Off-Grid Living in Sherman County, Oregon

Sherman County is one of Oregon's smaller, agriculture-heavy counties, and its off-grid setup is a bit of a patchwork: the county handles zoning and land-use sign-off itself, but hands building permits to the state and septic permits to a regional health district. If you're used to one-stop-shop county offices, this county will feel different, so let me walk through what I found.

Zoning is run by the Sherman County Planning Department under the county's own Zoning, Subdivision, Partitioning, and Land Development Ordinance. Before you can even apply for a building permit, you need land-use approval from planning staff. If you're eyeing a non-farm dwelling, the county's own guidance is blunt: talk to the county planner first.

Dwellings, tiny homes, RVs: I couldn't confirm any Sherman-specific rules spelling out tiny-home or RV-as-residence standards, and I found no evidence the county has opted into Oregon's more permissive small-dwelling statute. Treat this as inheriting the state baseline, and again, run your specific plan by the planner before you buy or build anything.

Building permits are unusual here: Sherman County doesn't run its own building department. Once the county planning office signs off on land use, you submit your application to the State of Oregon Building Codes Division's Pendleton Field Office, which issues the actual permit.

Septic is permitted, but administered by the North Central Public Health District (serving both Wasco and Sherman Counties), not an in-house county department. Any home not on public sewer needs an approved onsite wastewater system, following Oregon DEQ rules plus the health district's local program. Note that passing a site evaluation doesn't automatically authorize installation, a separate construction-installation permit is required afterward. Composting toilets aren't addressed specifically on any Sherman County or health district page I found, so confirm directly with the health district.

Greywater and rainwater harvesting: I found no county-specific ordinances on either topic. Both appear to default to Oregon's statewide programs (DEQ's tiered greywater permit system, and the state's general exemption for rooftop rainwater collection), but nobody at the county level has published guidance confirming or restricting this locally.

Wells and water rights: There's no county water authority in Sherman County. Well construction is governed entirely by the Oregon Water Resources Department's statewide standards, and I found nothing suggesting the county adds anything on top.

Living off-grid/disconnected from utilities: No outright prohibition found, but because you need land-use approval and a state-issued building permit (which typically requires proof of an approved sewage system) for any dwelling, going fully unpermitted isn't really a workable path here.

Bottom line: this is a county where you'll be making calls to three different agencies (county planning, a state field office, and a regional health district) rather than one county building department, so budget extra time for coordination.