Coronavirus: Newsom bans water shutoffs for customers with overdue bills

All water service in California will continue, even for customers that have been unable to pay their bills.

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday issued an executive order that prohibits all public water agencies from disconnecting service to residences.

“Water is critical to our very lives,” Newsom said, “and in this time, it is critically important that it is available for everyone.”

The order also does not absolve customers from bills they owe. They still are responsible for payment, but cannot be disconnected if payments are late or missed.

More than 100 water systems in California, including many in the Bay Area, already had adopted policies to not shut off water service to residents facing financial hardships during the coronavirus pandemic, but the order broadens that statewide.

Private water companies already had been barred from non-payment shutoffs during the crisis by the California Public Utilities Commission, which regulates them. The PUC issued an order March 17, which similarly blocks electric utilities like PG&E for disconnecting service for non-payment during the crisis.

“Many people are concerned about the health and safety of themselves and their loved ones,” said PUC President Marybel Batjer at the time. “They should not also have to worry about their essential utility services being shut off for non-payment because they are unable to report to work due to illness, quarantine or social distancing.”

Environmental and civil rights groups have pushed for the new water rules, making the case that because unprecedented numbers of people are losing jobs, some won’t be able to pay their utility bills, and that small businesses who have lost business are at risk as well. Shutting off service for non-payment would not only provide a major setback for those families and businesses, they have said, but also could spread the virus because water is needed for proper hand-washing and other sanitation.

“When the first instruction to every Californian is ‘wash your hands often,’ it’s crazy to think that many residents of the state don’t have that option in their own homes,” said Alexandra Nagy,  California director of Food & Water Action, a non-profit advocacy group. “Access to clean, safe water is a right that every Californian should have, in times of heath crises and in normal times as well.”

State leaders agreed.

“If individuals and families are cut off from running water or sanitation, the lack of access can compound the public health challenges we face,” said Joaquin Esquivel, chairman of the State Water Resources Control Board.

The order remains in effect indefinitely. It applies to residential service and to businesses that have been deemed essential by the state public health officer, such as grocery stores, health clinics, carry out restaurants and others.

It also requires water systems to restore service to residences that were shut off for non-payment after the March 4, 2020, statewide emergency coronavirus proclamation.