Chautauqua County, New York: septic system and well inspection at sale
Checked on November 9, 2026 against the official rule. Rule set by Chautauqua County Health District.
General information, not legal advice. This is our summary of the official rule as we read it. The ordinance or code and the health department decide: confirm with them before you list, sign or close.
The rule
| Question | What the official text says |
|---|---|
| What is required | Public Health Director must examine and certify the individual water supply and wastewater treatment system (2 water samples plus sewage inspection, usually with dye test) before the title transfers Source: chautauquacountyny.gov |
| Triggered by | transfer of title Source: chautauquacountyny.gov |
| Deadline | before transfer; allow at least 5 days for processing; no dye tests December 1 to April 1 Source: chautauquacountyny.gov |
| Who arranges it | property owner (typically the seller) Source: chautauquacountyny.gov |
| Who pays | owner/applicant submits the application and fee Source: chautauquacountyny.gov |
| How long a report is valid | CCHD may honor inspection results for 6 months Source: chautauquacountyny.gov |
| Exemptions |
Source: chautauquacountyny.gov |
| Fee | 2026 form: water supply (2 samples) and sewage inspection $350; water only $175; sewage only $175 Source: chautauquacountyny.gov |
| If the system fails | Once a failing system is identified, all corrections needed to pass are required even if the property does not transfer; transfer without certification is a Sanitary Code violation with a fine up to $2,000 on each of seller and purchaser Source: chautauquacountyny.gov |
| Well part | Two water samples; new wells are permitted by NYSDEC and CCHD has no water supply records Source: chautauquacountyny.gov |
| Who may inspect | Chautauqua County Health Department staff inspect. official page (chautauquacountyny.gov) Source: chautauquacountyny.gov |
| Official forms | chautauquacountyny.gov Source: chautauquacountyny.gov |
This is our summary of the official rule as we read it. The ordinance or code and the health department decide: confirm with them before you list, sign or close. Rule set by: Chautauqua County Health District.
Checked on November 9, 2026: read on the official site.
Published costs
What the official fee schedule or guide for Chautauqua County says, with the year it applies to.
| Jurisdiction | Item | Amount | Year | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chautauqua County (this rule) | Water + sewage survey at transfer | $350 (water only $175; sewage only $175) | 2026 | chautauquacountyny.gov |
Inspectors, pumpers and labs set their own prices on top of these; the official source is the one that counts.
Compared with other New York rules
- One of 2 of the 5 New York local rules that reach the well (also Cattaraugus County); the others cover the septic system only.
Our census of official rules, checked November 9, 2026; start dates as the official text states them.
Private wells in Chautauqua County
In 2015 about 40,841 of Chautauqua County’s 130,779 residents (31%) got their drinking water from a private well, by the USGS estimate. That is the 31st highest share of the 62 New York counties in the USGS table, and the 17th highest number of private-well users.
This rule covers the well as well as the septic system. USGS models about 1,188 private-well users in Chautauqua County with arsenic above 10 µg/L, EPA’s limit for public water (2010 population base; 95% range 787 to 1,771), the 20th highest of 62 New York counties. It is a screening estimate, not a result for any one well.
Source: USGS county water use 2015 (Dieter et al., 2018); USGS domestic-well arsenic estimate (Ayotte, Medalie and Qi, 2017). Ranks count the New York counties in the USGS table (1 = highest).
Soils and septic systems here
USDA soil surveys rate 98% of Chautauqua County’s rated land “very limited” for a conventional septic drain field, 2% “somewhat limited” and 0% “not limited”, the 24th highest “very limited” share of 61 New York counties with survey data. The most common limits: a high water table (saturated soil near the surface) on 87%; slow percolation (dense or clay soil) on 80%; steep slopes on 26%.
Where soils are limited, inspections more often find drain fields that sit in seasonally wet soil, and replacement systems are often mounds or other engineered designs. A county-wide rating, not a test of one lot: a site evaluation decides. Source: USDA NRCS Soil Survey Geographic Database (SSURGO), via Soil Data Access, rating “ENG - Septic Tank Absorption Fields”, read November 15, 2026.
Nearest other sale-time rules
Buying or selling near a county line? These are the closest other local rules in our census to Chautauqua County.
| Rule | State | Distance | Covers | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cattaraugus County | New York | about 34 miles | Septic system and well | November 9, 2026 |
| Village of Moreland Hills | Ohio | about 131 miles | Septic system and well | November 9, 2026 |
| Village of Orange | Ohio | about 131 miles | Septic system and well | November 9, 2026 |
| Seneca County | New York | about 134 miles | Septic system | November 9, 2026 |
| Summit County | Ohio | about 136 miles | Septic system and well | November 9, 2026 |
Straight-line distance between county centres (the average of each county’s Census ZIP-area points). Townships, villages and health districts are placed at the centre of their county.