Sewer Lines: Rules in Phoenix-Area Cities

A private lift station on a sewer with manholes or over 3,000 gallons a day needs ADEQ's Type 4.01 permit, two pumps and level alarms. Cities add their own layer: Phoenix allows private stations under 1 million gallons a day, Gilbert wants yearly O&M records, and Scottsdale, Peoria and Glendale expect city involvement from the start.

The owner, almost everywhere, and a commercial owner usually all the way to the main. Tempe makes every owner responsible even for the pipe under the street. Phoenix, Chandler, Surprise and Avondale fix the street section only for single-family and duplex homes, while Mesa, Gilbert and Glendale handle the street section for any property.

Yes. Phoenix City Code 28-27 bars anyone from uncovering, connecting to, using, altering or disturbing a public sewer without a permit from the Water Services Department. Industrial users get their permit under Article VI, and short temporary discharges need an authorization form filed at least ten days ahead.

Yes. Phoenix requires a separate Planning and Development permit for work in the public right of way, including sewer or water taps and connections to public sewer and water. It is in addition to your plumbing permit, and the sewer tap application needs a valid plumbing permit first.

The owner maintains the sewer line from the building to the city main. For a single-family or duplex property, the city repairs a verified break in the public right of way. For anything else, such as a restaurant or fourplex, the owner or the owner's contractor repairs the street or alley section too, under a city permit.

The developer. Under Phoenix City Code 28-21 a developer extending a public sewer main pays to design, permit and build it, including easements and the city's inspection, and hires an Arizona-registered civil engineer. Once the city accepts the extension it becomes part of the public sewer.

In Chandler the owner is responsible for the whole sewer line from the building to the city main, including the part under the street and the tap. The one exception is for single-family and duplex properties, where the city repairs a broken section in the public right-of-way up to the owner's property line.

Yes. Chandler City Code 51-7 requires a written permit from the City Engineer before anyone taps, uncovers or disturbs the public sewer. Digging in the street to reach it is a separate encroachment permit under Chapter 46, and the building sewer on your side is inspected under the plumbing permit.

Not automatically. Chandler City Code 51-3(F) lets a working private septic system stay in use after city sewer becomes available. If it fails or becomes unhealthy, it must be abandoned to Maricopa County standards and the owner must connect. Sewer rates under Chapter 50 are owed once a main adjoins the property.

Under Tempe City Code 27-175, the property owner owns and repairs the whole sewer line from the building to the city main, including the part in the city right of way, up to and including the tap and saddle on the main. The section, as amended in January 2026, has no exception for pipe under the street.

Tempe charges $1,100 for a six-inch sewer tap in an alley and $1,800 in a local or collector street, both including pavement replacement, and $110 for the machine tap alone. Anyone making their own tap gives 24 hours' notice, pays a $15 inspection fee, and needs a city inspector on site.

In Glendale the property owner is responsible for cleaning, repairing and replacing the sewer connection to the public sewer line. The exception is any repair that needs excavation of a public street, alley or sidewalk: the city does that work at no cost to the owner. The owner still handles everything on private property.

Under Surprise Municipal Code 58-312(b), a business or multifamily owner is responsible for the whole sewer lateral, from the building drain to the public sewer. If the repair needs off-property excavation, the contractor must get a city repair permit and a right-of-way encroachment permit before digging.

Under Surprise Municipal Code 58-315, a private sewer line stays private until it enters the manhole in the public right-of-way, and the city maintains that manhole and the public sewers. Private sewers need city approval and must sit in an exclusive sewer easement, not a general utility easement.

Under Surprise Municipal Code 58-425 and 58-218, digging to lay sewer or water lines in public streets, right-of-way, alleys or city property requires a city construction permit first. Sewer digging without one is a class 1 misdemeanor. A city permit does not replace state or county approvals.