Skip to main content
BelowGrid

Who pays for the sewer lateral in Hi-Desert Water District, CA

Which part of the pipe is yours

your buildingproperty linesidewalkstreetmain
The thick length is yours.

If something’s wrong

If a repair needs a permit or an inspection

No rule on file here is specific to a repair; that does not mean none exists.

No rule on file here is specific to selling, buying, remodelling or adding a unit; that does not mean none exists.

Who to call first about the sewer lateral

BelowGrid has no first-call guidance on file from Hi-Desert Water District about the sewer lateral.

Hi-Desert Water District: official site(opens in a new tab)The documents this answer is built on

Who is responsible for which part

Where Yucca Valley is on the new sewer, the owner keeps the whole lateral clear to the main and the District repairs the part under the street. Section 8.15.150 provides that "the property owner is responsible for maintaining the entire sewer lateral from the structure(s) on the property to the district wastewater main free and clear of debris", and that "If repairs are required in the public right-of-way portion of a sewer lateral, the district will make any necessary repairs at no cost to the property owner" unless the owner caused the damage.

Hi-Desert Water District
Repairs to the public right-of-way portion of the lateral - on public property, street right-of-way or a District easement - which becomes District property once connected; not clearing it.
The property owner
Clearing the entire lateral to the main - "clearing of debris, root cutting, and any procedure used to keep the sewer lateral clean and functional" - and all repairs on private property, by a licensed plumber or cleaning service.

What else is worth knowing

The question is what failed and where. A stoppage anywhere is the owner's to clear, and "The district is not responsible for any expense incurred by the property owner in relieving or determining the cause of any stoppage", though it may help if a plumber cannot clear one in the street. A break in the street length is the District's to repair unless the owner caused it. The sewer is being built in phases: many Yucca Valley properties are still on septic systems, and a property may connect only after the District's written notice - check whether yours is connected.

Sources

Hi-Desert Water District Code, section 8.15.150, New connections to system

Checked

What the rules say

Most relevant if you have received a notice from the city or district

  • Before work on the pipePermit
    Who issues it:
    Hi-Desert Water District and the Town of Yucca Valley - all required permits and inspections before connecting to the District's sewer
    What it covers:
    installing and connecting the sewer lateral to the District's wastewater system

    Hi-Desert Water District Code section 8.15.150 provides that "No person shall connect to district POTW prior to the date stated in a written notice from the district to the property owner", and that before connecting the owner must "Obtain all required permits and inspections required by the district and town of Yucca Valley."

    What to do: Wait for the District's written notice for your property, then have a contractor obtain the District's and the Town's permits, install the lateral to the District's specifications, and schedule the inspection before connecting.

    Why this matters

    Connecting is the owner's job and cost: "It shall be the responsibility of the property owner, after having received all required permits and approvals, to install and connect the sewer lateral." The owner also signs an acknowledgement of the duty to keep the whole lateral clear, the street length included, and a completed inspection form after the District inspects.

    Checked

    Hi-Desert Water District Code, section 8.15.150, New connections to system

What this page cannot tell you

  • No assistance or grant programme has been reviewed for this jurisdiction yet.
  • BelowGrid holds no separate map of sewer providers here. This page gives Hi-Desert Water District's own answer, for the area inside the boundary BelowGrid holds for it; look up an address to see whose answer applies there.

Who governs and serves this area

Jurisdiction
Hi-Desert Water District (special district)
Sewer service
No separate map of sewer providers is held here. This page gives Hi-Desert Water District’s own answer, for the area inside the boundary BelowGrid holds for it. Look up an address to see whose answer applies there, or check the name on your sewer bill.

Where else this answer applies

The same authorities settle this in the place below too:

It gets its answer from the same authorities.

How this compares to neighbouring districts

1 of the 4 nearest districts draws the line somewhere else. Each authority publishes only its own rule.

Distances are approximate, in a straight line between the places’ centres.

Compare the rules city by city

Your other pipe: the water service line

For the water service line, Hi-Desert Water District says:

In Yucca Valley, Hi-Desert Water District maintains the service connection up to the meter; everything past it is the owner's. Section 5.20.070 provides that "The service connection extending from the water main to the meter, meter box and service valve shall be maintained by the district", and that "All pipes and fixtures extending or lying beyond the meter shall be installed and maintained by the owner of the property, including the customer's gate valve."

Your sewer lateral is yours to the main; your water line stops being yours at the meter.

What else is worth knowing

The District's rules draw a second line for damage claims: its "jurisdiction and responsibility end at the property line" as to water running from faulty fixtures or broken pipes inside it. One thing to check before relying on any of this: the State's register puts the District's system over about six-sevenths of Yucca Valley's land; the remaining seventh or so is ground inside the town limits that no published water service area reaches - not a rival utility, and not necessarily unserved. Check the name on your water bill.
Hi-Desert Water District Code, section 5.20.070, Service connections maintenance

Also quoted:

Checked

Nearby districts and further reading

Look up a specific address

This page describes what applies to properties in Hi-Desert Water District in general. To see which authorities serve one address, and what records exist for it, search for it.

Search for an address