Does the three years run from the inspection or from termination?

Read the retention clause in your own permit against your dates. The federal text sets a minimum of three years for inspection reports and for the corrective action log.

Can the records be electronic?

The permit expressly allows an electronic copy of the permit itself that the stormwater team can reach. Apply the same test to the rest: can somebody on site produce it on request?

How long do I have to keep SWPPP records?

Inspection reports and the corrective action log are kept for at least three years (Part 4.7.4 and Part 5.4.4), and the plan itself has to be available at the site for as long as the permit covers the work (Part 7.3).

Source: EPA 2022 Construction General Permit (as modified), Part 7.3 and Part 4.7.4Verified 2026-08-04

What the plan itself has to hold

Part 7.2.11 makes the SWPPP the folder: a copy of the submitted Notice of Intent and the coverage correspondence, the authorisation letter and the NPDES tracking number, a copy of the permit itself — an electronic copy the stormwater team can reach is acceptable — all inspection reports, the corrective action log, the training records for the team and the inspectors (Part 6.2–6.3), and the dates of every modification with who authorised it (Part 7.4.2–7.4.3).

Availability, not filing

Part 7.3 requires the plan to be available at the site, or at a nearby location where it can be produced on request, for as long as the permit covers the work. "In the office forty miles away" is the answer that fails.

Questions people ask

Does the three years run from the inspection or from termination?: Read the retention clause in your own permit against your dates. The federal text sets a minimum of three years for inspection reports and for the corrective action log.
Can the records be electronic?: The permit expressly allows an electronic copy of the permit itself that the stormwater team can reach. Apply the same test to the rest: can somebody on site produce it on request?

The states this question turns on

Texas SWPPP requirements — Texas requires the SWP3 to be developed and implemented by the primary operator; the permit contains no PE, CPESC or licensing language for preparation.
Florida SWPPP requirements — Florida asks only that the SWPPP follow standard industry practices; it names no preparer qualification.
Virginia SWPPP requirements — Virginia requires only that SWPPPs be prepared in accordance with good engineering practices; its certification classes apply to agency reviewers and inspectors, not to preparers.

All 50 states, in one table

The documents this affects

What we are, and what stays your responsibility

SwpppDraft is a document generation tool. It does not provide engineering services, legal services, or compliance consulting, and no engineer or attorney reviews what it produces.
Everything in the document is built from the site facts you enter. Checking that those facts are right, and that the resulting plan fits your project, is yours to do.
We do not file anything on your behalf, we do not certify or endorse your compliance, and we accept no liability for what happens when you use the document.
State-level requirements carry the date we verified them. County and city rules are not covered — some local jurisdictions require a licensed preparer even where the state does not, and you have to check that yourself.
When the product opens, our total liability will be capped at the amount you paid us. Today that amount is zero, because nothing is for sale.