Tempe City Code 33-107: backflow assemblies must be tested every year

Section 33-107 puts the testing duty on "the user", the person who has the water account. The main line reads: "It shall be the duty of the user to see that these tests are made at the time of the initial installation and at least once a year, on the anniversary date of the initial inspection." The rest of the section fills in the process:

• Records (a): keep accurate records of tests and repairs on city-approved forms, including a list of the materials or replacement parts used, and give the city copies.
• Who tests (b): a certified backflow tester approved by the department, at the customer's expense.
• Advance notice (c): tell the department 15 days ahead of an annual test so a city representative can watch if they want to.
• New assemblies (d): after installation, the certified tester's results go to the Community Development Department with a request for inspection approval before the certificate of occupancy can be issued.
• After work (e): after a repair, repiping, overhaul or relocation, the city inspects the assembly and a certified tester tests it again.

Section 33-108 lets the city inspect at any reasonable time. Section 33-109 lets it discontinue service if a required assembly "is not installed, tested and maintained", has been removed or bypassed, or a cross-connection exists. Service stays off until the problem is fixed, and the city can also end service on 20 days' written notice in a non-emergency.

• The user: the water customer. Tempe's program page says notices go to the person paying the water bill, which may be a tenant, not the property owner.
• Certified tester: a person with a backflow assembly tester certification who is also registered with Tempe.
• Anniversary date: the date of the first inspection. The code does not say what happens if you test early, so the safe reading is to test on or before that date.
• Assembly: the valve device itself. The other backflow pages in this library explain which types exist.

Everyone who is required to have an assembly under 33-105, which is mostly commercial and industrial accounts. It does not cover a single-family home used only as a home. The 15-day advance notice in (c) applies only when Environmental Services has told you the test is coming, according to the city's own program page.

A dental office on a Tempe account. The letter goes to whoever pays the water bill. The tenant hires a Tempe-registered tester, who posts the results on the city's tester site. The landlord never hears about it until the shutoff notice, which is why leases should say who owns the assembly.

A retail center that fails its test. The tester finds a leaking check valve. The overhaul triggers (e): the city inspects and a certified tester retests before the assembly counts as compliant.

The edge case: the notice never arrived. The duty in 33-107(b) sits with the user, not the mailroom. A missed letter does not move the anniversary date, and the city can issue the overdue notice and start enforcement.

1. 1Find your assembly's test date on the city notice. If you cannot find it, call Environmental Services at 480-350-2678.
2. 2Pick a tester from the city's list of registered backflow testing companies.
3. 3Ask the tester to submit the results through the city's tester site or to backflow@tempe.gov.
4. 4Keep the test report and any repair records. The city recommends keeping them at least three years.
5. 5If the assembly fails, fix it before the overdue date and have it retested. If you are stuck, call before the deadline to ask for an extension.

• "The notice comes 60 days out." The Backflow FAQ says the notice appears on the utility bill 60 days before the due date. Once the initial compliance notice arrives, the assembly must be in compliance within 45 days, or an overdue notice follows. Treat the 60 days as the time to book a tester and the 45 days as the hard limit after the notice.
• "The building owner is the only one responsible." The code puts the duty on the user, and the city mails notices to the bill payer.
• "A passing test from last year covers me." The test is yearly, tied to the anniversary of the first inspection.
• "Any tester will do." The tester has to be approved by the department, and Tempe asks testers to register.