In Kansas, onsite wastewater (septic) systems are regulated by Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), Bureau of Water, Local Environmental Protection Program, which sets the statewide code, and permits are issued and inspections carried out by county or local health jurisdictions. Installing, replacing or repairing a septic system here means, in sequence: a site and soil evaluation, a design, a permit application, an inspection while the system is open, and a final as-built record once it is approved.
The state-level regulator is Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), Bureau of Water, Local Environmental Protection Program (official program page). KDHE sets a statewide minimum standard (K.A.R. 28-5-1 to 28-5-9 and KDHE Bulletin 4-2, 'Minimum Standards for Design and Construction of Onsite Wastewater Systems'), but private/onsite sewer systems are located, designed, and operated per county sanitary codes approved by KDHE; where a county has no approved local code, KDHE's default standards apply. Licensing of installers/designers/pumpers is administered at the county level (e.g., Johnson County Department of Health and Environment, Sedgwick County MABCD).
The statewide onsite-wastewater code is cited as K.A.R. 28-5-1 through 28-5-9 (Sewage and Excreta Disposal); KDHE Bulletin 4-2, Minimum Standards for Design and Construction of Onsite Wastewater Systems. We link the agency's own page above rather than restating specific numeric requirements from it, since those change by rule revision and by local amendment.
The order of operations is broadly consistent across the country, even though the specific numbers in each step vary by state and often by county. None of the figures below are specific to Kansas; treat this as the shape of the process, and get the actual numbers from the agency linked above or from the county office.
| Design | Under K.A.R. 28-5 / Bulletin 4-2, system design must be prepared by a licensed installer (licensed under the applicable county/state code) or by a registered Professional Engineer. |
|---|---|
| Installation | Licensed onsite wastewater installer/contractor — licensing is administered by the county with jurisdiction (e.g., Johnson County Department of Health and Environment issues installer/designer/pumper licenses; Sedgwick County requires a wastewater contractor business license through its Metropolitan Area Building and Construction Department) under the standards set by KDHE. |
Septic records in Kansas are generally held by the county or local health jurisdiction that issued the permit, not by the state agency, and are released under the state's public records law. We have not logged the specific statute name and response deadline for Kansas yet; check with the county office listed on its records page below, or with Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), Bureau of Water, Local Environmental Protection Program.
We hold 344 septic records across 38 of 105 Kansas counties. Each county page below shows exactly where its records are kept and how many we hold.
| County | Records held |
|---|---|
| Atchison | 74 |
| Cherokee | 51 |
| Johnson | 33 |
| Labette | 19 |
| Chase | 15 |
| Kearny | 14 |
| Clark | 13 |
| Miami | 11 |
| Douglas | 10 |
| Phillips | 10 |
| Cowley | 10 |
| Jefferson | 8 |
| Grant | 7 |
| Shawnee | 7 |
| Marshall | 6 |
| Coffey | 6 |
| Anderson | 6 |
| Brown | 5 |
| Ness | 4 |
| Butler | 4 |
| Russell | 4 |
| Barton | 4 |
| Riley | 3 |
| Allen | 3 |
| Rooks | 2 |
| Dickinson | 2 |
| Stevens | 2 |
| Pottawatomie | 1 |
| Cheyenne | 1 |
| Gove | 1 |
| Clay | 1 |
| Geary | 1 |
| Rush | 1 |
| Ford | 1 |
| Neosho | 1 |
| Crawford | 1 |
| Leavenworth | 1 |
| Ellis | 1 |
Full Kansas county-by-county index · Open the parcel map
Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), Bureau of Water, Local Environmental Protection Program. KDHE sets a statewide minimum standard (K.A.R. 28-5-1 to 28-5-9 and KDHE Bulletin 4-2, 'Minimum Standards for Design and Construction of Onsite Wastewater Systems'), but private/onsite sewer systems are located, designed, and operated per county sanitary codes approved by KDHE; where a county has no approved local code, KDHE's default standards apply. Licensing of installers/designers/pumpers is administered at the county level (e.g., Johnson County Department of Health and Environment, Sedgwick County MABCD).
The sequence is a site and soil evaluation, a design sized from the evaluation and (under most state codes) bedroom count, a permit application, an inspection before backfill, and a final as-built filed once the system is approved. Exact numeric requirements are set by the agency's own code, not restated here.
Licensed onsite wastewater installer/contractor — licensing is administered by the county with jurisdiction (e.g., Johnson County Department of Health and Environment issues installer/designer/pumper licenses; Sedgwick County requires a wastewater contractor business license through its Metropolitan Area Building and Construction Department) under the standards set by KDHE.
Septic records are generally held by the county or district health office that issued the permit. See our county-by-county Kansas index for the specific office and portal in each county.
Regulatory information on this page was researched against official state agency sources and last verified 2026-08-31. It is informational only: the agency linked above is authoritative, and requirements can change. We are not lawyers, not a government body, and not affiliated with, licensed or certified by any agency named on this page.