§ 1882.3

There is a rebuttable presumption that there is a violation of Section 1882.1 if either of the following occurs:

(a) On premises controlled by the customer or by the person using or receiving the direct benefit of utility service, including through the use of a vehicle, there is either, or both, of the following:

(1) Any instrument, apparatus, or device primarily designed to be used to obtain utility service without paying the full lawful charge for the utility service.

(2) A meter that has been altered, tampered with, or bypassed so as to cause no measurement or inaccurate measurement of utility services.

(b) A person tampers with or uses a fire hydrant, fire hydrant meter, or fire detector check without authorization to obtain water and without paying the full lawful charge of the water.

(Amended by Stats. 2025, Ch. 540, Sec. 3. (SB 394) Effective January 1, 2026.)