The City of Sacramento is now in a Stage Two Water Alert.
Stage Two, fines for water waste will be doubled and car washing will be restricted to watering days. Residents are also being asked to voluntarily conserve water by 15% If drought conditions continue to worsen, the Urban Water Management Plan goes all the way to Stage Six, which if reached, would call on residents to conserve over half of their water usage.
The stages are part of the city's 2020 Urban Water Management Plan that sets six water conservation levels:
- Stage 1 Water Watch: Up to 10%
- Stage 2 Water Alert: Up to 20%
- Stage 3 Water Warning: Up to 30%
- Stage 4 Water Crisis: Up to 40%
- Stage 5 Water Emergency: Up to 50%
- Stage 6 Water Health & Safety: Use Only >50%
The Stage 2 vote allows for fines for water waste to be doubled, and car washing will be restricted to watering days. The decision is in alignment with Gov. Gavin Newsom's request in July for residents and businesses to voluntarily curb water use as the state's drought conditions worsen.