Who pays for the sewer lateral in Goleta Sanitary District, CA
Which part of the pipe is yours
Yours all the way to the main, including the fitting where it joins
Why, and what to do
If something’s wrong
If a repair needs a permit or an inspection
- Who issues it:
- Goleta Sanitary District
- What it covers:
- any connection with or opening into the public sewer, replacing the lateral, and any repair outside the property line or within a District easement
Goleta Sanitary District's Ordinance No. 92 provides that "No unauthorized person shall uncover, make any connections with or openings into, use, alter, or disturb any public sewer or appurtenance thereof without first obtaining a written permit from the Manager." The District's questions page applies it to the lateral: "A Goleta Sanitary District permit is required to replace the sewer lateral or to make any repairs outside the property line or within any District easement."
Buying or selling?
No rule on file here is specific to selling or buying; that does not mean none exists.
Planning work?
The remodelling rule in full, with its sourcesWho to call first about the sewer lateral
Goleta Sanitary District: official site(opens in a new tab)The documents this answer is built on
Who is responsible for which part
Where Goleta Sanitary District collects the sewage, the owner has the whole lateral, from the building to the District's main, including the wye where it joins the main. The District's sewer use ordinance provides that "The property owner is responsible for maintaining the building sewer from the building up to and including the WYE connection", and its own plan for the system says "The District does not own any portion of the service laterals."
- The property owner
- The building sewer, from the building to and including the wye connection at the District's main. Section 3.4 of Ordinance No. 92 adds that "All costs and expenses incident to the installation, connection, and maintenance thereof, of the building sewer shall be borne by the owner", and the District's questions page puts it in a reader's words: "The property owner is responsible for the maintenance of the sewer lateral from the building to the connection with the sewer mainline in the street."
What else is worth knowing
Sources
Goleta Sanitary District Ordinance No. 92, sewer use (adopted 7 December 2020, repealing Ordinance No. 77)What the rules say
Most relevant if you are remodelling or adding a unit
- Who issues it:
- Goleta Sanitary District
- What it covers:
- any connection with or opening into the public sewer, replacing the lateral, and any repair outside the property line or within a District easement
Goleta Sanitary District's Ordinance No. 92 provides that "No unauthorized person shall uncover, make any connections with or openings into, use, alter, or disturb any public sewer or appurtenance thereof without first obtaining a written permit from the Manager." The District's questions page applies it to the lateral: "A Goleta Sanitary District permit is required to replace the sewer lateral or to make any repairs outside the property line or within any District easement."
What to do: Before replacing the lateral or repairing it beyond your property line, call the District on (805) 967-4519 or email [email protected] for its permit instructions. If you are building on a lot with an existing lateral, ask the District to test it before the design is fixed.
Goleta Sanitary District Ordinance No. 92, sewer use (adopted 7 December 2020)Why this matters
The owner keeps the whole lateral, the wye at the main included, but cannot work on the part under the street or in a District easement without the District's permit. A new building on an old lot does not inherit the lateral either: section 3.6 allows an existing building sewer to serve a new building "only when they are found on examination and test by the Manager to meet all requirements of this Section 3." A permit and inspection fee is paid when the application is filed, and a lined lateral is not an approved repair.
What this page cannot tell you
- No assistance or grant programme has been reviewed for this jurisdiction yet.
Who governs and serves this area
- Jurisdiction
- Goleta Sanitary District (special district)
- Sewer service
How this compares to neighbouring districts
3 of the 4 nearest districts draw the line somewhere else. Each authority publishes only its own rule.
Nearby districts and further reading
Look up a specific address
This page describes what applies to properties in Goleta Sanitary District in general. To see which authorities serve one address, and what records exist for it, search for it.
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