Excavation permits and rules in Iowa

Anyone digging in Iowa has to notify Iowa One Call before work starts. Dial 811 to reach it. The notice period under Iowa Code ch. 480 (notice at 480.4): Notice of the planned excavation occurring after a forty-eight-hour period (48 consecutive hours beginning at 6:00 a.m. the next business day after the center receives the notice, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays).^{1, 2, 3}

Iowa licenses contractors through the Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing (DIAL). Who needs a license: Contractors earning $2,000 or more a year from construction. Mandatory contractor registration with DIAL, no trade exam; construction is as defined for Iowa employment security law.^{4, 5, 6}

A stormwater permit is needed at 1 acre, or less if part of a larger common plan of development or sale that will disturb more than 1 acre. Coverage is under the NPDES General Permit No. 2, storm water discharge associated with construction activities (Iowa DNR).^{7, 8}