North Texas Municipal Water District Water Restrictions 2026
Headquartered in Wylie, TX · Serving 2.0 million people across 9 Texas cities
Published:
Stage 2 Conservation Continuous Since April 2024 — Third Consecutive Year
2.0 million
Customers
9
Cities Served
2
Days/Week
71%
Reservoir Capacity
Continuous since April 2024 (over 2 years — longest sustained mandatory stage in NTMWD history)
Historical
NTMWD (the North Texas Municipal Water District) is one of the largest wholesale water providers in the United States, serving approximately 2 million people across the north and east Dallas metroplex. Created by the Texas Legislature in 1951, NTMWD pioneered regional water wholesaling in Texas — its 13 member cities (Plano, McKinney, Allen, Richardson, Garland, Mesquite, Rockwall, Wylie, Frisco, Forney, Princeton, Royse City, and Farmersville) collectively own and govern the district through a Board of Directors with one representative per member city. In addition, more than 80 wholesale customer cities and special utility districts purchase water from NTMWD, extending its reach across Collin, Dallas, Rockwall, Hunt, Kaufman, Fannin, Grayson, and other counties.
NTMWD has been on Stage 2 mandatory water conservation continuously since April 2024 — making 2026 the third consecutive year of restrictions, and the longest sustained mandatory stage in the district's history. Stage 2 limits outdoor irrigation to 2 days per week with a 10 AM – 6 PM watering ban year-round. Even-numbered addresses water on Mondays and Thursdays; odd-numbered addresses on Tuesdays and Fridays. The Stage 2 framework is uniform across all member cities — Plano, McKinney, Allen, Richardson, Garland, Mesquite, Rockwall, Wylie, and Frisco all enforce identical schedules with $200 first-violation fines and $500 escalating fines for repeat offences.
This wholesaler-level uniformity is the structural reason brand-search queries like 'NTMWD Stage 2' return consistent rules across the entire 2-million-customer service area. Each member city handles its own enforcement (warnings, citations, repeat-offender escalation) but the underlying restriction stage is set by the NTMWD Board. This page is the central reference for NTMWD's 2026 framework — schedule, fines, trigger thresholds, supply portfolio, and the nine NTMWD member cities currently on this site with full per-city watering schedules.
Current North Texas Municipal Water District Restriction
Effective April 1, 2024, North Texas Municipal Water District customers are subject to the following mandatory schedule. These rules apply uniformly across all 9 cities in the service area — customers in distributor cities follow the same schedule as direct Wylie customers, even though their bills come from the local city utility.
Allowed Hours
Before 10:00 AM and after 6:00 PM
The 10 AM–6 PM blackout window applies regardless of address — even on your assigned watering day. Watering during the blackout is the most common cause of first-offence fines.
Fines
First offence: $200 first violation
Repeat: $500 escalating
Enforcement is patrol-based plus complaint-driven via 3-1-1.
Address-Based Watering Days
Even-numbered addresses water Mondays and Thursdays. Odd-numbered addresses water Tuesdays and Fridays. The schedule applies year-round across all 13 NTMWD member cities and 80+ wholesale customer cities.
Cities Served by North Texas Municipal Water District
All 9 cities below operate under the same Stage 2 Conservation — Year-Round schedule. Tap any city for the city-specific page with address-based watering schedule, HOA-protection details, local enforcement notes, and the city's official utility contact.
Plano
PrimaryNTMWD Stage 2 Conservation - Year-Round
View city schedule →
McKinney
PrimaryNTMWD Stage 2 Conservation - Year-Round
View city schedule →
Allen
PrimaryNTMWD Stage 2 Conservation - Year-Round
View city schedule →
Richardson
PrimaryNTMWD Stage 2 Conservation - Year-Round
View city schedule →
Garland
PrimaryNTMWD Stage 2 Conservation - Year-Round
View city schedule →
Mesquite
PrimaryNTMWD Stage 2 Conservation - Year-Round
View city schedule →
Rockwall
PrimaryNTMWD Stage 2 Conservation - Year-Round
View city schedule →
Wylie
PrimaryNTMWD Stage 2 Conservation - Year-Round
View city schedule →
Frisco
PrimaryYear-Round Water Conservation - Odd/Even Schedule
View city schedule →
Stage Progression — 2026 North Texas Municipal Water District Drought Response
- April 1, 2024
Stage 2 Conservation declared after sustained drought across the Lake Lavon watershed. Mandatory 2-day-per-week schedule begins for all 13 member cities and 80+ customer cities — approximately 2 million people.
- April 1, 2025
Stage 2 maintained for a second year. NTMWD Board reviews supply quarterly; Lake Lavon remains below capacity targets despite winter recharge.
- September 15, 2025
Texas Property Code § 202.007 reinforced in NTMWD customer communications: HOAs may NOT fine homeowners for brown lawns when complying with mandatory water restrictions. Customers urged to document compliance and reference the statute.
- April 1, 2026
Stage 2 enters its third year — making this the longest sustained mandatory restriction in NTMWD history.
- April 15, 2026
Bois d'Arc Lake — the first major new reservoir built in Texas since the 1980s — reaches full operational capacity, providing 28 million gallons per day of new supply to the NTMWD service area.
- May 1, 2026
NTMWD reaffirms Stage 2 status entering the peak summer demand season. Per-capita-use targets reaffirmed at 140 gallons per person per day, well above the state's long-term conservation goal.
Where Does North Texas Municipal Water District Water Come From?
NTMWD's supply portfolio is one of the most diverse of any large US water wholesaler, drawing from five surface-water reservoirs plus the East Texas wetland reuse system. Lake Lavon, located adjacent to NTMWD's Wylie headquarters, is the primary terminal reservoir and the trigger metric for stage decisions. Lake Lavon is supplemented by imports from Lake Texoma (a Red River basin reservoir shared with Oklahoma — a critical drought buffer because the Red River watershed receives different precipitation patterns from the Trinity), Jim Chapman Lake (formerly Cooper Lake), Lake Tawakoni, and Lake Bonham. Lake Lavon currently sits at approximately 71% of capacity — below the 70% Stage 1 threshold and just above the 65% Stage 2 threshold that originally triggered the 2024 declaration.
In 2023, Bois d'Arc Lake — the first major new reservoir built in Texas since the 1980s — came online in Fannin County, north of Bonham. By April 2026 the reservoir reached full operational capacity, adding 28 million gallons per day of new supply to the NTMWD service area. Bois d'Arc Lake represents one of the largest infrastructure investments in NTMWD's history (over $1.6 billion total project cost) and is the primary reason the district has been able to maintain Stage 2 (rather than escalating to Stage 3) despite three consecutive years of drought and ~3% annual customer growth.
Despite the new supply, NTMWD remains in Stage 2 because demand continues to push against sustainable yield. Per-capita water use across the service area averaged 140 gallons per person per day in 2025 — well above the Texas state long-term target of 100–110 gpcd. NTMWD also operates the East Texas constructed wetland reuse system, a ~2,000-acre engineered wetland near Lake Tawakoni that polishes treated wastewater for return to the supply chain. This reuse capability — uncommon among US water wholesalers at this scale — provides additional drought resilience and reduces dependence on surface-water-only sources.
Primary Supply Sources
- Lake Lavon (primary terminal reservoir, Wylie)
- Lake Texoma (Red River basin imports — shared with Oklahoma)
- Jim Chapman Lake (formerly Cooper Lake)
- Lake Tawakoni (East Fork Trinity River)
- Bois d'Arc Lake (first new major Texas reservoir since the 1980s; online 2023)
- East Texas constructed wetland reuse system (~2,000 acres)
Major Reservoirs
Lake Lavon (terminal)
71% of capacity
Lake Texoma
78% of capacity
Jim Chapman Lake
64% of capacity
Lake Tawakoni
73% of capacity
Lake Bonham
68% of capacity
Bois d'Arc Lake (newest, online 2023)
92% of capacity
System total: approximately 71% of seasonal target as of June 20, 2026.
What Triggers Each North Texas Municipal Water District Stage?
| Stage | Trigger Condition |
|---|---|
| Stage 1 | Lake Lavon below 70% capacity OR sustained US Drought Monitor classification of D2+ across the service area. Voluntary reductions requested. |
| Stage 2 | Lake Lavon below 65% capacity OR D3 drought + projected supply shortfall — CURRENT STATUS since April 2024. Mandatory 2-day-per-week schedule with $200/$500 fines. |
| Stage 3 | Lake Lavon below 50% capacity OR critical aquifer-recharge failure. Triggers a 1-day-per-week schedule, pool-fill restrictions, and intensified enforcement patrols. |
| Stage 4 | Lake Lavon below 35% OR emergency supply crisis. Bans all non-essential outdoor irrigation; commercial car washes restricted to recycle systems; pool refills prohibited without variance. |
About North Texas Municipal Water District
NTMWD is a Texas Special-Purpose District created under the Texas Water Code in 1951. Each of the 13 member cities appoints one Director to NTMWD's 13-member Board, with the Board electing officers internally and approving rates, capital projects (such as the Bois d'Arc Lake build-out), and drought-stage decisions. Voting power on the Board is structured so that no single member city can unilaterally control district decisions — a deliberate design feature to ensure that supply decisions reflect the collective interest of the entire service area rather than the largest member.
The district's headquarters in Wylie, Texas houses one of the largest water treatment plants in the southern United States, processing water drawn from Lake Lavon and the Lake Texoma pipeline. NTMWD also operates regional treatment plants serving wastewater for member cities, making it a fully integrated regional water-wastewater authority rather than a pure supply wholesaler.
Texas Property Code § 202.007 protects homeowners across the entire NTMWD service area from HOA fines for brown lawns when complying with mandatory water restrictions — a critical legal protection that NTMWD actively communicates to customers. Member cities and customer cities each handle their own enforcement (warnings, fines, repeat-offender escalation), but the underlying restriction stage is set by NTMWD's Board through monthly drought-status reviews. Visit ntmwd.com for current stage, reservoir reports, and conservation rebates available to all member-city and customer-city residents.
Quick Reference
- Authority type
- Texas Special-Purpose District (Member-City Board of Directors — one Director per member city)
- Founded
- 1951
- Headquarters
- 501 East Brown Street, Wylie, TX 75098
- Phone
- 972-442-5405
- Website
- www.ntmwd.com
Related Pages
North Texas Municipal Water District Restriction FAQs
What is NTMWD and who does it serve?
What is NTMWD Stage 2?
Which cities are NTMWD member cities?
Why has NTMWD been on Stage 2 for so long?
Can my HOA fine me for a brown lawn during NTMWD Stage 2?
What's the difference between NTMWD and Dallas Water Utilities?
Will NTMWD escalate to Stage 3 in 2026?
Sources monitored continuously: https://www.ntmwd.com and the North Texas Municipal Water District Board of Water Commissioners public meeting agendas. Stage changes are typically announced via press release and posted within 24 hours.