Benton County, AR Ordinances (2026)

Site work in unincorporated Benton County triggers a stormwater review: Sec. 38-1 has the planning office check every new address assignment for floodplain and stormwater…

Any construction or land alteration in a Benton County special flood hazard area needs a development permit before work starts. Sec. 38-51 requires the permit and a posted notice on…

New and substantially improved buildings in Benton County's mapped flood hazard zones must have their lowest floor at least one foot above the base flood elevation. Sec. 38-73(1) sets…

Any construction site in unincorporated Benton County that disturbs an acre or more of soil, including a single lot inside a bigger subdivision, needs a certified Stormwater Pollution…

Adult-oriented businesses in unincorporated Benton County must sit at least 1,000 feet from any school, park, place of worship, playground, public library, walking trail, child care…

On unincorporated lots of two acres or more, Benton County allows a small repair or welding shop as an exempt home occupation. It draws a hard line at towing services, auto wreckers…

Parades and other public gatherings on Benton County's unincorporated roads are classified as Temporary Uses under Chapter VII, Sec. 7.5. Because a parade cannot meet the…

Special events held on public property, school sites and county parks are exempt from Benton County's Temporary Use Permit process, as long as the activity runs 30 days or less in a…

Fairs, festivals, concerts and other organized events in unincorporated Benton County need a Temporary Use Permit under Chapter VII, Sec. 7.5.D. The Planning Board reviews the informal…

Unincorporated Benton County lets property owners build one accessory dwelling unit on a lot with a single-family home, but the ADU cannot exceed 50% of the primary dwelling's…

Benton County waives the building permit fee for any structure, including a shed, costing $1,000 or less to build, per the county's Sec. 54-4 fee schedule.

Unincorporated Benton County exempts short-term and long-term rentals from site plan review only below one dwelling unit per acre or three dwelling units per parcel. Cross either cap…

Benton County treats home child care as an exempt home occupation only up to five children under the Planning and Development Regulations. Watch a sixth child and the county…

Benton County caps how much traffic a home-based business can bring under Chapter VII, Sec. 7.6.A: the delivery or parking demand cannot adversely affect surrounding traffic, and…

A home-based business in unincorporated Benton County is a Home and Rural Family Occupation under Chapter VII, Sec. 7.6, allowed by right without Planning Board review if it stays…

A home occupation's on-site sign is capped by lot type under Chapter VII, Sec. 7.6.A: one non-illuminated sign up to two square feet in a subdivision, or up to nine square feet and six…

Commercial and other non-residential projects in unincorporated Benton County must preserve healthy existing trees wherever possible. When a tree comes out, the developer has to plant…

Benton County requires a cleared width of up to 40 feet along county roads where brush and trees encroach into the driving lane, treating overgrowth as a safety hazard.

Every exterior light fixture on a Benton County site plan must be a full cutoff fixture, meaning no light shines above horizontal, and must be identified on the plan by intensity and…

Benton County's performance standards forbid any development from letting excessive light or glare, including pulsing or strobe patterns, spill onto neighboring properties in a way…

Benton County's development code sets exactly one countywide numeric noise standard: large and utility-scale wind turbines cannot exceed 55 dBA at the property line, verified by a…

Benton County's land use table requires any facility using an amplified sound system, such as a bar, night club or entertainment venue, to keep noise at reasonable levels outside the…

In unincorporated Benton County, a fence up to 7 feet tall isn't a "structure" under the Planning and Development Regulations, so it can go up without a county permit. Anything taller…

In unincorporated Benton County, a fence up to 7 feet tall is not treated as a regulated "structure," but no fence, wall or landscaping over 36 inches can stand inside a…

Recreational fires are exempt from Benton County's open-burning notification rule. Sec. 34-3(c) excludes grills, campfires in agency-regulated devices, and barbecues or outdoor…

The county judge can order an immediate countywide ban on open burning whenever weather and fire conditions turn hazardous, effective the moment the court order and notice go out: no…

Benton County makes it a crime to place a junk motor vehicle, old tire or abandoned appliance on a public right-of-way, other public property, or private property you do not own, lease…

Any Benton County development that needs site plan review must design loading docks to be entered from the public road without backing across it, keep them off the public way, and…

Benton County doesn't ban exotic wild animals outright, but every owner of a lion, tiger, bear, cougar, leopard or other untamable nondomestic animal must get an annual sheriff-issued…

Benton County picks up any dog found off its owner's property, whether on a resident complaint, routine patrol, or a nuisance call from animal control.

Benton County outlaws keeping any dog behaviorally defined as vicious: no breed list exists. A conviction forces the owner to euthanize or permanently remove the dog within 30 days.

Benton County bars any manmade structure from within 50 to 65 feet of a road's centerline, with the exact distance set by whether the road is arterial, collector, or local.

Benton County bans dumping litter, junk vehicles, tires, and old appliances on public or private property, with fines up to $500 per violation.

Benton County sets no residential collection schedule or mandatory trash service; unincorporated residents arrange private hauling themselves, and any company collecting waste must…

Benton County bars minors from public places or businesses in unincorporated areas during set curfew hours, with parents and business operators also on the hook.

Benton County can order owners to clean up junk and unsanitary conditions, then remove or raze noncompliant structures and bill the owner.

Benton County adopted the National Electrical Code, 2014 Edition, as its electrical building code for all unincorporated areas under Sec. 14-27. The county judge, or a code enforcement…

Benton County charges building permit fees on a sliding scale tied to total construction cost, from no fee under $1,000 up to $1,245 plus $1 per additional thousand above $500,000…

Benton County adopted the Arkansas Plumbing Code, 2006 Edition, as its plumbing building code for all unincorporated areas under Sec. 14-31. The county judge, or an appointed code…

Benton County's own setback rules apply regardless of what a subdivision's private covenants say, but the county draws a hard line the other way too: any setback or dimensional rule…

Rooftop and other small-scale solar systems on the owner's own property skip Benton County's site plan review entirely under Section 6.1. Cross the 100-kilowatt small-scale definition…

Benton County's land use policy for the unincorporated area discourages industrial and commercial development that would limit the viability of existing farms. The same…