Water restrictions in Somerset County, NJ — also called the watering schedule, outdoor irrigation rules, or drought ordinance — set which days and hours you can run sprinklers or irrigation.
Somerset County runs no water utility. Outdoor watering limits come from the state: under the Water Supply Management Act, N.J.S.A. 58:1A-4, the Governor may proclaim a water emergency and the DEP commissioner can restrict nonessential use such as lawn irrigation.
No county-wide water system serves Somerset County; supply comes from municipal utilities, New Jersey American Water, and private wells drawing on the Raritan basin. The binding drought authority is state law. Under N.J.S.A. 58:1A-4, once the commissioner finds a water-supply shortage endangering public health, the Governor proclaims a state of water emergency and NJDEP may order specified users to reduce or cease water use, including lawn and garden watering. NJDEP also issues drought watches and warnings that trigger voluntary or mandatory conservation. Between emergencies, individual water suppliers and towns may impose their own odd-even or day-of-week sprinkling schedules.
Watering in violation of a declared water-emergency order under N.J.S.A. 58:1A-4 draws state enforcement, and the commissioner may direct a surcharge penalty on the water. Breaking a local supplier's sprinkling schedule brings fines set by that utility or town.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
Somerset County, NJ
No New Jersey or county law limits holiday lights, inflatables, or yard displays. Somerset municipalities rarely regulate seasonal decorations, and any ordin...
Somerset County, NJ
No New Jersey statute governs garage-sale signs; Somerset municipalities handle them through local sign ordinances. On your own lawn a sale sign is generally...
Somerset County, NJ
No New Jersey statute limits residential political signs, and Somerset municipalities reach signs only through zoning ordinances. Those ordinances must stay ...
Somerset County, NJ
Every New Jersey landlord must register the rental. Under the Landlord Identity Law, N.J.S.A. 46:8-27 et seq., the owner files a certificate of registration ...
Somerset County, NJ
New Jersey bars eviction without good cause statewide. Under the Anti-Eviction Act, N.J.S.A. 2A:18-61.1, a landlord may remove a residential tenant only on a...
Somerset County, NJ
Rent control is legal in New Jersey and real in Somerset County. Municipalities may cap rents under their police power, N.J.S.A. 40:48-2, a power the courts ...
See how Somerset County's water restrictions rules stack up against other locations.
Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.