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Seal Beach staff briefed on AB 15 72 rules; city must update code and notify customers by Jan. 1, 2027
Summary
An Environmental Incentives consultant told the Seal Beach City Council that AB 15 72 bars using potable water to irrigate nonfunctional turf at commercial, industrial and institutional properties and that the city must revise local rules and notify affected customers by Jan. 1, 2027.
Claire Hubert, a senior associate with consulting firm Environmental Incentives, gave the Seal Beach City Council an introductory briefing on AB 15 72 and its local implications on Aug. 20.
"AB 15 72 prohibits the use of potable water to irrigate non functional turf or turf grama," Hubert told the council, and she explained the statute’s distinction between "functional" turf (parks, sports fields, playgrounds) and decorative, nonfunctional turf such as street medians and parking‑lot strips.
Hubert said the law uses a phased approach: municipal and other public agencies must comply starting Jan. 1, 2027; commercial, industrial and institutional customers on Jan. 1, 2028; and homeowners association common areas, including Leisure World, on Jan. 1, 2029.
She outlined steps Seal Beach must take locally: revise ordinances, regulations or policies to incorporate AB 15 72 requirements by Jan. 1, 2027, and communicate those requirements to affected customers on or before that date. Hubert advised the city may apply existing enforcement procedures in its municipal code and noted the state retains independent enforcement authority, including civil penalties up to $1,000 per day in drought times.
Council members and members of the public asked how "functional" uses will be determined. Hubert said the statute gives definitions but leaves application to suppliers and customers in a local context and that the state will later provide additional guidance on certification and audits. She also stressed that nonpotable reclaimed water remains an allowed irrigation source under the regulation.
The presentation included an implementation schedule for city action: publish a public‑hearing notice in early September, a first reading of a municipal code amendment on Sept. 28 and a second reading and council vote on Oct. 26, followed by outreach through December to prepare customers for the Jan. 1, 2027 supplier obligations.
Hubert recommended that Seal Beach use existing permanent mandatory water conservation enforcement mechanisms where possible, allowing the city to retain local discretion while reducing the risk of state intervention.
