Who pays for the sewer lateral in La Mirada, CA
Which part of the pipe is yours
Yours all the way to the main under the road
Why, and what to do
If something’s wrong
Who to call first about the sewer lateral
Los Angeles County Department of Public Works hotline 1-800-675-4357
Hours, after-hours and sourcesIf a repair needs a permit or an inspection
- Who issues it:
- City of La Mirada superintendent of streets, who stands in for the County commissioner under section 17.20.040
- What it covers:
- excavations in any highway and placing repairing changing or removing facilities in it
La Mirada Municipal Code chapter 17.20, the "Permits for Moving Buildings and Making Excavations Ordinance of the City of La Mirada", takes the County of Los Angeles highway permit ordinance, Ordinance 3597 "as amended and in effect October 31, 1969", as the City's highway permit ordinance. The City's own amendment of that ordinance's section 801, in section 17.20.045, provides that "The provisions of this Chapter apply to permits for the making, or causing to be made, in any highway, of excavations, and for the placing, constructing, testing, repairing, changing, monitoring, removing or abandoning of facilities or encroachments." Section 17.20.040 makes the County's commissioner the City's superintendent of streets. The City's sewer ordinance, borrowed from the County, puts the house lateral under the street on the owner, so this is the City's permit chapter for digging in the street to reach it.
Who is responsible for which part
Who to call first
Los Angeles County Department of Public Works hotline
La Mirada writes no sewer ownership rule of its own and borrows the County's. Section 13.04.010 of its municipal code adopts "Division 2 of Title 20 of the Los Angeles County Code including all changes made by the county of Los Angeles, by ordinance, up to and including Ordinance No. 89-0101, adopted on or about July 17, 1989" as the City's sanitary sewer ordinance, regulating among other things "the design, construction, alteration, use and maintenance of public sewers and house laterals". Inside that adopted division, section 20.24.080 provides that all house laterals "shall be maintained by the owner of the property served in a safe and sanitary condition", and section 20.20.130 defines a house lateral as "that part of the sewer piping within the street or right-of-way which extends from the property or sewer right-of-way line to a construction with the main-line sewer". The City's 2025 Sewer System Management Plan says the same in plain words: "The City does not own or maintain any portion of the house lateral."
- The property owner
- The whole lateral, from the building to the main, the run under the street included. Section 20.24.080 of the adopted County text assigns house laterals to "the owner of the property served", and section 20.20.130 places that lateral within the street or right-of-way, from the property line to the main-line sewer. The City's 2025 Sewer System Management Plan puts it this way: "Property owners are responsible for proper installation, operation, and maintenance laterals (the pipe that connects from the building to the main)". The adopted text does not say who keeps the joint where the lateral meets the main.
What else is worth knowing
Sources
La Mirada Municipal Code section 13.04.010, Adopted- La Mirada Municipal Code section 13.04.030, Definitions
- Los Angeles County Code chapter 20.24
- Los Angeles County Code chapter 20.20, Definitions
- City of La Mirada and Los Angeles County Public Works, Sewer System Management Plan, 2025 update (31 July 2025, approved by City Council Resolution No. 25-18 on 26 August 2025)
- City of La Mirada, Sewer System Management
- Los Angeles County Public Works, Sewer Maintenance - Customer Information
What the rules say
Most relevant if you are repairing or replacing the pipe
- Who issues it:
- City of La Mirada superintendent of streets, who stands in for the County commissioner under section 17.20.040
- What it covers:
- excavations in any highway and placing repairing changing or removing facilities in it
La Mirada Municipal Code chapter 17.20, the "Permits for Moving Buildings and Making Excavations Ordinance of the City of La Mirada", takes the County of Los Angeles highway permit ordinance, Ordinance 3597 "as amended and in effect October 31, 1969", as the City's highway permit ordinance. The City's own amendment of that ordinance's section 801, in section 17.20.045, provides that "The provisions of this Chapter apply to permits for the making, or causing to be made, in any highway, of excavations, and for the placing, constructing, testing, repairing, changing, monitoring, removing or abandoning of facilities or encroachments." Section 17.20.040 makes the County's commissioner the City's superintendent of streets. The City's sewer ordinance, borrowed from the County, puts the house lateral under the street on the owner, so this is the City's permit chapter for digging in the street to reach it.
What to do: Before digging in the street to reach a house lateral, apply to the City of La Mirada for a street excavation permit and ask what deposit the superintendent of streets will set. Call the one-call system at least 48 hours before excavating, not counting weekends or holidays.
La Mirada Municipal Code section 17.20.045, Amendments to county ordinanceWhy this matters
Work that needs a permit under the ordinance and is started without one has to stop: section 16.06.020 of the adopted text provides that "Any person who shall commence any work for which a permit is required by this Division 1 without first having obtained a permit therefor shall stop work and apply for such permit." Section 16.12.010 asks every applicant, with stated public exceptions, for "a cash deposit or other adequate security, as determined by the commissioner", large enough to cover the costs if the permit is not fulfilled, and no figure is set. Before digging, the City's amended section 139 D has the permittee search the records of underground facilities and notify their owners, or the one-call system, "at least forty-eight hours prior to time of proposed excavation, exclusive of weekends or legal holidays" - notice to the utilities, not to the City. On completion, section 16.18.090 has the permittee restore the area affected "to a condition satisfactory to the commissioner".
- La Mirada Municipal Code section 17.20.010, Short title
- La Mirada Municipal Code section 17.20.020, Amendment adopted
- La Mirada Municipal Code section 17.20.040, References explained
- Los Angeles County Code chapter 16.06
- Los Angeles County Code chapter 16.12, Deposits and Sureties
- Los Angeles County Code chapter 16.18, Excavations and Encroachments
- La Mirada Municipal Code section 13.04.010
What this page cannot tell you
- No assistance or grant programme has been reviewed for this jurisdiction yet.
- No sewer service territory has been mapped for this area, so BelowGrid cannot say who serves an individual address.
Who governs and serves this area
- Jurisdiction
- La Mirada (municipality)
- Sewer service
- No map of sewer providers is held here. BelowGrid cannot say which sewer provider serves an individual address.
How this compares to neighbouring cities
3 of the 8 nearest cities draw the line somewhere else. Each authority publishes only its own rule.
Nearby cities and further reading
Look up a specific address
This page describes what applies to properties in La Mirada in general. To see which authorities serve one address, and what records exist for it, search for it.
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