Stolen or moved backflow assembly in Tempe: replacement and permit

The city's Backflow Prevention Program page tells users to report the theft to Tempe Police on the non-emergency line, 480-350-8311. It asks for the make, model, size and serial number of the stolen assembly. It says the city "aggressively investigates thefts of assemblies and arrests have been made."

The same page sets the replacement rules. The user must replace the stolen assembly "in a timely manner", and it must be replaced with the same type of assembly. It says to increase security with a cage, a locking mechanism or a style of assembly with less brass. Then comes the permit line: "To be in compliance with Tempe City Code Chapter 33, Section 107(e), a plumbing permit is required if the assembly is replaced and/or relocated. If the assembly is relocated, it may no longer be serving as containment."

Read the code text next to it. Section 33-107(e) says: "Following the repair, repiping, overhaul or relocation of an assembly, the user shall have it inspected by the department and tested by a certified tester." The permit requirement appears on the program page and the Backflow FAQ ("Permits are required to install or replace these assemblies"), not in the 33-107(e) sentence itself.

• Same type of assembly: a reduced pressure assembly replaced with a reduced pressure assembly, a double check with a double check. The program page gives no timeline beyond "timely."
• Containment: protection at the service connection that keeps the whole property's water from flowing back into the city main. The program page says a relocated assembly may lose that role.
• Less-brass style: the city's suggestion for theft-prone sites. It does not say which models qualify.

It covers any Tempe water user with a required backflow assembly, usually commercial, industrial and HOA accounts. The city notices go to the person who pays the water bill. It does not cover a single-family home used only as a home, which the city's FAQ says state rules exempt from assembly requirements.

An HOA irrigation assembly disappears overnight. The board reports it to the police with the serial number from its maintenance records, then orders the same type back. The gap matters because the landscape line is unprotected until it is replaced.

A shopping center moves its assembly. The owner shifts the RP to a new equipment yard. Relocation needs a permit, the city inspects, and a certified tester retests. The program page warns a moved assembly may stop serving as containment.

The edge case: the stolen assembly is on a fire line. Fire lines have their own rows in 33-105(b): a double check when the connection does not contaminate, RP when there is a pump, a storage tank or an auxiliary supply. Call Environmental Services first so the replacement matches what the city approved.

1. 1Call Tempe Police non-emergency at 480-350-8311 and give the make, model, size and serial number.
2. 2Call Environmental Services at 480-350-2678 and tell them the assembly is gone.
3. 3Pull a plumbing permit from Tempe Building Safety for the replacement. The Backflow FAQ lists 480-350-8341 for permit questions.
4. 4Install the same type of assembly, in a compliant location. The FAQ says the assembly may be installed by a property owner, plumbing contractor or general contractor, subject to Registrar of Contractors rules.
5. 5Have the city inspect it and a certified, Tempe-registered tester test it and post the results.
6. 6Add a cage or lock, and ask about a lower-brass style.

• "I can swap in a different type of device." The city says the same type goes back.
• "A like-for-like swap needs no permit." In Tempe the program page and FAQ say a permit is required to replace. Phoenix exempts small secondary assemblies, so a Phoenix rule does not carry over.
• "Water is on, so I am fine." A missing required assembly is a shutoff ground under 33-109.
• "Once it is replaced, it is done." It must be inspected and tested.