El Monte regulates stormwater under Municipal Code Chapter 13.16 (Stormwater Management) and Chapter 13.20 (Low Impact Development), implementing the Los Angeles County MS4 NPDES Permit (Order R4-2021-0105, CAS004004). Only uncontaminated stormwater may enter the storm drain system.
Title 13 of the El Monte Municipal Code (Public Services) contains Chapter 13.16 - Stormwater Management and Discharge Control, which prohibits non-stormwater discharges to the City's MS4 (municipal separate storm sewer system) except for narrow exempted flows (e.g., diverted stream flows, rising groundwater, uncontaminated groundwater, firefighting flows). The City was added to the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board's MS4 Permit, Order No. R4-2021-0105 (NPDES Permit CAS004004), which replaced the prior Order R4-2012-0175 (effective Dec. 28, 2012). El Monte adopted the Low Impact Development (LID) Ordinance under Urgency Ordinance No. 2840 on June 10, 2014, codified in Chapter 13.20, requiring new development and redevelopment projects of certain thresholds (typically 500 sq. ft. or more of impervious surface for single-family, lower thresholds for commercial/industrial) to retain or treat the 85th-percentile 24-hour storm volume on-site via bioretention, infiltration, harvest-and-use, or biofiltration BMPs. El Monte's Watershed Management Program (WMP) was approved in 2015 and covers the Rio Hondo/San Gabriel River watershed. Common illicit discharges include pressure-wash water, pool drainage, paint, and vehicle wash water; report to Public Works at (626) 580-2087/2250.
Violations of Chapter 13.16 are enforced as municipal code violations (general penalty under EMMC Chapter 1.16). California Water Code Section 13350 backs civil penalties up to $25,000 per day for waste discharge violations, and the Regional Board separately may assess Mandatory Minimum Penalties of $3,000 per violation under Water Code Section 13385(h)(i). Municipal infraction fines escalate $100/$200/$500 per CA Government Code Section 36900 schedule. Persistent illicit discharges are misdemeanors with up to $1,000 fine and/or 6 months jail.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
El Monte, CA
Modified exhaust and loud motor-vehicle noise on El Monte streets are primarily enforced under California Vehicle Code §§27150–27151. Stationary vehicle nois...
El Monte, CA
El Monte has no 'dibs' or space-saving ordinance. The practice originated in snow-belt cities like Chicago and Boston and is not relevant to El Monte's Medit...
El Monte, CA
Chain-link is prohibited for residential uses. Barbed, pointed, spiked, razor, or piercing materials are banned on any fence or wall citywide.
El Monte, CA
Fences and walls in El Monte are regulated under Title 17 (Zoning), with general development standards in Chapter 17.60. Front-yard fences are limited to 42 ...
El Monte, CA
El Monte has no separate hoarding-specific ordinance, but animal hoarding is prosecuted under California Penal Code §597 (animal cruelty/neglect) when the nu...
El Monte, CA
El Monte Municipal Code Title 6 (Animals) restricts livestock in urban residential zones. Animal control is contracted to the Los Angeles County Department o...
Side-by-side rule comparisons with other cities in Los Angeles County.
See how other cities in Los Angeles County handle stormwater management.
See how El Monte's stormwater management rules stack up against other locations.
Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.