Long Beach Water Restrictions 2026
Los Angeles County · California
Published:
Restrictions Active - Stage 1 + MWD Level 1 – Mandatory Conservation
3
Days/Week
Before 9:00 AM
Allowed Hours
$100 first · $250 second · $500 third+
Max Fine
Find Your Watering Day
Enter the last digit of your street address:
View full address schedule table
| Address Ending | Watering Day |
|---|---|
| All addresses (April 1 – September 30) | Tuesday & Thursday & Saturday |
| All addresses (October 1 – March 31) | Tuesday & Saturday |
Allowed Watering Hours
No sprinkler irrigation between 9:00 AM and 4:00 PM year-round. Maximum 10 minutes per spray-head zone per watering day; 30 minutes for low-flow rotary or drip zones. Long Beach Utilities adds a third watering day (Thursday) April through September; from October the schedule drops to Tuesday and Saturday only.
Still Allowed
💧 Hand Watering
Allowed with shut-off nozzle. Hours: Any day with a shut-off nozzle; drip and soaker hoses exempt.
🌿 Drip Irrigation
Exempt from day-of-week limits. Must follow allowed hours.
Fines & Enforcement
$100 first · $250 second · $500 third+
Long Beach Utilities Water Conservation team patrols neighbourhoods and responds to online Water Waste reports. First documented violation: warning. Second: $100. Third: $250. Fourth+: $500. Commercial and multi-family violators face up to $1,000 per occurrence. Repeat residential violators may have a flow-restricting device installed on the meter after the fourth offense.
Citations begin MWD Level 1 declared March 2026🏠 HOA Rules During Restrictions
California Water Code §10631.5 prohibits HOAs from fining residents for drought-compliant brown lawns during a declared shortage. California Civil Code §4735 prevents HOAs from penalizing homeowners who reduce irrigation under a state or local conservation order, and explicitly allows artificial turf installation notwithstanding CC&R restrictions. The MWD Level 1 declaration plus your local agency's retail stage qualify as the state-recognized triggers – document both if your HOA sends a violation letter.
If your homeowners association sends a violation notice for a dormant or brown lawn during the current restriction period, respond in writing citing the applicable law and include a copy of the current restriction order from Long Beach Utilities Department. Most HOAs will rescind the notice once they are made aware of the legal protections in place. If the issue persists, contact your county’s code enforcement division for assistance.
Why These Restrictions Exist
Long Beach is served by Long Beach Utilities Department (LBWD), a member agency of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD). On March 2026 MWD declared a Level 1 Water Shortage Condition for all 26 member agencies (covering roughly 19 million residents) – the first regional Level 1 since 2022. The trigger: State Water Project allocation cut to 30% for the 2026 water year, continued Colorado River shortage operating under post-2007 Interim Guidelines, and Diamond Valley Lake (MWD's largest local storage) dropping below the 65% planning threshold.
LBWD is one of the largest standalone retail utilities receiving MWD water – it serves roughly 470,000 residents and operates as a city department rather than a sub-agency of LA DWP across the LA River. The Long Beach Greenport program runs the city's xeriscape and turf-replacement rebates, and LBWD has consistently been among the most aggressive SoCal retailers on conservation enforcement. Naval Weapons Station Seal Beach (federal jurisdiction) and the Port of Long Beach hold separate industrial permits – port terminal operations are governed by their own commercial water-use ordinances and are not on the residential schedule.
MWD's Level 1 framework asks member agencies to target a 20% reduction in potable water use versus a 2020 baseline. Each retail agency translates that target into local rules – typically 2–3 days per week outdoor watering with a mid-day blackout window. California's permanent year-round baseline (no hosing hardscape, no irrigation within 48 hours of measurable rainfall, no runoff onto sidewalks, shut-off nozzle required on hoses) applies on top of MWD Level 1, regardless of conditions.
This deficit has accumulated over the current water year and represents a significant departure from historical averages for the Long Beach area. Water supply reservoirs and aquifer levels are well below seasonal targets, necessitating mandatory conservation measures.
How to Keep Your Lawn Alive During Long Beach Water Restrictions
13 tips tailored for Long Beach homeowners during Stage 1 + MWD Level 1 – Mandatory Conservation restrictions.
Long Beach's coastal fog moderates demand April–June – most west-side and downtown lawns can skip the Thursday cycle after marine layer mornings.
Stack the SoCal Water$mart $3/sq ft turf rebate with Long Beach Lawn-to-Garden bonuses – front-yard parkway strips are the easiest no-permit removal areas.
Programme your controller now for Long Beach's assigned 2-day-per-week schedule (see the watering days finder above) and respect the mid-day blackout – automatic enforcement runs from smart-meter data plus neighbourhood patrols.
Bermuda is the most MWD-Level-1-friendly grass for SoCal lawns – set mower height to 1.5 inches and let summer dormancy set in rather than fight the schedule.
St. Augustine and tall fescue both brown noticeably under 2 days/week. Cut ¾ inch maximum on assigned days, raise mowing height to 3.5–4 inches, and hand-water mature trees with a shut-off nozzle on off-days.
Apply cycle-and-soak on slopes and clay soils: 3 minutes on, 20-minute pause, 3 minutes – SoCal clay sheds continuous spray inside 90 seconds.
Mulch ornamental beds 3 inches deep with arborist wood chips. Bare soil in inland SoCal loses 0.5 inch of moisture per day in May–September.
Replace overhead spray heads on narrow strips with subsurface drip – drip is exempt from day-of-week limits and uses 30–50% less water.
Fix broken or misaligned sprinkler heads within 48 hours. Visible runoff onto sidewalks and driveways is a same-day citation under California's permanent year-round baseline.
Stack rebates: SoCal Water$mart ($3/sq ft turf removal) plus your retail agency's local match brings most front-yard conversions to $4–$5/sq ft.
Install a WaterSense-labeled smart controller with a rain sensor – most SoCal retail agencies offer $80–$200 rebates and the controller pays back in one summer.
Skip your assigned cycle after 0.5 inch of rainfall in the prior 48 hours. California law requires rain sensors on any system installed after 1991.
Track weekly water use at lbwater.org – Level 1's reduction target is 20% below 2020 baseline; meter-level alerts catch leaks before the bill arrives.
Long Beach Water Restriction FAQs
What days can I water my lawn in Long Beach?
What hours can I run my sprinklers in Long Beach?
What are the fines for water violations in Long Beach?
Can I install new sod or seed in Long Beach during restrictions?
When will water restrictions end in Long Beach?
I live in Long Beach but my water bill comes from Cal Water Service – different rules?
Port of Long Beach industrial – does Stage 1 apply to terminal operations?
How does LBWD's framework differ from LA DWP's directly across the LA River?
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