Authorization is issued.
Construction Authorization is not the final permission to use the system. Required field inspections and completion documents support the Discharge Authorization that allows the approved facility to operate.
A repair can become a permitted modification
Routine service and every component repair are not automatically the same as redesigning the facility. However, replacing treatment works, increasing design flow, reconstructing disposal works or expanding into regulated setback areas can trigger formal approval requirements.
The safest planning question is not simply “Does a repair need a permit?” It is “What part of the approved system is changing, and does that change alter the permitted design or site footprint?”
Closure and sewer conversion have their own record trail
When an onsite system is permanently discontinued, Pima County requires a closure or abandonment process. That can apply when a property connects to sewer or when an old system is taken out of service.
Do not simply leave an unused tank undocumented. Proper pumping, disconnection, physical closure and agency notification protect future owners and reduce safety risk.
Keep the approval history with the property
Save authorizations, as-built plans, inspection results, pumping records and repair documents together. Clear records reduce future diagnostic time and help buyers, inspectors and service professionals understand what was approved and what has changed.
Check current forms and guidance directly with the responsible agency.