If you run a business or sit on an HOA board in California, a deadline is coming for your grass. A state law called AB 1572 bans watering "nonfunctional turf" with drinking water. It starts in 2028 for businesses and 2029 for HOA common areas, on January 1 each time.
The law doesn't make you tear out grass, and it doesn't tell you what to put in its place. It just turns off the drinking water for grass that isn't there to be used. Here's what that means and where artificial turf fits.
This is a plain-words summary, not legal advice. Your water supplier can tell you exactly how it applies to your site.
Who it covers, and when
AB 1572 phases in by the type of property:
- January 1, 2027: many state and local government properties.
- January 1, 2028: commercial, industrial and institutional property.
- January 1, 2029: common areas of HOAs and other common interest developments.
- Later: some local government sites in disadvantaged communities, on a timeline tied to state funding.
Home yards are not on the list. Neither are cemeteries. So if you only own a house, this law leaves your lawn alone.
Functional or nonfunctional: the question that decides it
The law draws a line between grass set aside for people to use and all other grass. Grass in a play area, a sports field, or an event space counts as functional. It can still be watered. Grass along a street, in a parking lot, or behind a fence where nobody can go counts as nonfunctional.
The ban is on drinking water for that grass. Drinking water can still keep trees and other plants healthy. The rule is about the lawn, not the whole yard.
So the real job for most owners is a site walk. Mark every patch of grass, then sort it into two piles: grass in a space people are meant to use, and grass that's only there to look green. The second pile is what the law targets.
Here's how a walk might go at an office. The strip along the street and the islands in the parking lot are just for looks, so they go in the second pile. A lawn out back where staff eat lunch and the company holds a summer party may count as a space people use. Ask your water supplier to confirm before you plan around it.
An HOA walk looks different. The lawn around the entry sign and the slopes along the main road are for show. A pocket park where kids play ball is likely a space people use. Again, your water supplier has the final word.
Your options for the grass that has to change
There are a few common paths for nonfunctional turf, and many sites mix them:
- Ask your water supplier whether recycled water is an option for your site.
- Replace it with low-water plants. Ask your water agency about rebates before you start.
- Replace it with artificial turf, where a green surface still makes sense, like a storefront strip, a courtyard, or a dog area.
- Replace it with permeable hardscape such as decomposed granite or pavers set on sand.
Turf needs no watering, so the spot stays green with no drinking water at all. Like every option, it has to fit your city's rules. Since 2024 a city can limit turf again, so check yours first, and our page on city turf rules explains the change.
Turf works best where the green look matters and people are close by. Think of a shop front strip, a patio with tables, or a dog area at an apartment. On a slope nobody walks on, plants or rock are usually the better pick, and we'll say so.
For HOA boards there is one more layer. State law stops an HOA from banning turf in an owner's yard, but common areas are the association's own call. See HOAs and artificial turf for how that splits.
A simple plan for this year looks like this:
- Walk the site and map every patch of grass.
- Sort each patch: a space people use, or just for looks.
- Ask your water supplier how it applies the law, and whether it has its own rules.
- Price the options for the decorative patches, so the money is in next year's budget.
The dates sound far off, but a common area or a business park is a budget item. A board that waits for 2029 to start planning will be bidding the work with everyone else who waited.
We install commercial turf for storefronts, offices, and shared spaces across Long Beach, the South Bay and Orange County. Send us a site plan or a few photos and we'll quote the areas where turf makes sense. Request a commercial quote.
Last checked October 22, 2026, against the text of AB 1572 (California Water Code section 10608.14). Your water supplier may set extra local rules.
