Senate BillChaptered/SignedCivil
SB 394: Water theft: fire hydrants.
What SB 394 does, verified December 7, 2025
This bill aims to strengthen laws against water theft by expanding the list of prohibited acts. It adds tampering with fire hydrants, fire hydrant meters, and fire detector checks to the list of acts that utilities can bring a civil action against. The bill also expands the rebuttable presumption for a violation of these provisions to include tampering with or using a fire hydrant without authorization to obtain water and without paying the full lawful charge. The bill revises fines for water theft offenses, making the third or additional violation subject to the same fine regardless of the time frame between the first and subsequent violations. Additionally, the bill allows local agencies to adopt ordinances prohibiting unauthorized connections to fire hydrants, subject to administrative fines, and sets forth a schedule of fines for these offenses. The bill also prohibits local agencie…
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Last action: Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 540, Statutes of 2025. (2025-08-25)Alert me
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| Oct. 10, 2025 | Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 540, Statutes of 2025. |
| Oct. 10, 2025 | Approved by the Governor. |
| Sep. 02, 2025 | Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 11 a.m. |
| Aug. 25, 2025 | Assembly amendments concurred in. (Ayes 37. Noes 0. Page 2253.) Ordered to engrossing and enrolling. |
| Aug. 25, 2025 | Assembly amendments concurred in. (Ayes 37. Noes 0.) Ordered to engrossing and enrolling. |
Latest bill textChaptered version, October 10, 2025 · 1,927 words
Senate Bill No. 394
CHAPTER 540
An act to amend Sections 1882.1 and 1882.3 of the Civil Code, and to amend Section 53069.45 of, and to add Section 53069.46 to, the Government Code, relating to water theft.
[ Approved by Governor October 10, 2025. Filed with Secretary of State October 10, 2025. ]
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 394, Allen. Water theft: fire hydrants.
Existing law authorizes a utility to bring a civil action for damages against any person who commits, authorizes, solicits, aids, abets, or attempts certain acts, including, diverting or causing to be diverted, utility services by any means whatsoever. Existing law creates a rebuttable presumption that there is violation of these provisions if, on premises controlled by the customer or by the person using or receiving the direct benefit of utility service, certain actions occur, including that there is an instrument, apparatus, or device primarily designed to be used to obtain utility service without paying the full lawful charge for the utility.
This bill would add to the list of acts for which a utility may bring a civil cause of action under these circumstances to include tampering with a fire hydrant, fire hydrant meter, or fire detector check, or connecting to, diverting water from, or causing water to be diverted from, a fire hydrant without authorization from the utility that owns the fire hydrant, except as provided. The bill would also expand the rebuttable presumption for a violation of these provisions to include, among other things, if 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.
Existing law authorizes the legislative body of a local agency, as defined, that provides water services to adopt an ordinance that prohibits water theft, as defined, and makes a violation of the ordinance subject to an administrative fine or penalty, as specified. Existing law sets forth a schedule of fines for a violation of an ordinance adopted pursuant to these provisions, including, if the violation is committed via meter tampering, a fine not exceeding $1,300 for a third or additional violation of the same ordinance within one year of the first violation, and for a violation of all other forms of water theft, a fine not exceeding $3,000 for a third or additional violation of the same ordinance within one year.
This bill would revise those fines to apply to the third or additional violation without regard to whether the violation occurred within one year of the first violation.
This bill would authorize a legislative body of a local agency, as defined, that provides retail water services, to adopt an ordinance that prohibits unauthorized connection to a fire hydrant, as defined, subject to an administrative fine or penalty, as specified. The bill would set forth a schedule of fines for a violation of the ordinance. The bill would prohibit a local agency from imposing a fine for the same offense under both an ordinance adopted by a local agency pursuant to these provisions that prohibits unauthorized connection to a fire hydrant and an ordinance adopted by the local agency pursuant to the provisions described above that prohibits water theft.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:(a) Unauthorized connection to and use of a fire hydrant and unauthorized use of a fire hydrant meter to take water from a fire hydrant is water theft, is typically conducted by commercial actors subverting the law for profit, and undermines the local water system process.
(b) The state supports the Making Conservation a California Way of Life regulation adopted by the State Water Resources Control Board and finds that theft of water from fire hydrants violates those goals by leading to water loss that is not adequately deterred by current statutory authorities.
(c) Unauthorized connections to fire hydrants can lead to public health and safety issues, including potential contamination of a drinking water source due to a lack of backflow prevention and damage to water system facilities and infrastructure, or depressurization of the water system, which could make communities more vulnerable in the event of a fire.
(d) Affordability of water is impacted by water theft from a fire hydrant as the cost of water loss and damages to infrastructure is ultimately borne by ratepayers.
(e) It is the intent of the Legislature to uphold its values of water efficiency, affordability, and public health and safety by enacting a statute that is a greater deterrent to water theft via the unauthorized connection to a fire hydrant or unauthorized use of a hydrant meter.
SEC. 2.
Section 1882.1 of the Civil Code is amended to read:1882.1.
A utility may bring a civil action for damages against any person who commits, authorizes, solicits, aids, abets, or attempts any of the following acts:(a) Diverts, or causes to be diverted, utility services by any means whatsoever.
(b) Makes, or causes to be made, any connection or reconnection with property owned or used by the utility to provide utility service without the authorization or consent of the utility.
(c) Prevents any utility meter, or other device used in determining the charge for utility services, from accurately performing its measuring function by tampering or by any other means.
(d) Tampers with any property owned or used by the utility to provide utility services.
(e) Uses or receives the direct benefit of all, or a portion, of the utility service with knowledge of, or reason to believe that, the diversion, tampering, or unauthorized connection existed at the time of the use, or that the use or receipt, was without the authorization or consent of the utility.
(f) (1) Tampers with a fire hydrant, fire hydrant meter, or fire detector check, or connects to, diverts water from, or causes water to be diverted from, a fire hydrant without authorization from the utility that owns the fire hydrant.
(2) A public agency having firefighting or emergency response responsibilities during a fire, or a qualified insurance resource, as defined in Section 1139 of the Labor Code, with approval from incident command or the authority having jurisdiction over the active fire incident, shall be considered to have authorization from the utility that owns the fire hydrant during an active fire incident.
SEC. 3.
Section 1882.3 of the Civil Code is amended to read: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.
SEC. 4.
Section 53069.45 of the Government Code is amended to read:53069.45.
(a) (1) Notwithstanding any other law, the legislative body of a local agency, as defined in Section 54951, that provides water services, may adopt an ordinance that prohibits water theft and makes a violation of an ordinance enacted by the local agency regarding water theft subject to an administrative fine or penalty, as provided in this section.(2) The local agency shall adopt an ordinance that sets forth the administrative procedure that shall govern the imposition, enforcement, collection, and administrative review by the local agency of the administrative fines or penalties for water theft.
(3) The local agency shall establish a process for granting a hardship waiver to reduce the amount of the fine imposed for water theft upon a showing by the responsible party that payment of the full amount of the fine would impose an undue financial burden on the responsible party.
(b) If the water theft is committed via meter tampering in violation of an ordinance adopted under this section, it is punishable as follows:
(1) A fine not exceeding one hundred thirty dollars ($130) for a first violation.
(2) A fine not exceeding seven hundred dollars ($700) for a second violation of the same ordinance within one year of the first violation.
(3) A fine not exceeding one thousand three hundred dollars ($1,300) for the third violation and each additional violation of the same ordinance.
(c) All other forms of water theft in violation of an ordinance adopted under this section are punishable as follows:
(1) A fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000) for a first violation.
(2) A fine not exceeding two thousand dollars ($2,000) for a second violation of the same ordinance within one year.
(3) A fine not exceeding three thousand dollars ($3,000) for each additional violation of the same ordinance.
(d) For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:
(1) “Irrigation district” has the same meaning as “district,” as that term is defined in Section 20513 of the Water Code.
(2) “Water theft” means an action to divert, tamper, or reconnect water utility services, as defined in Section 498 of the Penal Code.
(e) An irrigation district may impose fines or penalties for water theft in accordance with this section or Division 11 (commencing with Section 20500) of the Water Code. This section shall not cap or limit the fines that an irrigation district may impose in accordance with Division 11 (commencing with Section 20500) of the Water Code.
SEC. 5.
Section 53069.46 is added to the Government Code, to read:53069.46.
(a) (1) Notwithstanding any other law, the legislative body of a local agency, as defined in Section 54951, that provides retail water services, may adopt an ordinance that prohibits unauthorized connection to a fire hydrant, and makes a violation of an ordinance enacted by the local agency regarding water theft committed via the unauthorized connection to a fire hydrant subject to an administrative fine or penalty, as provided in this section.(2) The local agency shall adopt an ordinance that sets forth the administrative procedure that shall govern the imposition, enforcement, collection, and administrative review by the local agency of the administrative fines or penalties for water theft committed via the unauthorized connection to a fire hydrant.
(b) Water theft committed via the unauthorized connection to a fire hydrant in violation of an ordinance adopted under this section is punishable as follows:
(1) A fine not exceeding two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) for a first violation.
(2) A fine not exceeding five thousand dollars ($5,000) for a second violation of the same ordinance.
(3) A fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for the third violation and each additional violation of the same ordinance.
(c) For purposes of this section, “unauthorized connection to a fire hydrant” includes the unauthorized use of a fire hydrant, fire hydrant meter, or fire detector check.
(d) (1) A local agency shall not impose fines under both this section and Section 53069.45 for the same offense.
(2) Except as provided in paragraph (1), this section does not preclude remedies available under any other law, including provisions in the Penal Code or the Civil Code.
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