Baltimore County, MD Landscaping Rules: Water Restrictions (2026)

Under § 20-1-114 of the County Code, two paths trigger a water restriction. First, if the Water Engineer of the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore sends a written request, the county's Director of Public Works and Transportation is authorized to restrict water furnished by Baltimore City to any person or property in the county, since most of the county's metropolitan water district is supplied through the city system. Second, the Director may independently restrict use of water from a system Baltimore County itself owns and operates, whenever doing so protects the viability of that system, such as during drought, a water-main failure, or a treatment-capacity shortfall.

Any restriction order must identify the specific area, person or property covered and spell out the hours, days and purposes for which water use is prohibited or limited, meaning the county can, and has, targeted outdoor irrigation and lawn watering by time of day or day of week without that schedule being written into the permanent code itself. Because the restriction is imposed by administrative order rather than a standing calendar, residents must check current county or Baltimore City announcements to learn whether an active restriction covers their address, and the order controls until it is lifted or amended by the Director.