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Californians won't be able to legally water their lawns for 48 hours after rainstorms or let their sprinklers run onto the sidewalk.
This comes under new mandatory restrictions that could take effect by the end of this month. The new restrictions also come as forecasts show the next three months could be drier than usual. Even after the recent winter storms, the Sacramento region is still in the midst of an extreme drought. Officials continue to stress that a drought remains and that efforts to conserve water should continue. The temporary rules, which will be in effect for one year, are similar to measures put in place during the last drought California experienced from 2012 to 2016 - it's also reported that violators to these rules could face fines of up to $500.
These new restrictions come after Californians failed to meet Governor Newsom’s call for a voluntary 15% reduction in water use compared to last year. Between July and November, the state’s water usage went down just 6%.