El Monte's Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance (Title 17, Chapter 17.74 — adopted 2016 to comply with the state Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance, 23 CCR §490) actively encourages the use of California-native and drought-tolerant plants. There is no restriction on planting natives in residential yards.
Title 17 Chapter 17.74 (Water Efficiency / MWELO) and the City Landscape Ordinance at Chapter 17.10/17.72 set a Maximum Applied Water Allowance (MAWA) based on an Evapotranspiration Adjustment Factor (ETAF) of 0.55 for residential and 0.45 for nonresidential projects, consistent with the State Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance (California Code of Regulations Title 23, §490 et seq.). The city publishes suggested planting lists of drought-tolerant and California-native species and exempts low-water-use plant areas from much of the irrigation water-budget calculation. HOAs in California are also prohibited by Civil Code §4735 from forbidding low-water-use plants.
Not applicable — the ordinance is a permissive water-conservation framework. Failure to submit a required Landscape Documentation Package on a new project over 500 sq ft of landscape can delay building permit issuance.
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 native plants.
See how El Monte's native plants rules stack up against other locations.
Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.