PRESTON — An Amish couple from southeastern Minnesota will try next month to settle their zoning law dispute with Fillmore County.

Ammon J. and Sarah J. Swartzentruber of Harmony have been cited for failing to get a permit for the home they’re building. The couple refused because they say it meant they would have to install a septic system, a modern convenience not permitted by their religious beliefs.

The couple appeared at a hearing Wednesday to answer to three misdemeanor charges. Both have pleaded not guilty.

They were initially cited in late June, and picked up another citation Friday because the family has continued to build its home. A settlement conference is set for Dec. 17. If no agreement is reached, the case goes to trial in January.

The Swartzentrubers — and other Amish in the area — haven’t encountered the problem before; the county adopted new treatment system ordinances in December of 2013.

The Swartzentruber sect of the Amish — which split from the Old Order Amish about 100 years ago over the issue of social shunning — is considered to be one of the most conservative of the Amish subgroups.

The Swartzentruber Amish would most likely say they are holding to the true Amish ways by leading a plainer and more restricted lifestyle than other Amish, according to amishamerica.com. That includes no in-home plumbing or hot water.

A judge in Wisconsin’s Eau Claire County ruled in August that Amish families must obtain building and sanitary permits.