Off-Grid Laws › North Dakota

Off-Grid Living in Griggs County, North Dakota

Griggs County appears to have eliminated its own zoning and building permit processes back in 2014, leaving unincorporated land with no confirmed active county land-use office, though this should be verified directly with the County Auditor. Septic permits go through Grand Forks Public Health as the regional health unit, while wells, greywater, and rainwater fall back on general state-level baselines with no Griggs-specific rules found.</summary> <parameter name="framework">{"zoning":{"status":"unclear","note":"County commission minutes describe eliminating the county's building permit, conditional use, variance, and zoning administrator processes and the Planning Commission in 2014; the county's own About page still mentions planning/zoning services, so current status is unconfirmed and should be verified with the County Auditor. Inside Cooperstown, Binford, or Hannaford, city ordinances govern instead of the county.","cite":"https://www.griggscountynd.gov/sites/default/files/comm-meeting-minutes/2024-12/1-17-14min.pdf"},"dwelling":{"status":"unclear","note":"No Griggs County dwelling-size or RV occupancy rule was found, and given the apparent lack of an active county building/zoning office, unincorporated land may have no enforced standard, but this is not confirmed.","cite":""},"building":{"status":"varies","note":"The county-level building permit process appears to have been eliminated by the Griggs County Commission in 2014; within Cooperstown, the city itself administers building permits as a municipal service.","cite":"https://www.cooperstownnd.com/index.asp?SEC=E41F9F96-105B-47CF-92A7-7F441A7B5ED9&Type=B_BASIC"},"septic":{"status":"permitted","note":"Griggs County has no environmental health department of its own; Grand Forks Public Health serves as the regional health unit and issues onsite wastewater/septic permits for Griggs County residents, while the state Department of Environmental Quality licenses the installers under state law.","cite":"https://www.grandforksgov.com/government/city-departments/public-health/environmental-health"},"greywater":{"status":"unclear","note":"No Griggs County or Grand Forks Public Health page specifically addressing residential greywater reuse was found; confirm directly with Grand Forks Public Health's environmental health division.","cite":""},"rainwater":{"status":"permitted","note":"No Griggs County ordinance restricting rainwater harvesting was found; this follows the general state baseline of no prohibition, though larger or underground systems could trigger a building permit through whichever local authority applies.","cite":""},"well":{"status":"permitted","note":"No Griggs County-specific well ordinance was found; well construction and water-use rules run through the state (State Engineer/State Water Commission and licensed well drillers), and well siting may also be reviewed by Grand Forks Public Health as part of septic permit applications.","cite":""},"utility":{"status":"varies","note":"No Griggs County or Cooperstown rule was found mandating connection to grid electric, water, or sewer for occupancy; given the apparent lack of active county zoning enforcement, unincorporated land may face fewer such mandates, but this isn't explicitly confirmed and should be checked with the County Auditor.","cite":""}}

Is it legal to live off-grid in Griggs County, North Dakota?

There is no outright ban on living off-grid in Griggs County, North Dakota - it is possible, but the local rules are not all documented online. Zoning and land use are set locally and vary by area, putting a cabin, tiny home, or RV on raw land is not clearly documented online, so confirm it locally, and building permits are set locally and vary by area. Plan around septic/wastewater (generally allowed) and disconnecting from utilities (set locally and vary by area). Because these rules are set locally, confirm the specifics with Griggs County before you buy land or build.

Read this before you act on anything below. This is my researched starting point for Griggs County, not legal advice and not a guarantee. Rules change, and the deciding facts on any specific parcel (setbacks, perc results, overlay districts, deed restrictions, road frontage) live at the county or town office, not in any database. Before you buy land or build, confirm the current rules directly with the local zoning and health offices - the sources on this page tell you exactly who to call.
Primary-source verified · reviewed Aug 20268 government, statute, or municipal sources are linked below; the verdict card cites them where a match exists.

The verdict for Griggs County

  • Zoning: Varies locally
  • Dwellings, tiny homes: Unclear - verify
  • Building permits: Varies locally
  • Septic: Generally allowed
  • Greywater reuse: Unclear - verify
  • Rainwater harvesting: Generally allowed
  • Private wells: Generally allowed
  • Living disconnected from utilities: Varies locally

Griggs County at a glance

Zoning & raw-land occupancy
Varies locallyGriggs County commissioners appear to have eliminated the building permit, conditional use permit, variance processes, the zoning administrator job, and the planning commission back in 2014, so there's no confirmed active countywide zoning today, but I'd still call the County Auditor to double check since the county's own website still lists planning/zoning as a service. Inside the three incorporated cities, especially Cooperstown, the city's own zoning ordinance and map govern land use instead. source
Dwellings, tiny homes & RVs
Unclear - verifyI couldn't find any Griggs County dwelling-size or RV-occupancy standard, and given the apparent absence of an active county zoning office, unincorporated land may have no enforced rule at all right now. Inside Cooperstown, city ordinances would apply, but I didn't find a specific size or RV rule on the city's site, so confirm with the City of Cooperstown directly.
Building permits & codes
Varies locallyNorth Dakota doesn't force local jurisdictions to adopt the state building code, so whoever is the local Authority Having Jurisdiction, city or county, sets the real rule. In Griggs County's case the county-level permit process was reportedly eliminated in 2014, while Cooperstown still lists building permits as a city-managed service, so which authority applies depends heavily on whether your land is inside or outside city limits. source
Septic & composting toilets
Generally allowedGriggs County doesn't run its own environmental health department; Grand Forks Public Health serves as the regional health unit for Griggs County and issues onsite wastewater permits, and installers must also be licensed by the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality under state law. So a septic or composting-toilet-adjacent wastewater system needs a permit from Grand Forks Public Health before work starts. source
Greywater reuse
Unclear - verifyI found no Griggs County or Grand Forks Public Health page that specifically addresses residential greywater reuse, so this is genuinely unclear at the local level. I'd recommend calling Grand Forks Public Health's environmental health division directly to ask before setting up any greywater system.
Rainwater harvesting
Generally allowedNo Griggs County ordinance restricting rainwater harvesting turned up in my research, and state law doesn't prohibit it either. Just know that a larger or underground catchment tank could trigger a building permit through whichever authority, city or county, actually governs your parcel.
Private wells & water rights
Generally allowedNo Griggs County specific well ordinance was found, so private wells fall under the statewide well-construction and water-rights framework run through the State Engineer's office and licensed well drillers. Grand Forks Public Health also cares about well placement relative to septic siting as part of its onsite wastewater permit review, so be ready to mark well locations on that application.
Living disconnected from utilities
Varies locallyI found no Griggs County or Cooperstown rule mandating a hookup to grid electric, water, or sewer for occupancy. With county zoning and building enforcement apparently inactive, unincorporated land may face fewer utility-connection mandates than a fully zoned county would impose, but this isn't stated outright anywhere, so it's worth a direct call to the County Auditor to confirm before you plan your off-grid setup.

Who to call in Griggs County

Offices named on official pages during research. Phone numbers appear only when the official page showed one; confirm hours and jurisdiction before you drive out.

Griggs County, North Dakota is a strange and honestly kind of fascinating case for off-grid research, because based on the documents I could find, the county doesn't currently run an active zoning or building permit office at all.

County commission minutes show that back in 2014, the Griggs County Commission voted to eliminate the Building Permit Application process, the Conditional Use Permit process, the Zoning Variance process, the Zoning Administrator position, and the Griggs County Planning Commission itself, all effective immediately. That's about as clean a wipe of county land-use apparatus as you'll find. The county's own website still lists "planning/zoning" among general services on its About page, which contradicts what the minutes describe, so I can't tell you with confidence whether anything was ever reinstated. My honest advice: call the Griggs County Auditor's office and ask directly, "does the county currently issue building permits or enforce zoning on unincorporated land?" Get the answer in writing if you can.

What I can say more confidently is that the picture changes once you cross into one of the county's three incorporated cities: Cooperstown (the county seat), Binford, and Hannaford. Cooperstown has its own adopted zoning ordinance and zoning map hosted on the city's website, and the city lists building permits as a service it manages directly. So if you're eyeing land inside city limits, plan on dealing with the city, not the county.

Septic is one area where the rules are clearer and don't depend on that county ambiguity. Griggs County doesn't run its own environmental health department; instead, Grand Forks Public Health serves as the regional health authority for Griggs, Grand Forks, Nelson, Pembina, and Walsh counties. Statewide, the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality licenses onsite wastewater system installers, but the actual permit for your system comes from that local health unit, meaning you'd apply through Grand Forks Public Health before installing a septic or comparable system.

Wells, greywater, and rainwater harvesting all fall into the "not specifically addressed" category at the Griggs County level. That doesn't mean unregulated, it means nobody's published a county-specific rule I could find, so the statewide baseline (through the State Engineer's office for wells, and general silence on greywater and rainwater) applies until told otherwise by a named authority.

Bottom line: this is a county where the paper trail suggests unusually light local government touch on land use, but "suggests" is doing a lot of work in that sentence. Verify current status by phone before you buy land or build.

Griggs County in numbers

Worst-month sun
2.2 peak hours/day (4.4 annual average)
Heating degree days
8,976
Precipitation / snow
20.01 in / ? in a year
Frost-free season
05-04 to 10-02
Elevation
824 ft

Open the full site report for this spot →

30-year climate normals for the nearest ZIP and distances from the town center; a specific parcel will differ. Run the site report on an address for its own numbers.

Sources

Primary sources (statutes, agencies, municipal documents)

Secondary sources (universities, regional bodies)

Only government, statute, municipal, university, and regional-planning sources are listed. Pages used to find an issue but not to substantiate it are not cited. See how this database is researched.

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FAQ

Common questions about off-grid living in Griggs County

Is it legal to live off-grid in Griggs County, North Dakota?

There is no outright ban on living off-grid in Griggs County, North Dakota - it is possible, but the local rules are not all documented online. Zoning and land use are set locally and vary by area, putting a cabin, tiny home, or RV on raw land is not clearly documented online, so confirm it locally, and building permits are set locally and vary by area. Plan around septic/wastewater (generally allowed) and disconnecting from utilities (set locally and vary by area). Because these rules are set locally, confirm the specifics with Griggs County before you buy land or build.

Does Griggs County have an active building permit office?

Based on 2014 county commission minutes, the county eliminated its building permit process, zoning administrator position, and planning commission. Whether this has since been reinstated isn't confirmed, so call the County Auditor's office to check current status.

Can I build off-grid on unincorporated land in Griggs County without a permit?

It's not confirmed either way. The documented elimination of the county's permit process suggests there may be little enforcement, but this needs direct verification with the county before you rely on it.

Who issues septic permits for Griggs County?

Grand Forks Public Health, which serves as the regional environmental health unit for Griggs County, issues onsite wastewater/septic permits, while the state Department of Environmental Quality licenses the installers.

Are the rules different inside Cooperstown, Binford, or Hannaford?

Yes. These three incorporated cities have their own municipal governments; Cooperstown, for example, has an adopted zoning ordinance and manages its own building permits, separate from whatever the county does or doesn't enforce.

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Off-grid rules in nearby North Dakota counties

Same eight-point verdict card, county by county across North Dakota.