Who pays for the sewer lateral in Santa Ana, 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 doYours from the meter to your building
Why, and what to do
If something’s wrong
Who to call first about the sewer lateral
Call a plumber first.
Call Public Works if the plumber finds a break in or collapse of the lateral beyond the property line, or you need help containing a spill: (714) 647-3380
If a repair needs a permit or an inspection
- Who issues it:
- City of Santa Ana
- What it covers:
- any sewer connection
Santa Ana Municipal Code section 39-53(a) states that "no person shall make any sewer connection unless a permit shall have been applied for and issued by the director of public works", and that no permit issues unless the application carries a fee set as "the applicant's proportionate share of the cost of construction of such public sewer". Section 39-51 makes the connection itself compulsory: a building with plumbing fixtures inside a sewer district "must be connected to a public sewer", and where the public sewer arrives later the fixtures must be connected within ninety days and any cesspool or septic tank "disconnected and completely filled with good, sound earth at the time the sewer connection is made".
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 is responsible for which part
The whole lateral is yours in Santa Ana - the ordinance says the upper and lower lateral together "shall remain the responsibility of the property owner or user", out to and including the join with the sewer main. The City's sewer enterprise "may" repair the lower lateral in the street, but only "at the discretion of the director of public works and so long as funds are available", so the part under the road is yours unless the City chooses otherwise.
- The property owner
- The entire lateral, upper and lower, to and including the connection with the main. Santa Ana Municipal Code section 39-50.1(b) provides that "a sewer lateral from its connection to a building on the property to its point of connection with the sewer main, inclusive of both the upper and lower sewer lateral, shall remain the responsibility of the property owner or user with regard to maintenance, repair and upkeep", and requires it to be kept sound "up to and including the junction of the sewer lateral and the sewer main". Section 39-50.2(b) says the same from the other direction: repair and maintenance of all lateral lines connected to the city sewer mains "shall be the responsibility of the owner/user".
What else is worth knowing
Sources
Santa Ana Municipal Code chapter 39, article III (Sewers), sections 39-50.1 Ownership and 39-50.2 Repair by city forcesWhat the rules say
Who to call first
Call a plumber first.
Call Public Works if the plumber finds a break in or collapse of the lateral beyond the property line, or you need help containing a spill: (714) 647-3380
Most relevant if you have a backup or blockage
No rule on file here is specific to a backup or blockage; that does not mean none exists.
Also in force here
- Who issues it:
- City of Santa Ana
- What it covers:
- any sewer connection
Santa Ana Municipal Code section 39-53(a) states that "no person shall make any sewer connection unless a permit shall have been applied for and issued by the director of public works", and that no permit issues unless the application carries a fee set as "the applicant's proportionate share of the cost of construction of such public sewer". Section 39-51 makes the connection itself compulsory: a building with plumbing fixtures inside a sewer district "must be connected to a public sewer", and where the public sewer arrives later the fixtures must be connected within ninety days and any cesspool or septic tank "disconnected and completely filled with good, sound earth at the time the sewer connection is made".
What to do: Before buying or reoccupying a property that has stood empty, ask Public Works whether its sewer lateral connection is still active under section 39-55(f) and what a new connection would cost. For any work that makes a new connection, apply for the sewer permit before the work starts - the fee is calculated from the change in fixture units, so it is not a fixed figure you can look up.
Santa Ana Municipal Code section 39-53, Connection permit required; determination of feeWhy this matters
Two things in this article change the answer for an ordinary owner and neither is anywhere else on the City's website. Section 39-55(f) puts a clock on a lateral nobody has used: a connection "installed for a period of ten (10) years or more" and unused for ten years "shall be considered inactive and obsolete", and anyone wanting service again "shall make application for a new sewer lateral connection and pay the current charge therefore". A long-vacant house in Santa Ana can therefore have a physical lateral in the ground and no connection left in law. And section 39-53(b) runs the other way, in the owner's favour: when the City replaces a main, "the entire lower lateral shall be reconstructed or rehabilitated as part of the installation thereof", with no permit required from the owner of a property thus reconnected.
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
- Santa Ana (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
4 of the 8 nearest cities draw the line somewhere else. Each authority publishes only its own rule.
Your other pipe: the water service line
The drinking water line coming into your property is a separate pipe, run by a separate authority, and who is responsible for it is decided separately. Your sewer lateral is yours to the main, fitting included; your water line stops being yours at the meter.
Who owns the water service line in Santa AnaNearby cities and further reading
Look up a specific address
This page describes what applies to properties in Santa Ana in general. To see which authorities serve one address, and what records exist for it, search for it.
Search for an address