On August 1, 1996, County Executive Douglas Duncan signed into law a bill creating the Department of Permitting Services (DPS). The mission of DPS is to provide the highest quality of public service while insuring compliance with Montgomery County development and construction standards.

Simply put, anyone who wants to develop land or build something on it in the County has to obtain a permit from DPS to do so. In essence, DPS enforces standards that control what goes on before, during and after construction. Also, zoning matters, such as whether or not a business activity is being conducted in a residential area, whether or not someone has built something too close to a property line, or whether or not someone may sell flowers in a public street are regulated by DPS. DPS does not get involved in disputes between business owners and their customers, between tenants and landlords, or between homeowners and their neighborhood associations. Other County departments may be of assistance in matters like these.

Some of the specific services provided by DPS include the issuance of street-grading, storm-drain, sediment-control, well, septic, building, electrical and use-and-occupancy permits; the licensing of electricians and vendors; and the inspection of building, road-construction, and land-disturbance activities. DPS is a coordinating agency for approvals from other agencies (such as Fire and Rescue, WSSC, MNCPPC, State Highway Administration) for permits that we issue.

DPS consists of an Office of the Director and three Divisions: Casework Management, Land Development, and Building Construction. In Casework Management, customer-service personnel called Permit Technicians assess customer needs and consult with other DPS employees, as necessary, to provide required levels of service. Casework Management is also the home of the DPS zoning unit. Building Construction is staffed with engineers and inspectors who review plans for and inspect commercial and residential buildings for safety. Land Development employs engineers and inspectors in three functional areas: water-quality-related construction practices, well-and-septic systems, and work done in County rights-of-way.

The DPS automated permit system makes it possible for customers to access permit information, schedule inspections, and accomplish a host of other permitting tasks via our website at http://permittingservices.montgomerycountymd.gov. Also, customers can perform some of these functions by using the DPS “Interactive Voice Response” telephone system (240 777-6210).