Septic versus sewer in Michigan: when connection is required

Michigan law leans toward sewers

If a public sanitary sewer is available to your house, Michigan law expects you to use it. Section 12752 of the Public Health Code records the legislature’s finding that septic tank disposal systems are “subject to failure” and that connecting to an available public sanitary sewer at the earliest reasonable date is in the public interest. Section 12753 turns that into a duty: a structure in a city, village or township must connect to an available public sanitary sewer if the local unit requires it, and connection is due within 18 months after notice that a sewer is available or has been modified. A county or district board of health may set a shorter period. The EGLE Criteria say the same thing in their own words, that connection is required when a sewer is available.

“Available” has a number attached. The statute counts a public sewer within 200 feet of the structure as available. The distance runs from the structure, not from the street, so ask the utility to measure it for your house.

What county codes add

County and district codes restate the duty with their own details. Van Buren/Cass District Health Department’s code says fixtures installed where a public sewer is available shall connect to it, and requires connection no later than 18 months after written notice, followed by pumping and filling the old tank. Its code also prohibits pump and haul for new construction. Mid-Michigan District Health Department’s regulations, which cover Clinton, Gratiot and Montcalm counties, say facilities where public sewage is available must connect, and for Clinton the code says, as we understand it, that the old tank is to be properly abandoned. Wayne County’s sale brochure notes that connection is required if a sewer is available, and Genesee and Jackson counties ask owners to check with the municipality about sewer availability before they apply for a septic permit. In those counties, a septic permit conversation can begin at a municipal office.

Selling when a sewer is coming

Sewer plans change sale rules. In Macomb County, a property that will connect to municipal water and sewer within six months is exempt from the sale evaluation. Shiawassee County exempts a sale where a public sewer will be available within six months and the system is not failing, with an affidavit. Ingham County lists municipal water and sewer as an exemption. If you are buying a house near a planned extension, ask the seller and the municipality for the schedule and the notice date, since the 18-month clock in the statute runs from notice and not from construction.

What connection costs, and what is still unanswered

No Michigan government source we can cite gives the cost of connecting a house to a public sewer or the monthly rate difference between sewer and septic upkeep, so this guide gives no figure. The septic side does have numbers: EPA puts routine maintenance at $250 to $500 every three to five years and repair or replacement of a malfunctioning conventional system at $5,000 to $15,000, and EGLE says replacement systems cost $8,000 to $30,000. Those are the amounts a connection is competing with. The connection price, any tap or assessment fee and the plumbing from the house to the lateral come from your municipality and a contractor.

Section 12757 treats owners of alternative systems differently: they are not exempt from sewer special assessments, and in some cases they need not connect. If you own a mound or an aerobic system, the alternative systems guide and a call to the health department will tell you which case you are in.

How to find out for your address

Start with the township, village or city that would own the sewer, and ask three questions: is a public sanitary sewer within 200 feet of the house, has a notice been or will one be issued, and what do the assessment and tap fees look like. Then ask the county health department whether it will let a failing septic repair go ahead if a sewer is available. Genesee County’s page says to check municipal sewer availability first for exactly that reason. The septic repair page and the installation page explain the permit side, and the county rules tool shows what we have on file for your county.

New construction and land divisions

On a lot with no sewer, the septic permit comes before the house. The Criteria say construction of the building served shall not begin until a permit for the sewage system has been obtained. State rules at R 560.401 and the sections after it require approval of on-site sewage disposal suitability for land divisions and subdivisions, and Ottawa County lists a $555 vacant land evaluation for a land division. Van Buren/Cass’s code also prohibits pump and haul for new construction. If a sewer is promised near a lot you are thinking of buying, ask the municipality for the extension schedule in writing before you rely on it.

Questions to put to the municipality

Ask if a public sanitary sewer lies within 200 feet of the structure, if notice has been given and on what date, what the connection, tap and assessment charges are, who pays for the line from the house to the sewer, and whether the municipality or the health department decides if an old tank must be pumped and filled. Write the answers down with the name of the person who gave them. If a repair is urgent, do not delay it for a sewer that has no notice date.

When septic is the only choice

If no public sewer is available to your house, the septic system is not a stopgap. EGLE gives a conventional system 25 to 40 years and says its electronic parts wear out sooner than the tank and drain field. Pump on time, keep the field clear of roots and vehicles, and read the pumping interval guide. If it fails, the loan program lends up to $50,000 for failing or near-failing systems, with the failure documented by the local health department.