Bishop, CA Swimming Pools & Spas: Safety Rules (2026)

Inyo County does not maintain a separate residential pool drowning-prevention code; instead, when its Building and Safety Department issues a permit for a new pool or spa at a private single-family home, it applies California's Swimming Pool Safety Act (Health and Safety Code §115922). That law requires the pool or spa to be equipped with at least two of seven approved drowning-prevention safety features. The list includes an isolating enclosure meeting Section 115923, removable mesh fencing meeting ASTM F2286 with a self-closing/self-latching lockable gate, an approved safety pool cover meeting ASTM F1346, exit alarms on doors leading to the pool, self-closing/self-latching devices on those doors, an alarm that sounds when the pool surface is disturbed, and other approved means of protection providing equal or greater protection. The local building official must inspect these features and find no violations before giving final approval. Separately, Inyo County Environmental Health regulates 'recreational water' (public and semi-public pools) under the Retail Food and pool codes; private backyard pools are not part of that program. Title 18 zoning also bars placing a pool in a required front yard or within three feet of a fence or wall.