Who Can Work on a Septic System in Texas? 7 TCEQ License Types

Who is allowed to work on a septic system in Texas?

Anyone who builds, alters, repairs, or maintains an on-site sewage facility (OSSF) for pay in Texas has to hold a TCEQ license or registration for that kind of work. The state statute behind this is Texas Health and Safety Code 366.071, and the details live in 30 TAC Chapter 30, Subchapter G, and 30 TAC Chapter 285.^source

That means a septic job is not a handyman job, and it is not automatically a plumber's job either. A master plumber license covers plumbing inside the house. The tank, the aerobic treatment unit (ATU), the pump tank, and the spray field outside are OSSF work, and they need an OSSF credential.^source

Kaufman County puts it bluntly on its OSSF page: you must be licensed by TCEQ to install or repair any portion of a septic system, and it spells out that sprinklers are included. So the guy who fixes lawn irrigation cannot swap your spray heads, even though they look like the same part.^source

Every Texas OSSF license type and what it allows

TCEQ issues seven OSSF credentials. Three are licenses you will see on a quote (Installer II, Site Evaluator, Maintenance Provider). The others are supporting roles, and one of them, the Designated Representative, works for the government, not for you.^source

Use this table to match the person to the job. If someone is doing work in a row where their credential does not appear, stop and ask.

Who designs a septic system in Kaufman County?

In Kaufman County, only a registered professional engineer or a registered professional sanitarian who also holds a current site evaluator certification can do the site evaluation and draw the design. That comes from the county's TCEQ-approved OSSF order, and it covers designs, as-builts, and system certifications.

That is stricter than the state baseline. Statewide, 30 TAC 285.5 lets an owner or installer prepare planning materials for a standard system, and requires a PE or professional sanitarian only for non-standard systems and a few other cases. A lot of generic Texas advice online is written from that baseline, which is why it can mislead you here.

In practice, the design on a Kaufman County permit should carry a PE seal or a sanitarian's signature, and the soil work behind it should come from the same qualified person. If you want to understand what the evaluator is looking for on Blackland Prairie clay, read our soil and site evaluation guide.^source

Installer I vs Installer II: why it matters for aerobic systems

An Installer I can only build standard systems, and an aerobic system is not on that list. If your quote is for an ATU with a spray field, which is what most Kaufman County lots end up with, the installer needs an Installer II license.^source

TCEQ's own count makes the point. In 2024, Kaufman County issued 514 authorizations to construct, and 488 of them were surface irrigation systems, the spray fields that sit behind aerobic units. On a typical lot here, an Installer I simply is not licensed for the job.^source

Ask the installer which license they hold, then check it. If the answer is Installer I and the plan is aerobic, the person holding the license on your permit has to be someone else, and you should know who. Our septic system installation page covers what a full aerobic install includes.^source

Who can service an aerobic system in Kaufman County?

In Kaufman County, aerobic maintenance must be done by a TCEQ maintenance provider, or a registered maintenance technician working under one. The county order also requires every aerobic system to carry a maintenance contract, with inspections every four months.^source

The county order uses the older phrase "registered Maintenance Provider." Since September 1, 2009, TCEQ rules require a licensed maintenance provider, who is responsible for the contract, supervises any technicians, and must sign every maintenance report. The license belongs to a person, so the contract should name one.^source

Every visit should leave a trail you can check. State rules require a weather resistant tag on the motor cover, control panel, or breaker box that names the provider, lists a phone number, shows the contract start date, and gets punched or marked at each check. If that tag has not been touched in months, your provider has not been out. Our aerobic septic maintenance page explains what a proper visit covers.

Who pumps a septic tank in Texas?

Pumping is a separate trade. TCEQ tells owners to have tanks pumped and cleaned by a TCEQ registered sludge hauler, which is a transporter registration, not an OSSF installer or maintenance license.^source

Your aerobic maintenance provider may tell you the tank needs pumping, and some companies hold both credentials, but the truck that hauls the waste away has to be registered for it. If a pumping company also offers to "fix" a baffle, a pump, or a float while they are there, ask which OSSF license covers that repair.^source

Who else can legally touch the system

Two narrow state exemptions come up on real jobs. Under 30 TAC 30.244, a licensed electrician who installs the electrical components does not need an installer license, and neither does the person who delivers a treatment or pump tank and sets it into the excavation.^source

That does not let the electrician redesign the control panel or the tank delivery driver backfill and plumb the system. The licensed installer still owns the installation and has to call for the inspections.^source

Inside the county's own office there is a line too. State rules bar anyone who works for a permitting authority from also working as an installer, site evaluator, or maintenance worker inside that same jurisdiction. The county inspector should never be the person selling you the system.^source

What can a homeowner do on their own septic in Kaufman County?

You can own the system well, but in Kaufman County you cannot build it, repair it, or service the aerobic unit yourself without the right TCEQ license. The county order says no homeowner or property owner may construct or install any OSSF unless they hold a current and proper TCEQ license.^source

Texas does have a state-level owner exemption for single-family homes, and we cover it in detail in can you install your own septic in Texas. Kaufman County is one of the places where the local order closes that door.

• Watch the alarm panel and call your provider when it trips
• Keep the chlorinator tube stocked if your contract makes that your job (the contract has to say who handles disinfection)
• Keep vehicles, livestock, and new structures off the tank and spray field
• Hold on to the permit, notice of approval, contract, and every maintenance report^source
• Call Development Services or your provider if something looks wrong, instead of opening lids to fix it

How to look up a Texas septic license

You can check any OSSF license on TCEQ's free online license search in about two minutes. Search by first name or initial plus last name, or enter the license number, which overrides every other field. There is also a group search where you can pick the On Site Sewage Facility licensing program.^source

Check three things on the result: the license type matches the job, the status is current, and the name matches the person on your contract. Licenses run three years, and most OSSF licenses need 24 hours of continuing education to renew, so an expired status is not a typo you should ignore.^source

Kaufman County also posts a list of OSSF companies on its OSSF page (the current file is dated February 2026). Being on that list is a useful starting point, but it is not a substitute for checking the individual license.^source

• Get the license holder's full name and number from the quote or contract^source
• Run it on TCEQ's license search^source
• Confirm Installer II for any aerobic, drip, or other non-standard install
• Confirm Maintenance Provider for the person signing your aerobic contract
• Confirm the designer is a PE or a registered sanitarian with site evaluator certification

Red flags that the wrong person is doing your septic work

Most bad septic jobs we hear about started with a credential question nobody asked. The installer rules in 30 TAC 285.61 give you a checklist of what a legitimate installer has to do, and anything that skips those steps is a warning.

What to ask before you hire

A good septic company answers these without getting defensive. If they cannot tell you who holds which license, that is your answer.^source

For repairs specifically, see our septic tank repair page, and if the job was an after-hours fix, read up on the 72-hour emergency repair reporting rule.^source

• Who holds the license on this job, and what type is it?^source
• Who is doing the site evaluation and design, and are they a PE or registered sanitarian?
• Will a licensed installer or registered apprentice be on site each work day?^source
• Who files the permit and schedules the county inspections?^source
• For aerobic: who is the maintenance provider for the initial two-year service policy?
• Where will your license number appear in the paperwork you give me?^source