Aliso Viejo, CA Building Safety: Plumbing Permits (2026)

Section 13.02.010(E) of the Aliso Viejo Municipal Code adopts the California Plumbing Code, 2025 Edition, as published by the International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials. The Mechanical Code is a separate adoption in subsection (D). The City Council adopted both by Ordinance 2025-246 and declared that the codes, as amended by Chapters 13.02 and 13.04, constitute the building regulations of the City of Aliso Viejo, kept on file for public examination in the office of the building official. The amendment sections in Chapter 13.02 are titled for the Building Code, the Residential Code and the Wildland-Urban Interface Code, not the Plumbing Code.

The permit rule sits in section 109.4. Failure to pay fees and obtain a permit before commencing work is a violation, and the assessment includes double the required permit fees for work on a building, structure, mechanical, gas, electrical or plumbing system before obtaining the necessary permits. Fees are set by resolution of the City Council under section 13.02.040, and a permit becomes invalid after 180 days of suspension or abandonment under section 105.5.

Chapter 15.68 adds plumbing-related submittal detail for the city's expedited program. A solar thermal permit request needs three sets of plans that include manufacturer and plumbing details. A tankless water heater request needs three sets of plans with California Energy Code compliance forms, showing a site plan, water lines, gas lines (size and length), venting and electrical. Tankless water heaters and solar thermal systems that meet 50 percent of domestic hot water needs qualify under section 15.68.030(A) for expedited processing, and section 15.68.070 waives 25 percent of the building permit fees when the threshold is met. If the information is complete and approved within the public counter hours, the permit issues the day it is approved.