EXHIBIT “A” 
 
ARTICLE II – PRIVATE SEWAGE DISPOSAL CODE 
 
 
   19-2-1     DEFINITIONS.    The following definitions shall apply in the 
interpretation and enforcement of this Code. 
   Board of Health   means the St. Clair County Board of Health or its authorized 
representative(s). 
   Domestic Sewage   means wastewater derived principally from dwellings, 
business or office buildings, institutions, food-service establishments and similar 
facilities. 
   Health Authority   means the person or persons who have been designated by 
the Board of Health to administer the affairs of the Health Department. 
   Health Department   means the St. Clair County Health Department, including 
its duly authorized representative(s). 
   Homeowner   means a contract-for-deed buyer, mortgage holder or a person 
who holds legal title to a residential structure which is to be used or is used for his/her 
personal single family residence. 
   Homeowner Installed System   means a private sewage disposal system 
installed by a homeowner for his/her personal single family residence. 
   Modify   means any change in the design or components of a private sewage 
disposal system requiring a permit herein defined. 
   Operational Inspection   means an inspection of the private sewage disposal 
system to determine compliance with this Code by the Health Department. 
   Permit   means a written permit issued by the Health Department permitting the 
construction of a private sewage disposal system under this Code. 
   Private Sewage Disposal System   means any sewage handling or treatment 
facility receiving domestic sewage at a volume less than   one thousand five hundred 
(1,500) gallons   per day and having a ground surface discharge or any sewage 
handling or treatment facility receiving domestic sewage and having no ground surface 
discharge. 
   Private Sewage Disposal System Contractor Registration   means an 
annual Registration Certificate issued by the St. Clair County Health Department to all 
Private Sewage Disposal System Contractors engaged in the installation and/or 
servicing of private sewage disposal systems within the limits of St. Clair County. 
   Private Sewage Disposal System Installation Contractor   means any 
person excavating, constructing, installing, repairing, modifying, maintaining or 
servicing private sewage disposal systems. 
   Private Sewage Disposal System Pumping Contractor   means any person 
who cleans or pumps waste from a private sewage disposal system or hauls or disposes 
of waste removed therefrom. 
          
 
 

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   Septic Tank Manufacturers and/or Aerobic Treatment Unit Dealers   
means any person who manufactures, sells, offers for sale, or delivers septic tanks or 
aerobic treatment units in or into St. Clair County. 
   Septic Tank Manufacturers and/or Aerobic Treatment Unit Dealers 
Registration   means an annual Registration Certificate issued by the St. Clair County 
Health Department to all Septic Tank Manufacturers and/or Aerobic Treatment Unit 
Dealers engaged in the manufacture, sale, offer for sale, and delivery of septic tanks 
and/or aerobic treatment units in or into St. Clair County. 
 
 
   19-2-2     ADOPTION BY REFERENCE.    In addition to those provisions set 
forth, this Code shall be interpreted and enforced in accordance with provisions set 
forth in the current, unabridged form of the State of Illinois, Department of Public 
Health, “Private Sewage Disposal Licensing Act and Code” (77 Ill. Adm. Code 905) and 
any subsequent amendments or revisions thereto, which is incorporated herein and 
adopted by reference as part of this Code,   three (3)   certified copies of which shall be 
on file in the office of the St. Clair County Clerk. 
 
 
   19-2-3     REQUIRED AREA.   
 (A)      Lot Size.    Minimum lot size for a residential structure requiring a 
private sewage disposal system shall be   one (1) acre   in size excluding easements.  A 
greater area may be required for such lots if, in the opinion of the Health Department, 
there are other factors of drainage, soil conditions, or other conditions which may cause 
potential health problems.  Lots platted and on record before the effective date of this 
Code, will be given special consideration when applying for a permit.  A smaller area 
may be requested if there are extenuating circumstances or if a community sewage 
collection system is proposed.  A variance may be granted if, in the opinion of the 
Health Department, it is impractical or impossible to comply with the Code and an 
approved system can be installed and no potential health hazards will exist.  However, 
the area shall be large enough to provide for a second private sewage disposal system 
of a size and type equivalent to the minimum system approved for the lot. 
 (B)      Subdivisions.    The Health Department shall require persons who 
subdivide property to furnish information on forms provided by the Health Department 
concerning soil absorption capacities, or require changes in a proposed subdivision plat, 
to reasonably ascertain that each lot of said proposed subdivision will be able to 
support the installation and subsequent use of an approved private sewage disposal 
system as defined in the State of Illinois, Department of Public Health, “Private Sewage 
Disposal Licensing Act and Code”. 
 
 
   19-2-4     PERMIT REQUIREMENTS.   
          
 
 

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   (A)      It shall be unlawful for any person to construct, alter or extend 
individual domestic sewage disposal systems within St. Clair County unless he/she holds 
a valid permit issued by the Health Department stating the name of such person for 
which the specific construction, alteration or extension is proposed. 
   (B)      All applications for permits granted under the provisions of this 
Code shall be made to the Health Department. 
   (C)      A permit shall only be issued to a homeowner and/or a St. Clair 
County registered Private Sewage Disposal System Installation Contractor installing a 
private sewage disposal system. 
   (D)      Permit application forms provided by the Health Department shall 
be completed and signed by each applicant and shall include the following: 
(1)   Name and address of the applicant and location of the 
proposed site of construction, alteration, or extension as 
proposed. 
(2)   Complete plan of the proposed disposal facility attesting to 
its compliance with the minimum standards of this Code. 
   (E)      The Health Department shall refuse to grant a permit for the 
construction of a private sewage disposal system where a sanitary sewage system is 
available.  A sewer shall be deemed available when a sanitary sewer line is in place 
within any street, alley, right-of-way, or easement that adjoins or abuts the premises 
for which the permit is requested, or when the improvement to be served is located 
within a reasonable distance of a sanitary sewer to which a connection is practical and 
is permitted by the controlling authority for the sewer.  A reasonable distance for the 
purpose of this provision shall be deemed to be not greater than   three hundred 
(300) feet   for a single-family residence and not greater than   one thousand (1,000) 
feet   for a commercial establishment, subdivision, or multi-family dwelling. 
   (F)     The Health Department shall act upon all applications within 
fifteen (15) days   of receipt thereof. 
   (G)      Said permit to construct is valid for a period of   one (1) year   from 
date of issuance.  If construction is not completed within this period, the permit is void. 
   (H)     Soil evaluations, as required by this Code, shall be performed 
according to the provisions of the State of Illinois, Department of Public Health, “Private 
Sewage Disposal Licensing Act and Code”.  The Health Department reserves the right to 
determine the validity of any test and in cases where more than one set of tests are 
performed, the Health Department shall determine which test results shall prevail. 
   (I)      The Health Department shall be notified of any modification, 
change or repair to any private sewage disposal system by either a homeowner or 
contractor to determine whether that modification, change, or repair requires a permit 
as set forth in this Code.  The routine cleaning of disposal system components, 
replacing septic tank covers, or rodding out inlets and outlets, does not require a 
construction permit as defined in this Code. 
   (J)      There shall be a   Two Hundred Dollar ($200.00)   fee charged for 
the initial construction permit, alteration or extension of an individual sewage system as 
          
 
 

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approved by the Health Department.  The fee shall be collected by the Health 
Department at the time an application for permit is submitted, and shall be deposited 
into the St. Clair County Health Department Fund. 
 
 
   19-2-5     REGISTRATION.   
   (A)      Annual contractor’s registration shall be required by all Private 
Sewage Disposal System Installation Contractors and all Private Sewage Disposal 
Pumping Contractors operating within the limits of St. Clair County.  The Health 
Department shall issue a Private Sewage Disposal System Installation Contractor 
Registration Certificate or a Private Sewage Disposal System Pumping Contractor 
Registration Certificate to persons applying for such certificate who pass the written 
examination given by the State for the certificate desired and who are licensed by the 
State of Illinois as a Private Sewage Disposal System Installation Contractor and/or a 
Private Sewage Disposal System Pumping Contractor.  A   Fifty Dollar ($50.00)   annual 
registration fee shall be required for each certificate issued.  This fee shall be collected 
by the Health Department at the time the application is submitted and shall be 
deposited in the St. Clair County Health Department Fund.  All Registration Certificates 
st
shall expire   December 31   of the year issued, except those issued in December will 
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expire   December 31   of the following year. 
 (B)    Annual  Tank   Septic  Manufacturer and/or Aerobic Treatment Unit 
Dealer Registration Certificates shall be obtained by all persons who wish to 
manufacture, sell, offer for sale or deliver septic tanks or aerobic treatment units in or 
into St. Clair County.  The Health Department shall issue a Septic Tank Manufacturer 
and/or Aerobic Unit Dealer Registration Certificate to persons who apply for such 
certificate and who have approval to manufacture and sell septic tanks and/or aerobic 
units from the Illinois Department of Public Health.  There shall be no fee for said 
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certificate.  All Registration Certificates shall expire   December 31   of the year in 
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which they were issued, except those issued in December will expire   December 31   of 
the following year. 
   (C)      All persons who hold a Septic Tank Manufacturer and/or Aerobic 
Treatment Unit Registration Certificate shall be required to notify the St. Clair County 
Health Department, in writing within   ten (10) days   of the date of delivery or sale of a 
septic tank or aerobic treatment unit, of the following information: 
(1) Name  purchaser.   of 
(2) Location  delivery.   of 
(3)   Date of sale and delivery. 
(4)   Size of septic tank or make and model of aerobic treatment 
unit. 
 
 
   19-2-6     COMPLIANCE AND PERFORMANCE.   
          
 
 

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   (A)      All private sewage disposal systems within the limits of St. Clair 
County shall be constructed, installed, modified, maintained and serviced by an 
individual with a valid Private Sewage Disposal System Installation Contractor’s 
Registration Certificate.  All such systems shall be pumped, cleaned, and the contents 
hauled and disposed of by individuals with a valid Private Sewage Disposal System 
Pumping Registration Certificate; provided a homeowner may install and/or service a 
private sewage disposal system which serves his/her own personal single family 
residence. 
   (B)      All septic tanks and/or aerobic treatment units manufactured, sold, 
offered for sale, or delivered in St. Clair County shall comply with the provisions of this 
Code. 
   (C)      An operational inspection may be conducted on any private sewage 
disposal system which is part of a sale of property or for refinancing any time an 
application for inspection is submitted to the Health Department.  There shall be a   Two 
Hundred Dollar ($200.00)   fee charged for the inspection.  The fee shall be collected 
by the Health Department at the time an application for inspection is submitted and 
shall be deposited into the St. Clair County Health Department Fund. 
   (D)     All aerobic treatment units installed or repaired on or after the 
effective date of this Code shall be required to have a continuing service policy in 
accordance with Section 905.100g of the State of Illinois, Department of Public Health, 
“Private Sewage Disposal Licensing Act and Code”.  Any existing unit found in violation 
of any part of this Code shall be required to comply with this Section. 
   (E)      Any private sewage disposal system designed to surface discharge 
installed on or after the effective date of this Code shall not discharge any effluent 
directly into any body of water where full body contact activities are allowed.  A 
discharge within   seventy-five (75) feet   of the above shall be considered a direct 
discharge to the receiving body of water. 
   (F)      It shall be unlawful to discharge untreated sewage or effluent from 
any septic tank directly or indirectly to any stream, ditch, ground surface, sink hole or 
abandoned well, or to allow the contents of any privy vault or septic tank to emit 
offensive odors, to become objectionable, dangerous or prejudicial to the public health 
or to allow surface discharging systems to create a nuisance ponding condition, either 
on or off the property. 
   (G)      Private sewage disposal systems constructed prior to the effective 
date of this Code shall be updated to comply with the requirements of this Code when 
malfunction or failure occurs or a permit is required to repair or replace that system. 
   (H)      Persons who construct, install, repair or modify a private sewage 
disposal system shall notify the Health Department at least   forty-eight (48) hours   
prior to commencement of the work. 
   (I)      It shall be the duty of the owner or occupant of a property to give 
the Health Department free access at reasonable times to any property that has a 
private sewage disposal system on it for the purpose of making such inspections as are 
necessary to determine compliance with the requirements of this Code.  If the Health 
          
 
 

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Department is denied access to the property, it may, to the extent provided by law, 
obtain an administrative search warrant with the assistance of the State’s Attorney 
Office for the purposes of this Codes’ enforcement   (225 ILCS 225/8(3))  . 
   (J)      A private sewage disposal system shall not be covered or placed in 
operation until the said installation has been inspected and written approval of the said 
system shall have been issued by the Health Department. 
   (K)      If any person who installs a private sewage disposal system shall 
backfill any portion of the said system and/or cover the same with earth, cinders, 
gravel, shale, or any other material which will prevent the same from being readily 
viewed to determine if the said system meets all requirements of this Code before 
receipt of written approval by the Health Department, the Health Department may give 
fifteen (15) days   notice in writing to such homeowner and/or installation contractor 
so violating the provision of this Code, to uncover such backfilled or covered portions of 
the system. 
   (L)      If, at the end of such   fifteen (15) days  , the homeowner shall not 
have uncovered the individual sewage disposal system, the permit is automatically 
invalidated and penalty action may be taken.  The Health Department may elect to 
have the system uncovered at the expense of the homeowner.  Failure of the 
homeowner to pay such costs within   thirty (30) days   shall result in execution of a lien 
against the property. 
 
 
   19-2-7     ISSUANCE OF NOTICE.   
   (A)      Whenever the Health Department determines that a violation of 
any provision of this Code has occurred, the Health Department shall give notice to the 
person responsible for such violation.  This notice shall: 
(1)   Be in writing. 
(2)   Include a statement of the reasons for issuance of the 
notice. 
(3)  Allow reasonable time as determined by the Health 
Department for performance of any act it required. 
(4)   Be served upon the person responsible for the violation(s); 
provided that such notice shall have been properly served 
upon the person responsible for the violations when a copy 
thereof has been sent by registered or certified mail to 
his/her last known address as furnished to the Health 
Department or when he/she has been served with such 
notice by any other method authorized by laws of this State, 
and, 
(5)   Contain an outline of remedial action which is required to 
effect compliance with this Code. 
          
 
 

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   (B)     It shall not be a prerequisite to enforcement of the penalty 
provisions of this Code that the Health Department first resort to the notice procedure 
set forth in this Code. 
 
 
   19-2-8     REVOCATION OF REGISTRATION.    For serious or repeated 
violation of any of the requirements of this Code, the Private Sewage Disposal 
Contractor’s Registration Certificate and/or Septic Tank Manufacturer and/or Aerobic 
Unit Dealer Registration Certificate may be revoked after an opportunity for a hearing 
has been provided by the Health Department.  Prior to such action, the Health 
Department shall notify the contractor in writing, stating the reasons for which the 
Registration Certificate is subject to revocation and advising that the certificate shall be 
revoked at the end of   five (5) days   following service of such notice, unless a request 
for a hearing is filed with the Health Department, by the holder, within such   five (5) 
day   period.  A Registration Certificate may be suspended for cause pending its 
revocation or a hearing relative thereto where a clear and present danger to the public 
health is preliminarily found to exist by the Health Department. 
 
 
   19-2-9     HEARINGS.   
 (A)      Hearing Before the Health Department.    Any person affected 
by any order or notice issued by the Health Department in connection with enforcement 
of this Code, may file in the office of the Health Department a written request for a 
hearing before the Health Authority.  The Health Authority shall hold a hearing at a time 
and place designated by the Health Department within   thirty (30) days   from the date 
on which the written request was filed.  The petitioner for the hearing shall be notified 
of the time and place of the hearing not less than   five (5) days   prior to the date on 
which the hearing is to be held.  If, as a result of the hearing, the Health Authority finds 
that the public health would be adequately protected and substantial justice done by 
varying or withdrawing the order or notice, the Health Authority may modify or 
withdraw the order or notice.  The Health Authority shall render a decision within   ten 
(10) days   after the date of the hearing which shall be reduced to writing and placed 
on file in the office of the Health Department as a matter of public record.  Any person 
aggrieved by the decision of the Health Authority may seek relief therefrom through a 
hearing before the Board of Health.  A transcript of the record shall be provided at the 
request and at the expense of the person requesting the hearing. 
 (B)      Hearing Before the Board of Health.    Any person aggrieved by 
the decision of the Health Authority rendered as the result of a hearing held in 
accordance with this Section may file in the office of the Health Department a written 
request for a hearing before the Board of Health at a time and place designated by the 
Secretary of the Board of Health within   thirty (30) days   of the date on which the 
written request was filed.  The petitioner for the hearing shall be notified of the time 
and place of the hearing not less than   five (5) days   prior to the date on which the 
          
 
 

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hearing is to be held.  If, as a result of facts elicited as a result of the hearing, the 
Board of Health finds that the public health would be adequately protected and 
substantial justice done by granting a variance from the decision of the Health 
Authority, the Board of Health may grant a variance.  The Board of Health shall render 
decision within   ten (10) days   after the date of the hearing which shall be reduced to 
writing and placed on file in the office of the Health Department and a copy thereof 
shall be served on the petitioner personally or by delivery to the petitioner by certified 
mail.  A transcript of the record shall be provided at the request and at the expense of 
the person requesting the hearing.  All witnesses called shall be required to testify 
under sworn oath.  An appeal from the decision of the Board of Health may be made to 
the Circuit Court of St. Clair County, pursuant to the provisions of the “Administrative 
Review Act” in force and effect at that time in the State of Illinois.   
 
 
   19-2-10     PENALTY.   
   (A)      Any person who violates any provision of this Code may be fined a 
sum of not less than   Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00)   and not more than   One 
Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00)  .  Each day’s violation constitutes a separate offense. 
   (B)      The State’s Attorney shall bring such actions in the name of the 
People of the State of Illinois or may bring an action for injunctive relief to restrain such 
violation.  Additionally, any person who violates any provision of this Code may be 
penalized in accordance with the State of Illinois, Department of Public Health, “Private 
Sewage Disposal Licensing Act”, Section 19   (225 ILCS 225/19)   and the “Private 
Sewage Disposal Licensing Code”, Section 905.205   (77 ILAC 905.205)  . 
          
 
 

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