Procedure for the review of Certificates of Survey

For specifics regarding the submittal of Certificates of Surveys presented for sanitary approval to the Environmental Health Division of the Missoula City-County Health Department for their review, you will need to contact them.

A subdivision exemption approval letter issued by either Development Services (surveys within the city limits) or Community and Planning Services (CAPS) should be included with the survey when it is submitted for review. Certificates of Surveys that are retracements do not require an exemption approval letter.

The basis of the review for errors and omissions in calculations and drafting by the Surveying Office are the established rules set forth by the Montana Subdivision and Platting Act, the Uniform Standards for Monumentation, and the Uniform Standards for Certificates of Survey.

The Surveyors Office follows the regulations, resolutions, and standards adopted by  Missoula County or the City of Missoula for the review of Certificates of Survey as it pertains to their jurisdiction. Please refer to either the CAPS or Development Services websites for the respective requirements. Verification of any additional requirements called for in the subdivision exemption approval letter is also completed.

Before a review for errors and omissions is carried out, a review fee must be received by the Surveyors Office. For this, the Surveyors Office will forward a review fee invoice to the land surveyor in charge of the survey. The review fee is as follows: $140.00 per survey for services of the Examining Land Surveyor to provide the errors and omissions review of certificates of survey (as per Resolution 2009-017). This can be paid by check or a credit card.

After the review fee has been paid, a full review for errors and omissions in calculations and drafting of the “as submitted” survey will be conducted. At the conclusion of that review, a pdf of the reviewed survey showing the errors and a cover letter will be forwarded to the land surveyor in charge of the survey.

If the land surveyor chooses to have the same survey re-checked after it has been reviewed by the Surveyors Office, a review fee equal to the original amount may be assessed at the discretion of the Examining Land Surveyor. That fee must be paid before the second review will take place. Subsequent reviews will also require the full fee. If no re-check is requested, all drawings necessary to fulfill the Uniform Standard’s requirements for the filing of a certificate of survey, referred to as a “record set” by Missoula County, must be submitted to this office for final review and approval.

A “record set” recognized by Missoula County consists of one (1) reproducible copy on stable base polyester film (3 mil or heavier) or equivalent, and one (1) white paper copy (3 mil or heavier) utilizing black ink (no other color). The record set is required to include the dated signature and the seal of the surveyor responsible for the survey. The record set must be legibly drawn with permanent ink or produced by a process guaranteeing a permanent record and must be 18 inches by 24 inches, or 24 inches by 36 inches overall, and include a 1 1/2" inch margin on the left binding side. A poorly drawn or illegible record set or a record set of insufficient quality to assure acceptability for micro-filming will be rejected.

When a record set is submitted, it will be reviewed for errors and omissions prior to signing by the Examining Land Surveyor. There is no charge for this review. The record set will be compared to the previously reviewed copy. If the record set contains errors noted previously or if new errors are discovered, the final review will be suspended and the land surveyor will be notified. The land surveyor may then either choose to retrieve and correct the record set which must include an affidavit of correction noting what corrections were made to the original record set, or to submit a new one. The affidavit of correction will be reviewed and approved by the Surveyors Office prior to the final approval of the record set by the Examining Land Surveyor. This affidavit must accompany the record set when presented for filing with the Clerk and Recorders Office.

As an alternative, the land surveyor may choose to forward a written request to the Surveyors Office that an additional review of the record set be completed. The applicable review fee must accompany that request.

If the submitted record set contains a different number of parcels or tracts as compared to the previous review, or if the survey altered the configuration of the parcels or tracts, or added or subtracted items from the previous review, an additional review fee will be assessed. Once the additional review fee has been paid, a review for errors and omissions in calculations and drafting will commence.

After the Examining Land Surveyor has approved the record set, the land surveyor in charge of the survey will be contacted informing them this. The land surveyor may choose to have the Clerk and Recorders Office take the record set to their office for the other departments to approve and sign it or pick it up and take it to the other departments on their own. The Clerk and Recorders Office will contact the land surveyor after the other departments have approved it and it can be signed by the landowners. 

If anyone, other than the land surveyor in charge of the survey or an employee of that surveyor, wishes to take the record set from the county surveyors office, the land surveyor in charge of the survey must authorize in writing to this office its release to an individual.

Procedure for the review of subdivision plats and amending subdivision plats

All subdivision plats and amending subdivision plats presented for review for errors and omissions in calculations and drafting are to be submitted to the Surveyors Office of the Missoula County Department of Public Works.

For specifics regarding the submittal of subdivision plats and amending subdivision plats presented for sanitary approval to the Environmental Health Division of the Missoula City-County Health Department for their review, you will need to contact them.

The basis of the review for errors and omissions in calculations and drafting by the Surveyors Office are the established rules set forth by the Montana Subdivision and Platting Act, the Uniform Standards for Monumentation, the Uniform Standards for Certificates of Survey, and the Uniform Standards for Final Subdivision Plats.

The Surveyors Office also follows the regulations, resolutions, and standards adopted by the County of Missoula or the City of Missoula for the review as it pertains to their jurisdiction. Please refer to either the CAPS or Development Services websites for the respective requirements. On Amended Plats, verification of any additional requirements called for in the subdivision exemption approval letter is also completed. The conditions of approval for subdivisions have specific requirements that must be on the face of the survey, this is verified as well.

Before a review for errors and omissions is carried out, a review fee must be received by the Surveyors Office. For this, the Surveyors Office will forward a review fee invoice to the land surveyor in charge of the survey. The review fee is as follows: $35.00 per parcel for services of the Examining Land Surveyor to provide the errors and omissions review of amending subdivision plats and subdivision plats (as per Resolution 2009-017). Parcels include all lots, common areas, and roadways or streets.

After the review fee has been paid, a full review for errors and omissions in calculations and drafting of the “as submitted” survey will be conducted. At the conclusion of that review, a pdf of the reviewed survey showing the errors and a cover letter will be forwarded to the land surveyor in charge of the survey.

If the land surveyor chooses to have the same plat re-checked after it has been reviewed by the Surveyors Office, a review fee equal to the original amount may be assessed at the Examining Land Surveyors discretion. That fee must be paid before the second courtesy review will take place. Subsequent reviews will also require the full fee. If no re-check is requested, all drawings necessary to fulfill the Uniform Standard’s requirements for the filing of a subdivision plat or an amending subdivision plat, referred to as a “record set” by Missoula County, must be submitted to this office for final review and approval.

A “record set” recognized by Missoula County consists of one (1) reproducible copy on stable base polyester film (3 mil or heavier) or equivalent, and one (1) white paper copy (3 mil or heavier) utilizing black ink (no other color). The record set is required to include the dated signature and the seal of the surveyor responsible for the survey. The record set must be legibly drawn with permanent ink or produced by a process guaranteeing a permanent record and shall be 24 inches by 36 inches overall and include a 1 1/2" inch margin on the left binding side. A poorly drawn or illegible record set or a record set of insufficient quality to assure acceptability for microfilming will be rejected.

When a record set is submitted, it will be reviewed for errors and omissions prior to signing by the Examining Land Surveyor. There is no charge for this review. The record set will be compared to the previously reviewed copy. If the record set still contains errors noted in the previously reviewed copy, or if new errors are discovered, the final review will be suspended and the land surveyor will be notified. The land surveyor may then either choose to retrieve and correct the record set which must include an affidavit of correction noting what corrections were made to the original record set, or to submit a new one. The affidavit of correction will be reviewed and approved by the Surveyors Office prior to the final approval of the record set by the Examining Land Surveyor. This affidavit must accompany the record set when presented for filing with the Clerk and Recorders Office.

As an alternative, the land surveyor may choose to forward a written request to the Surveyors Office that an additional courtesy review of the record set be completed. The applicable review fee must accompany that request.

If the submitted record set contains a different number of lots or parcels as compared to the previous review, or if the survey altered the configuration of the lots or parcels, or added or subtracted items from the previous review, an additional review fee will be assessed. Once the additional review fee has been paid, a review for errors and omissions in calculations and drafting will commence.

Major or minor subdivisions in the county must receive approval for infrastructure improvements by the Public Works Engineering Department before the Examining Land Surveyor can approve and sign the record set. After the record set is reviewed for errors and omissions, the Engineering Department is notified that their approval is required before anything further can be done by the Surveyors Office. The land surveyor will be contacted when the Engineering Department has been notified to keep them informed of the progress.

Major or minor subdivisions in the city will be approved by the Examining land Surveyor and the surveyor will be contacted to come pick up the record set from either our office or the Clerk & Recorder’s Office. It is the surveyors responsibility to get the city departments to approve the final plat.

After the Examining Land Surveyor has approved the record set, the land surveyor in charge of the survey will be contacted informing them this. The land surveyor may choose to have the Clerk and Recorders Office take the record set to their office for the other departments to approve and sign it or pick it up and take it to the other departments on their own. The Clerk and Recorders Office will contact the land surveyor after the other departments have approved it and it can be signed by the landowners. 

If anyone, other than the land surveyor in charge of the survey or an employee of that surveyor, wishes to take the record set from the office of the Surveyors Office, the land surveyor in charge of the survey must authorize in writing to this office its release to an individual.

Checklists for Subdivisions and Certificates of Survey in the City of Missoula

City Amended Plat & Certificate of Survey Checklist

City Final Subdivision Checklist

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