Enforcement

Adherence to Level 1 water conservation measures as listed here is vital to meeting the City’s goal of a 50% reduction in overall water use.  The 50% reduction is necessary to avoid a complete ban on outdoor watering and to conserve enough water for health and safety.

The City will enforce the restrictions by three methods: 1) conducting 24-hour water waste patrols, 2) following up on water waste reports from the public, and 3) using hourly water meter flow rate data, where available, to identify irrigation occurring on days on which outside irrigation is not permitted. A computer algorithm identifies high flow rates that exceed expected thresholds for normal indoor water use, such as use from showers, dishwashers, washing machines etc. Hourly water use which is higher than expected based on this data may trigger a violation notice. Hourly meter data will be used as necessary to enforce water restrictions, including the one day-a-week irrigation limit. When violations are observed or otherwise verified through either of these enforcement methods, they will be entered into a tracking system.

The first violation that occurs at a property will result in a warning being issued. Warnings will be issued by postcards and/or door hangers affixed to the property itself, and/or a mailed letter. Subsequent violations at the same address will result in citations being issued. The first citation will result in a $100 fine, second in a $200 fine, and the third and all subsequent citations in a $500 fine.

Should a fifth violation occur, in addition to the $500 fine, a flow restrictor will be installed at the property for a minimum of thirty days, which will limit the volume of water that is delivered to the property to only that which is needed for health and safety purposes. In order to have the flow restrictor removed, the property owner will need to pay any outstanding fines and a $37 fee for removal of the restrictor. Should a subsequent sixth violation occur after the flow restrictor is removed, the flow restrictor will be re-installed for the duration of the water emergency.

Brown Lawns and Dead Vegetation

There is a stay on code enforcement actions against brown or dead lawns to support the restrictions on the use of outdoor water. The stay would be similar to previous drought restrictions, which allowed for vegetation and lawns to go brown, while requiring weeds to be under control. Property owners have six months after the drought is declared over to re-landscape before enforcement actions will recommence.

It is important for property owners to remove any dead vegetation from their property as this can present a fire hazard. Please refer to the Fire Department’s guidance.

Hardship Waivers

If, due to unique circumstances, these restrictions would result in undue hardship to a person or business that is disproportionate to the impacts to water users generally or to similar properties or classes of water users, then the person or business may apply for a waiver to the requirements. The application form is available here and must be accompanied by $125 fee and supporting documentation as detailed on the form. Please refer to City’s Municipal Code Sec. 10-2.1111: Hardship Waiver for details.