By Jonathan Friedman
Associate Editor

January 15, 2015 -- Santa Monica residents and businesses will have to start reducing their water usage in April as compared to their consumption in 2013 or face fines, which will be implemented beginning in October.

The City Council unanimously approved new restrictions that are aimed at meeting a December 31, 2016 deadline to reduce Santa Monica’s water use by 20 percent as this city and the rest of the state operate during a severe drought.

Residents and businesses (including landscapers) must reduce their use by 20 percent compared to 2013. 

That percentage of reduction would not have to be met by residential customers already using an amount lower than established thresholds -- 274 gallons per day for single-family homes and  137 gallons per day per unit for multi-family homes.

Penalties for too much use would be based on the amount of excess, and could reach as high as $1,000 per 60-day billing cycle, although actual fines would likely be much lower. More severe penalties would be issued for repeat violators.

“We are obviously in a very serious drought and need to do something," Councilmember Gleam Davis said. "We need to look for ways to encourage people to change their behaviors now rather than wait for a time when we are quite literally out of water."

Mayor Kevin McKeown added, “We are committed to dealing with this drought. I think no one has any doubt how serious the situation is that confronts us both here in Santa Monica and the region.”

Several residents addressed the council about this issue. Some of them said the established thresholds would affect single-family residents more, and wanted them lower.

Zina Josephs, president of Friends of Sunset Park, spoke about a resident with a wife and children who would be required to reduce his water use by the same amount as a person in a home with fewer people. 

This family risked not meeting the requirement and facing fines.

“So he and his wife will evidently have to pay a penalty for bathing their children on a regular basis, keeping them in clean clothes, having them eat off clean dishes and maintaining a backyard where they can play on grass rather than slipping and sliding on decomposed granite,” she said.

Residents and businesses will be able to apply for exemptions. They will have to prove they have done all they can to reduce water consumption and can also claim financial hardship.

Staff is expected to present further measures to the council soon regarding water conservation.

The measure approved Tuesday is not tied to the proposal for water fee hikes. The council will hold a public hearing Feb. 24 on the proposal to increase the rate by nearly 80 percent over the next five years.