Section 10 Permit Coverage for Private Development Activities
The Multi-species Conservation Plan (MSCP) and Section 10 permit authorized by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in July 2016 allow Pima County to grant Section 10 permit coverage to certain private development activities located in un-incorporated Pima County. Check out the January 2016 booklet "Balancing Economic Development and Endangered Species Compliance" for a detailed overview of the MSCP and Section 10 permit.
The Certificate of Coverage Program provides private landowners with coverage under the County’s Section 10 permit, offering a hassle-free way to avoid conflicts with federal rules regarding endangered species.
Visit "Getting a Certificate of Coverage" for information about applying for Section 10 coverage.
Questions about the Certificate of Coverage Program? Contact us at: S10PrivateLandAdmin@pima.govParticipation in the Certificate of Coverage Program is entirely voluntary. The decision to receive coverage under the County’s Section 10 permit rests solely with the property owner. The issuance of a Certificate of Coverage ensures that private landowners and developers receive the same benefits and certainty in complying with the Endangered Species Act as County and Regional Flood Control District projects.
***Read more about the Benefits of Section 10 Coverage for private developments.***
The following provides some basic information about the Certificate of Coverage Program, including rules and processes the County will use to grant Section 10 permit coverage.
1. Participation is completely voluntary
The decision to participate in the Certificate of Coverage Program and receive coverage under the County’s Section 10 permit is completely voluntary and rests solely with the property owner.
2. Program eligibility
The MSCP and Section 10 permit define some basic characteristics that must exist before coverage can be offered to a development on private property. The property owner must elect coverage, and the project must be:
- Within un-incorporated Pima County; AND
- Under Pima County’s jurisdiction; AND
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Located on a privately-owned individual lot that requires a Pima County Development Services building permit authorizing the grading of 14,000 square feet or more; OR
- Located on privately-owned property that requires a Pima County Development Services site construction permit in order to develop a subdivision or commercial or industrial facility
3. Coverage via building permit process
When development on an individual, private lot requires Pima County Development Services to issue a building permit authorizing the grading of 14,000 square feet or more, the property owner will have the opportunity to elect Section 10 permit coverage when applying for their building permit.
At that time, if the property owner does not want Section 10 permit coverage, they must actively decline the coverage when applying for their building permit. Coverage will be provided unless the property owner declines it.
No fees will be assessed for receiving coverage through this process.
IMPORTANT: If the property owner declines coverage, Section 10 permit coverage will not apply. The property owner may contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service directly for further guidance about habitat disturbance and compliance with the Endangered Species Act.
4. Coverage via site construction permit process
When development of a subdivision or commercial or industrial facility requires Pima County Development Services to issue a site construction permit, the property owner will have the opportunity to select Section 10 permit coverage when applying for their site construction permit.
At that time, if the property owner wants coverage, they must actively elect coverage when applying for their site construction permit. Coverage will not be provided unless the property owner actively requests it.
Once the property owner has indicated they want coverage, they must then apply to the Office of Sustainability and Conservation for coverage within a limited timeframe: after the site construction permit application is submitted to Development Services but before Development Services issues the site construction permit. For details about this application process, visit "Getting a Certificate of Coverage."
The decision of whether to seek coverage will not affect the timeframe for issuance of a site construction permit.
Fees will be assessed for receiving coverage through this process in order to cover the staff time and services required to administer the process. (See the "Program Fees" tab on this page for more information.)
IMPORTANT: If the property owner declines coverage, Section 10 permit coverage will not apply. The property owner may contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service directly for further guidance about habitat disturbance and compliance with the Endangered Species Act.
5. Covered activities & limits of coverage
The Section 10 protection and benefits that a Certificate of Coverage extends to private development activity apply only to the grading and ground disturbance allowed by the corresponding building permit or site construction permit issued by Pima County Development Services. A Certificate of Coverage does not cover any development activity that happens subsequent to the allowable grading and ground disturbance. If a property owner has received coverage for grading and ground disturbance within a certain project area and they or any future owner want coverage for new grading and ground disturbance that will occur in that same project area, they must elect Section 10 coverage each time they apply for a building permit or site construction permit.
Coverage via the Building Permit Process: When a Certificate of Coverage is issued in conjunction with a building permit that approves grading and ground disturbance of 14,000 square feet or more on an individual private lot, Pima County will cover only those impacts caused by the grading and ground disturbance authorized by that single building permit. Pima County will report and track Certificates of Coverage issued through the building permit process based on the parcel where the grading and ground disturbance occurred.
If a property owner has received coverage for grading and ground disturbance on a certain parcel and they, or any future owner, want coverage for new grading and ground disturbance that will occur on that same parcel, they must elect Section 10 coverage each time they apply for a building permit. The County will not cover the impacts of any grading and ground disturbance authorized by a building permit where the property owner fails to elect Section 10 coverage.
Coverage via the Site Construction Permit Process: When a Certificate of Coverage is issued in conjunction with a site construction permit that approves grading and ground disturbance for development of a subdivision or commercial or industrial facility, Pima County will cover only those impacts that result from the grading and ground disturbance authorized by that individual site construction permit. Pima County will use geospatial polygons that define the footprint of the grading and ground disturbance to report and track Certificates of Coverage issued through the site construction permit process.
If a property owner has received coverage for grading and ground disturbance within a certain footprint and they, or any future owner, want coverage for new grading and ground disturbance within a footprint that overlaps, in whole or in part, with that same footprint, they must elect Section 10 coverage each time they apply for a site construction permit. The County will not cover the impacts of any grading and ground disturbance authorized by a site construction permit where the property owner fails to request Section 10 coverage.
6. Program fees
On October 18, 2016, the Board of Supervisors approved an ordinance establishing fees for providing certain private development activities with coverage under the County’s Section 10 permit. These fees will be effective in January 2017 when the Certificate of Coverage program is launched.
No fees will be assessed for: Coverage via the building permit process for development on individual, private lots.
Fees will be assessed for: Coverage via the site construction permit process for subdivisions or commercial or industrial facilities.
The following fees will cover staff time and services required to administer coverage via the site construction permit process, and will be non-refundable. The fees will be assessed once on a per-project basis, regardless of the amount of acreage involved, and collected as part of the authorization process:
- Application Fee: Assessed for each application; the fee amount of $720.00 is based on the County’s cost to review and process an application.
- Compliance Monitoring Fee: Assessed in addition to the application fee when the project has certain natural open space set-asides that will be used as Section 10 mitigation land. The fee amount of $2450.00 per project is based on the County’s cost to establish and monitor these lands in accordance with Section 10 permit requirements.
7. Expiration of Certificates of Coverage
A Certificate of Coverage is “authorized” immediately upon successful completion of either the building permit application process or the site construction permit application process.
Authorized Certificates of Coverage will expire If the grading activities allowed by the associated building or site construction permit do not occur within six (6) years of receiving the Certificate of Coverage.
8. The MSCP & the Conservation Lands System (CLS)
In 1997, the Pima County Board of Supervisors initiated the
Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan (SDCP), which is a long-term endeavor intended to achieve balance between the community’s economic vitality and the conservation of our natural and cultural heritage. The
Biological Goal of the SDCP, which drives the County's efforts to conserve natural resources is to:
“Ensure the long-term survival of the full spectrum of plants and animals that are indigenous to Pima County through maintaining or improving the habitat conditions and ecosystem function necessary for the survival.”
An important first step in implementing the SDCP's Biological Goal was the creation and adoption of the
Maeveen Marie Behan Conservation Lands System (CLS) Map and Conservation Guidelines into the 2001 Comprehensive Plan Update.
More recently, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s issuance of an Endangered Species Act Section 10 permit and authorization of the County’s
Multi-species Conservation Plan (MSCP) completed another highly anticipated accomplishment that supports both the SDCP’s economic aspirations and its biological goal.
The CLS is a valuable source of biological information and was used along with other sources to develop the MSCP. However, this relationship between the CLS and MSCP does not alter the process the Board of Supervisors uses to apply the CLS in its implementation of the Pima County Comprehensive Plan. Nor does it create an obligation to comply with the CLS in order to get coverage under the Section 10 permit. Simply put:
Whether or not the Board of Supervisors required compliance with the CLS is not relevant to a landowner’s ability to receive coverage under the Section 10 permit.
Receiving coverage under the Section 10 permit does not require a landowner to comply with the CLS if the Board of Supervisors did not previously impose that requirement.
Receiving coverage under the Section 10 permit does not negate or modify a landowner’s responsibility to comply with the CLS if the Board of Supervisors previously imposed that requirement.
***Read more about the Relationship Between the MSCP and the CLS *** 9. No additional regulatory requirements
No new regulations will be applied to development projects just because they participate in the Certificate of Coverage Program and receive Section 10 coverage. Pima County Code requirements do not distinguish between development projects that receive Section 10 coverage and those that do not.
10. Compensating (mitigating) for project impacts
Under the terms of the Section 10 permit, only the County is accountable for compensating (mitigating) for impacts resulting from grading and ground disturbance covered by a Certificate of Coverage, and the subsequent loss of habitat for the species covered by the Section 10 permit. The County will use open space purchased with funds from multiple voter-approved bond elections as well as flood prone lands purchased through the Floodprone Land Acquisition Program (FLAP) to provide the majority of Section 10 mitigation land (these lands are depicted in the MSCP.)
Certain lands set aside during the course of developing private land will also be used for Section 10 mitigation. Conservation Lands System and Important Riparian Area set-asides that have been dedicated as natural open space during the rezoning, platting, and site planning development stages will be incorporated as Section 10 mitigation lands through the Certificate of Coverage Program. Property owners who want to participate in the Certificate of Coverage Program are not required to set aside new or additional natural open space areas in order to receive coverage under the County's Section 10 permit.
Conservation Lands System and Important Riparian Area natural open space set-asides will be used for Section 10 mitigation only when they exist as part of a subdivision, commercial or industrial development project that is requesting a Certificate of Coverage (this is not applicable to development on individual, private lots). These set aside areas will be used for Section 10 mitigation when they have been previously provided to 1) achieve compliance with rezoning conditions related to the Conservation Lands System (CLS) guidelines found in the Environmental Element (Section 3.4) of Pima Prospers - Pima County Comprehensive Plan Initiative, or 2) protect Important Riparian Areas subject to Title 16.30 – Riparian Protection and Mitigation Requirements. In order to use these natural open space set-asides as Section 10 mitigation, the property owner will be asked to legally protect the set-aside as natural open space and preserve it in perpetuity.