When is a sewer lateral certificate not required? EBMUD exemptions
Reviewed by East Bay Sewer Inspection staff
Quick answer: Some title transfers aren't covered by the Regional PSL Ordinance, including inheritance through an estate or trust, funding or defunding a living trust, transfers to a spouse, registered domestic partner, parent, child or grandparent, divorce, transfers between existing co-owners, and foreclosure to a lender. You still apply to EBMUD for an Exemption Certificate with supporting documents.
Which title transfers are exempt?
EBMUD's Exemption Certificate page lists these transfer types as not subject to the ordinance:
- Will or inheritance: a transfer to a beneficiary by a fiduciary administering a decedent's estate, guardianship, conservatorship or trust.
- Living trust: a transfer by a trustor to fund or defund an inter vivos (living) trust.
- Testamentary trust: a transfer by an executor to fund a testamentary trust.
- Family: a transfer to a spouse or registered domestic partner, or between direct descendants and ascendants (parent and child, grandparents and grandchildren, great-grandparents and great-grandchildren), in either direction. Adopter and adoptee qualify. Transfers between siblings, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews or cousins do not.
- Separation or divorce: a transfer between spouses or partners under a decree of dissolution or legal separation, or a property settlement agreement incidental to one.
- Existing co-owners: a transfer from one cotenant (tenancy in common, joint tenancy, partnership, community property and similar) to one or more existing cotenants.
- Partial interest: such as a lease or life estate. This does not cover selling a percentage ownership share.
- Foreclosure: a transfer from the owner to a lender through foreclosure. A later sale by the lender is covered by the rule.
- Business entity: a transfer in either direction between a business entity (such as an LLC) and an individual or corporation that owns more than 50% of it.
How do I apply for an exemption?
- Check eligibility. If you're unsure, email [email protected].
- Apply online by selecting your property. For an exempt transfer type, choose "Other" in the reason menu.
- Send supporting documents if EBMUD asks, such as deeds, trust documents or birth certificates. Send copies, not originals.
- When EBMUD approves it, print the Exemption Certificate. Sellers give a copy to the buyer before title transfer.
If you apply before the transfer, the certificate lasts 6 months. If you apply after, it lasts 1 month, to stop enforcement and document the exemption. Either way it covers a single title transfer. If EBMUD doesn't approve it, you need a Compliance Certificate or a Time Extension Certificate (Exemption Certificate).
Other exemptions: septic, pressurized laterals, no lateral
EBMUD may also issue a short-term Exemption Certificate when a structure has never been served by a lateral connected to the public main, when the property is on septic, or when the entire lateral is pressurized. If only part is pressurized, the gravity sections still need testing. EBMUD may ask for records, dye tests or a site visit. If the building on a lot has been demolished and nothing is left, the title-transfer rule doesn't apply and no exemption certificate is needed (Exemption Certificate).
Alameda and Albany: earlier city certificates
If an Alameda or Albany parcel has a valid, unexpired compliance certificate (or similar document) from the city, it may qualify for an EBMUD Exemption Certificate. That exemption expires on the same date as the city's document (Exemption Certificate; FAQ).
Who can't get an exemption at sale?
Condominiums, townhomes and planned unit developments can't get a title-transfer Exemption Certificate. The exception is a unit owner who is responsible for the lateral under the CC&Rs. Parcels with more than 1,000 feet of laterals are also excluded (Exemption Certificate). See condo and HOA rules.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a sewer lateral certificate if I inherit a house in Oakland?
A transfer to a beneficiary by a fiduciary administering an estate or trust is not subject to the Regional PSL Ordinance. Apply to EBMUD for an Exemption Certificate with supporting documents.
Is putting my house in a living trust exempt?
Yes. A transfer by a trustor to fund or defund an inter vivos (living) trust is an exempt transfer type.
Is selling to my brother or sister exempt?
No. Family exemptions cover spouses, registered domestic partners and direct line relatives such as parents, children and grandparents, not siblings, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews or cousins.
How the EBMUD program works · City rules · Fees and costs · Contractors on EBMUD's list · All guides
Sources
- Exemption Certificate (eastbaypsl.com)
- Regional PSL Program FAQ (eastbaypsl.com)
- City of Berkeley: Private Sewer Lateral (berkeleyca.gov)