Thousand Oaks Municipal Code Art. 5 Service Regulations

The maintenance and operation of the City's water system including all reservoirs, pumping stations, main public pipelines, service lines, water meters, fire hydrants and appurtenances shall be the sole responsibility of the City or its agents.

(Ord. 1516-NS, eff. June 5, 2009)

Only City personnel or authorized agents shall be allowed to operate City valves. This also pertains to contractor work involved with connections to the City system.

Only authorized City or County of Ventura Fire Department personnel are to operate any fire hydrant valves unless otherwise approved. In the case of the latter, the Public Works Department shall first be notified of any requirements to operate fire hydrants for training purposes. Where construction meters are installed, City personnel shall be notified when the installation is required or when discontinuance or a change in location is desired.

Where the valve(s) on any fire hydrant must be opened or closed, only approved fire hydrant wrenches shall be used.

(Ord. 1516-NS, eff. June 5, 2009)

(a) Setting. The City shall purchase and install all meters and shall be the owner of all meters and associated appurtenances.

(b) Reading. Under ordinary conditions, each continuous service meter shall be read monthly or bimonthly on approximately the same day of the month.

(c) Testing. Upon making a written application and paying a deposit, as set by Council action, any customer may have the meter accuracy tested through which water is being furnished to his premises. If the meter flow rate is found to register more than two (2%) percent in excess of the actual quantity of water passing through, correction shall be made by the City and the deposit shall be refunded to the customer.

(d) Change of location or site. When a smaller or larger meter than the existing meter is to be installed on an existing service connection, the work shall be done by the City and the cost of the installation of the service and the new meter shall be borne by the customer. Likewise, when the location of a meter or service is changed, the cost of making such change shall be borne by the customer. In the case of a larger meter, an additional plant investment fee will be due with a credit for the previous meter. In the case of a smaller meter, no credit will be given for payment of the plant investment fee for the prior larger meter.

(Ord. 1516-NS, eff. June 5, 2009)

The City shall not be responsible for maintenance of water pressure at all times nor maintenance of water pressure for customers located at high elevations beyond normal City water pressure. The customer shall be responsible for the following:

(a) Operation and maintenance for any on-site pumping booster equipment where such equipment is on the customer's side of the meter and is intended to boost the water pressure;

(b) The setting and maintenance of the pressure regulator that is normally installed by the contractor in the areas of high pressure to protect house/building plumbing. In general, such a device shall be installed wherever the service pressure exceeds eighty (80) pounds per square inch (psi);

(c) Designing landscape irrigation and building plumbing systems for reasonable expected pressures after consideration of the City's master plans for water systems. Unless specific information is known to the contrary, those customer systems should be designed to operate properly at a minimum of forty-five (45) psi.

(Ord. 1516-NS, eff. June 5, 2009)

The City shall have the right to discontinue water service to any customer or premises or in any part of the distribution system as long as necessary without notice to customers in case of emergency.

In cases of non-emergency and in cases of extensions or connections, the City shall make a reasonable effort to deliver a 48-hour notice of the shutoff to the customer, or to some responsible interested person on the premises, or by a notice of publication in the local newspaper. The City shall not assume any liability for the failure of the customer to receive or to understand such notice. Customers having any devices requiring a continuous water supply should take all necessary steps to prevent damages to, or the causing of injury by, such devices as a result of the shutting off of the water supply.

(Ord. 1516-NS, eff. June 5, 2009)

(a) No person shall tamper, interfere with, or damage any City property. No person other than an authorized agent or employee of the City shall open any street hydrant, open or close any valve, or interfere with any water service or any water meter attached to any service pipe connected with the City's main pipes. No person shall deposit, or cause to be deposited, any substance or liquid in any water main or pipe of the City, or do anything which might cause any water supplied or furnished by, or belonging to the City to become polluted, or take water from any service without first securing permission from the City.

(b) Any person and/or company responsible for tampering, interfering with or damaging Public Works Department property shall be guilty of a violation of this Code pursuant to Chapter 2, Title 1 of this Code.

(Ord. 1516-NS, eff. June 5, 2009)

(a) Authorized inspectors, agents and employees of the Public Works Department shall have the right of entry and access, at all reasonable times, in, to and upon any and all customers' buildings, grounds or premises, or any part thereof (including any and all plumbing, water piping, fixtures, or connections located, used, maintained or operated therein or thereon), for the purpose of:

(1) Determining the existence, operation, and/or use in, on, or about such buildings, grounds, or premises for:

(i) Any plumbing or water piping which may now or hereafter cause, create, or permit backflow, back-siphonage, or any other condition affecting or likely to affect the purity and/or potability of the water supply furnished by the City;

(ii) Any source such as hot water which could damage City equipment such as meters;

(iii) Any source of water supply which may now or hereafter be connected with the water supply system of the City;

(iv) Any source of pressure, vacuum, contamination or pollution (including any and all equipment, fixtures or appliances connected or used therewith or therefore) affecting or likely to affect the purity and/or potability of the water supply for the City; and

(2) Facilitating the enforcement, from time to time, of any and all of the Public Works Department's applicable laws, rules and regulations.

(b) Such authorized representatives of the City shall be furnished with and upon the request of any consumer, shall display appropriate evidence of identification.

(Ord. 1516-NS, eff. June 5, 2009)

The property owner shall be responsible for maintaining public easements within their property such that the City has access at all times. No permanent improvements such as buildings, block walls, iron fences, large trees and shrubs and the like shall be placed over the easement without prior written approval from the City. Where the City must perform maintenance and/or construction activity within the easement, it shall not be responsible for replacing said permanent facilities or other structures prohibited by this section.

(Ord. 1516-NS, eff. June 5, 2009)

(a) All piping and appurtenances installed by the customer on his premises shall remain the property of the customer and the maintenance and care thereof his sole responsibility. The City's control and responsibility shall end at the customer's side of the meter. The City shall in no case be liable for damages caused by, or in any way arising out of, the running or escape of water from open faucets, burst pipes, or faulty fixtures on the premises.

(b) Every service connection shall be equipped with a control valve on the inlet side of the meter (City side) which valve may not be used by the customer when it becomes necessary to shut off the water supply to the entire premises. Standards normally require a customer hand valve within the meter box which is on the customer side of the meter and can be shut off by the customer. Upon request, for emergency purposes, the City may, without charge, shut off its control valve with the understanding that the City or other authorized person will turn on the water after repairs have been made.

(c) The customer shall be responsible for the cost of repairing and/or changing any meter damaged by hot water or steam emanating from or about the premises.

(Ord. 1516-NS, eff. June 5, 2009)

If or when the City ascertains that a condition affecting the purity and potability of the water supply of the City exists in, on, or about any building, grounds or premises in violation of any health law, rule, and regulation of the State, or any health ordinance or the code of the County, or any law, or rule, or regulation of the City, the City shall;

(a) Immediately notify the person owning and/or controlling such building, grounds or premises of the existence of such condition; and

(b) Require such person to comply within a reasonable time (as stated in such notice) with any such law, ordinance, code, rule or regulation.

(c) Depending upon the nature and severity of the problem, the City may require that service be discontinued immediately and that it not be restored until acceptable compliance is demonstrated by the customer.

(Ord. 1516-NS, eff. June 5, 2009)

This subject is covered under Article 6.

(Ord. 1516-NS, eff. June 5, 2009)

(a) If the Public Works Director determines that over consumption of water, loss of pressure in a system, breakdown, or any similar occurrence requires emergency restrictions upon the use of water from any system, he shall order such restrictions, and then shall obtain authorization from the Council at its first meeting following such restriction order.

(b) Such order may restrict the use of water for irrigation, sprinkling, manufacturing or nonessential uses. The use of water for particular purposes may be limited to specified days or hours of a day or altogether prohibited, except that the use of water for drinking, cooking and sanitary purposes shall not be prohibited.

(c) Any such order shall be communicated by the Public Works Department either in writing or orally to customers served by the affected system. The water supply to any premises upon which the use of water is being made in violation of an order of the Public Works Director may be summarily shut off.

(Ord. 1516-NS, eff. June 5, 2009)

Nonresidential customers making any change in operations on their premises requiring substantial increases in the rates of water flow through the City's facilities shall immediately give the City written notice of the nature of the proposed change.

(Ord. 1515-NS, eff. June 5, 2009)

(a) It is unlawful for any person with intent to obtain for himself or herself water services without paying the full lawful charge therefore, or with intent to enable another person to do so, or with intent to deprive the Public Works Department of any part of the full lawful charge for water services it provides, to commit, authorize, solicit, aid or abet any of the following:

(1) Divert or cause to be diverted water services, by any means whatsoever;

(2) Prevent or alter any water meter, or other device used in determining the charge for water services, from accurately performing its measuring function by tampering or by any other means;

(3) Tamper with any water line, meter, or other property owned by or used by the Public Works Department to provide water services;

(4) Make or cause to be made any connection with or reconnection with property owned or used by the Public Works Department to provide water services without the authorization or consent of the Public Works Department;

(5) Use or receive the direct benefit of water services with knowledge, or any reason to believe that an unauthorized diversion, tampering or connection, existed and was being utilized to receive that water, or that the use or receipt was otherwise without the authorization or consent of the Public Works Department.

(b) The presence of any of the following objects, circumstances or conditions in the public service easement area adjoining the customer's property or on premises controlled by the customer or by the person using or receiving the direct benefit of all or a portion of water services obtained in violation of this section shall permit an inference that the customer of person intended to and did violate this section:

(1) Any instrument, apparatus or device primarily designed to be used to obtain water services without paying the full lawful charge therefore;

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

(c) Any violation of this section may be prosecuted by the City by means of a criminal infraction or misdemeanor and/or civil filing, as deemed appropriate by the City Attorney.

(d) Penalty amounts shall be set as allowed by Penal Code Section 498 and shall be authorized by resolution or as set forth in the User Fee Manual.

(1) Administrative Process. The City shall establish procedures for the issuance, enforcement, and collection of fines under this section, including administrative review. Each day a violation continues may constitute a separate offense.

(2) Hardship Waiver. The City Manager or designee may reduce or waive a fine upon determining that payment of the full amount would impose an undue financial hardship on the party responsible.

(3) Restoration of Service. The City may require payment of all penalties, damages, and a reconnection deposit billed on a time-and-materials basis prior to restoring service.

(e) This section shall not be construed to preclude the applicability of any other provision of the criminal law of this State.

(Ord. 1516-NS, eff. June 5, 2009, as amended by § 2 Ord. 1743-NS, eff. January 2, 2026)