Council Bluffs, IA Fence Regulations: Fence Permit Requirements (2026)

CBMC 2.08.040, the city's consolidated Schedule of Fees, lists fence work among the building permit fees charged for one- and two-family dwellings and accessory structures. A fence in a residential district carries a flat $30.00 permit fee, while a fence in a non-residential district is $50.00; once a non-residential fence exceeds 1,500 linear feet, the fee switches to a valuation-based calculation using the same International Code Council Building Valuation Data Report multiplier applied to other building permits. These fee line items exist because fence construction is treated as permitted work under the general permitting structure administered by the building official through CBMC Chapter 13.01, alongside other accessory improvements like retaining walls, decks, and attached garages that appear in the same fee table.

Separately, CBMC 13.16.485 imposes its own permit fee specifically for electrically charged fencing, cross-referencing the same Schedule of Fees chapter rather than setting its own dollar figure, so an electric fence owner pays whatever fee CBMC 2.08 sets for that fence type in addition to meeting the electrification standards. The fee schedule is set and periodically updated by council resolution under CBMC 2.08.020, and CBMC 2.08.030 allows the city to waive fees in specified circumstances, though the ordinary residential and non-residential fence fees apply absent such a waiver.