San Mateo County, CA Water Use Rules: Recycled Water Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- Ordinance Code § 4.72.140
- Adopted
- Ord. No. 4903, March 25, 2025
- Enforcing agency
- Environmental Health Services Division
- Max administrative fine
- $500 per violation per day
- Appeal window
- 10 calendar days to the Director
- Graywater defined by
- Cal. Water Code § 14876
Summary
San Mateo County Ordinance Code Section 4.72.140 requires every recycled water or graywater system to be designed and installed in accordance with California law and the local Plumbing Code. The rule sits inside the county's Cross-Connection Control chapter, run by the Environmental Health Services Division of San Mateo County Health, which can fine violators and cut off water service.
4.72.140 - Recycled or graywater systems. All components of recycled or graywater systems must be designed and installed in accordance with California law and local Plumbing Codes.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 47).
Full Breakdown
140, adopted with the rest of the current Cross-Connection Control chapter under Ordinance No. 1 of the State Water Resources Control Board's Cross-Connection Control Policy Handbook (CCCPH), so any covered system must satisfy both the state definitions and whatever the local Plumbing Code separately requires for installation and testing. 020) on behalf of the County Health Officer. 030, its reach is not limited to unincorporated territory the way most county land-use rules are: it covers every facility, dwelling, or piping system within the service area of a water supplier that has an agreement with the county for backflow-prevention enforcement, plus any water user's premises anywhere in San Mateo County where contaminated backflow could reach the public drinking supply.
130: the Division may require a water supplier to discontinue service to a noncompliant facility, and may issue administrative orders and fines of up to $500 for a violation, with each day of continued noncompliance treated as a separate violation. A notice of fine is served by certified mail, and the recipient has ten calendar days to appeal in writing to the Director, whose decision is final. Unpaid fines may be referred to a collection agency and must be cleared before any registration or authorization under the chapter is issued or renewed.
Violations & Fines
Installing or maintaining a recycled water or graywater system that skips the required state and local Plumbing Code standards exposes the property owner to an administrative fine of up to $500 for each day the violation continues, issued by the Environmental Health Services Division under Section 4.72.130. The Division can also direct the water supplier to shut off service to the facility until the noncompliance is corrected. Appeals must reach the Director in writing within ten calendar days of the fine notice; the Director's ruling is final.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does San Mateo County set its own graywater technical standard?
Who enforces the recycled water requirement?
What happens if a violation is not fixed?
Does this rule reach beyond the unincorporated islands?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in San Mateo County
California rules heatmap·Compare San Mateo County to another location·View the California water use rules overview
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