Who pays for the sewer lateral in Burbank, CA

Who is responsible for which part

The property owner maintains the building sewer all the way to the public sewer, and the City's definitions put the portion under the street on the owner's side. Where a City parkway tree's roots crushed the pipe, the City may reimburse the repair - but only with permits and an inspection before the damaged pipe is removed.

The property owner

All of it, from two feet outside the building wall to the public sewer. The City states that "all building sewers ... shall be maintained in good operating condition and in conformity with applicable law by the owner of the property which such facilities serve", and defines a building sewer as "that part of the sewer piping beginning two (2) feet from the exterior wall of a building structure or foundation and extending to a connection with the public sewer". Its definition of a public sewer expressly excludes "a portion of building sewer within the street or public right of way", so the run under the road is the owner's on the face of the code. One exception is worth knowing about: under section 8-1-312 the City "may reimburse a property owner for the cost to repair or replace that portion of a building sewer that has been crushed or moved out of alignment by the root system of a city parkway tree", if the owner shows the tree root was the cause, obtains the permits, and has the Director inspect before any damaged pipe is removed; the amount is capped by the Burbank Fee Resolution. In all other respects the same section keeps the obligation with the owner. Note also that repairing or tapping the portion in the street needs the City's approval first, even though the work is the owner's.

What else is worth knowing

One thing the City offers that is easy to miss, and it is money back. Its sewer system management plan describes a Sewer Lateral User Rebate Program: "the City has implemented an incentive program that encourages residents to maintain their privately-owned sewer laterals. This program provides rebates to owners of single-family residences for cleaning and video-inspecting their sewer lateral." So if you own a house here and are about to pay for a camera survey, ask Public Works about SLURP first. The same plan records that when the City's own crews see a problem in your lateral during a main inspection, "a courtesy contact is made by Wastewater Systems staff informing the property owner".

Checked 2026-09-11

What is required

• When you remodelWork required

  Burbank Municipal Code 8-1-313 requires that "new and remodeled properties ... install, operate, and maintain an approved backwater valve on their building sewer unless it can be shown that all fixtures contained therein have flood level rim elevations above the elevation of the next upstream maintenance hole cover of the public sewer serving the property, or a conditional waiver is granted by the Director". It names three thresholds: new construction; "existing buildings with planned modifications having a building permit valuation of $50,000 or more"; and existing buildings "having building sewers replaced, or having building sewers repairs made with an aggregate length in excess of 10'". Separately, 8-1-301 requires the Director's approval to "connect to, repair, or tap ... or maintain a connection or tap to" the portion of a building sewer in the street.

  What to do: Ask the Building Department to confirm the permit valuation of your planned work against the $50,000 line, and whether your fixtures clear the next upstream maintenance hole cover. No address lookup settles that half - it takes a levels check on site. If the work touches the run of pipe under the street, the Director's approval under 8-1-301 is a separate requirement from the building permit.

  Why this matters▸▾

  Other cities put a figure on what a requirement costs; Burbank is the only one here that puts a figure on what sets it off. A remodel priced at $48,000 does not carry it; the same job at $52,000 does. And a repair can trigger it by length alone - ten feet of aggregate lateral repair is one trench for one root intrusion, and it brings a valve, a concrete box and a duty to operate and maintain it with it. The way out is an elevation test: if every fixture's flood level rim sits above the next upstream maintenance hole cover, the valve is not required.

  In force since 2005-08-20 · Checked 2026-09-13

  Burbank Municipal Code sections 8-1-313 (Backwater Valves) and 8-1-301 (Permit)

Who governs and serves this area

Jurisdiction

Burbank (municipality)

Sewer service

Not mapped. No sewer service territory covering this area has been added, so BelowGrid cannot say who serves an individual address here.