Do I need a city permit to level my own driveway in Billings?

It depends on where the slab sits. Ordinance 07-5424 makes it unlawful to cut, break, remove or alter any curbing, driveway apron or sidewalk in the public right-of-way without a permit, and it says permits are issued only to properly licensed and bonded contractors. Slabs entirely on private property are a different matter. Public Works Engineering at (406) 657-8231 will tell you which side of the line your work falls on.

What does the Billings driveway or sidewalk permit cost?

We do not publish a figure for it. The ordinance states that fees are set by council resolution rather than in the ordinance text, and we could not verify the current amount, so quoting one would be a guess. Published Public Works fees we can confirm are $65 for an encroachment permit, $100 for a special event or right-of-way permit, and no charge for a traffic control permit. Call (406) 657-8231 for the current driveway and sidewalk figure.

Can the city make me repair my sidewalk?

Yes. MCA 7-14-4122 gives a Montana city council power to regulate and provide for the construction or repair of sidewalks, and to place a lien on the property when an abutting owner does not comply. That is a strong argument for lifting a settled walk while it is still a lifting job.

How deep does the ground freeze here?

City design criteria use a frost depth of 42 inches. Anything shallower than that, including most slabs on grade, moves with the seasons.

Concrete Leveling in Billings, Montana

In Billings the first question is not how far the slab dropped. It is whether the slab is in the public right-of-way, because a city ordinance decides who is allowed to touch it.

Talk About Your Slab

Start here

The ordinance

Ordinance 07-5424 makes it unlawful for any person “as owner, agent, servant, contractor or employee to cut, break, remove or alter any curbing, driveway apron or sidewalk” in the public right-of-way without a permit. The same ordinance states that permits “shall be issued only to properly licensed and bonded contractors by the city after payment of fees as prescribed by council resolution.”

It also handles the tail end of the job. An abandoned driveway has to be restored by the owner, and if that is not done within 60 days of notice, “the city may do so at the expense of the owner.” Ordinance 25-5915 amends section 6-1208, which covers curb cuts; a right-of-way permit is required there too.

Public Works, Engineering Division, sits at 2224 Montana Ave and answers at (406) 657-8231. Published fees there include a $65 encroachment permit and a $100 special event or right-of-way permit; a traffic control permit carries no charge. Concrete removed from the right-of-way has to be replaced within 7 working days.

We deliberately do not publish a dollar figure for the driveway and sidewalk permit itself. The ordinance defers that amount to council resolution, and we could not verify the current number. Call (406) 657-8231 and ask before you budget.

What that means if you own the house

Licensed and bonded is not optional

Because permits are issued only to licensed and bonded contractors, a right-of-way slab is not a weekend project no matter how confident you are with a bag of mix.

Lifting avoids the removal question

Mudjacking and foam lift the existing slab through small ports. Nothing is cut out, so the 7-working-day replacement clock for removed concrete never starts.

A sidewalk notice has teeth

Under MCA 7-14-4122 the council can regulate sidewalk repair and lien an abutting property that does not comply. Acting early keeps that off the table.

Two different soils under one city

Billings sits at 14.3 inches of annual precipitation, so the ground does not get wet by accident. When we find saturated soil under a slab, it came from a sprinkler head, a downspout, or a leak. What happens next depends on which soil is down there.

Expansive clay (Bew series)

Smectite clay swells when it takes on water and shrinks as it dries. The slab rides that cycle: high in a wet spring, low after a dry August, and cracked somewhere in between. The soil stays put; it just changes volume.

Dispersive clay from marine shale

Here the clay does not swell, it deflocculates and washes away in moving water, leaving an open void. The slab does not cycle, it drops and stays dropped. Filling the void without cutting off the water just buys a season.

The median Billings house was built around 1980, so most of these slabs have had four decades of irrigation seasons to sort themselves out. With frost depth at 42 inches by city design criteria, seasonal movement is layered on top of whichever mechanism is driving the settlement.

Outside the city limits

Concrete leveling in Laurel
Separate incorporated city, own public works
Concrete leveling in Lockwood
Unincorporated — county approach permits
Concrete leveling in Shepherd
Unincorporated — county and floodplain

Questions about this work

Do I need a city permit to level my own driveway in Billings?: It depends on where the slab sits. Ordinance 07-5424 makes it unlawful to cut, break, remove or alter any curbing, driveway apron or sidewalk in the public right-of-way without a permit, and it says permits are issued only to properly licensed and bonded contractors. Slabs entirely on private property are a different matter. Public Works Engineering at (406) 657-8231 will tell you which side of the line your work falls on.
What does the Billings driveway or sidewalk permit cost?: We do not publish a figure for it. The ordinance states that fees are set by council resolution rather than in the ordinance text, and we could not verify the current amount, so quoting one would be a guess. Published Public Works fees we can confirm are $65 for an encroachment permit, $100 for a special event or right-of-way permit, and no charge for a traffic control permit. Call (406) 657-8231 for the current driveway and sidewalk figure.
Can the city make me repair my sidewalk?: Yes. MCA 7-14-4122 gives a Montana city council power to regulate and provide for the construction or repair of sidewalks, and to place a lien on the property when an abutting owner does not comply. That is a strong argument for lifting a settled walk while it is still a lifting job.
How deep does the ground freeze here?: City design criteria use a frost depth of 42 inches. Anything shallower than that, including most slabs on grade, moves with the seasons.

Find out what is under your slab

Tell us where the water goes and how far the concrete has moved. We will tell you whether the fix is a lift, a drainage change, or both — and whether the city needs to be involved first.