Denver Water October 1 Drought Restrictions: Commercial Rules and 2026 Rate Checks
Direct answer
Denver Water adopted additional Stage 1 restrictions on August 26 that take effect October 1, 2026, until further Board action. They apply to Denver Water recipients and include post-September 30 grass limits plus rules for fleet washing, car washes, power washing, food service, and lodging. Verify the account’s service area, class, meter, AWC, and billed use before modeling water charges.
Denver Water’s Oct. 1 restrictions, 2026 nonresidential drought pricing, AWC tiers, commercial operating rules, enforcement, and actual-bill checks.
Aug. 26
Board action
Resolution #002A-2026 was adopted and approved in 2026.
Oct. 1
New rules
The additional restrictions begin in 2026 and continue until further Board action.
$1.10/kGal
Tier 2 drought
Added to applicable nonresidential Tier 2 use under current drought pricing.
Up to $2,000
Enforcement
One available penalty for willful violations; not a predicted account outcome.
Two official clocks
October 1 restrictions and drought pricing do not share one fixed end date
Resolution #002A-2026 adds restrictions effective October 1, 2026, through and until further Board action. Denver Water’s 2026 business-rate page separately says temporary drought pricing applies through April 30, 2027, or until further Board action. This guide keeps those timelines distinct.
The August resolution amends Denver Water’s Stage 1 declaration. It does not label the October action “Stage 2,” and this guide does not add that label.
October 1 operating rules
Match the Denver Water rule to the actual operation
The resolution applies broadly to recipients of Denver Water, but each rule has its own scope, exception, or verification need. An operator should read the governing resolution and any approved water budget, variance, license, or contract that applies to the site.
- Operating decision
- Grass and landscape irrigation
- Official October 1 treatment
- Grass watering is prohibited after September 30 unless a listed written exception, approved water budget, or variance applies. Trees, shrubs, perennials, annuals, and vegetables have separate low-volume or hand-watering rules.
- What to verify
- Identify grass versus other plantings, irrigation method, active-use area, and any written Denver Water approval. Reprogram control systems to the rule that applies.
- Operating decision
- Fleet and vehicle washing
- Official October 1 treatment
- Commercial-operation or fleet vehicles may be washed no more than once per week unless public health or safety requires more frequent washing. Commercial car washes must practice efficient water use.
- What to verify
- Separate fleet washing from a commercial car-wash business and document any health or safety basis for more frequent fleet washing.
- Operating decision
- Commercial power washing
- Official October 1 treatment
- A commercial enterprise for which water cleaning is essential may power wash only as necessary, after cleaning without water, with high-efficiency equipment and no water waste.
- What to verify
- Confirm the operation qualifies and record dry-cleaning steps, equipment, necessity, and water-waste controls.
- Operating decision
- Restaurants and catering
- Official October 1 treatment
- Restaurants and catering businesses must serve water only upon request.
- What to verify
- Update service practice and training; do not transfer this rule to unrelated process-water uses.
- Operating decision
- Lodging
- Official October 1 treatment
- For guests staying more than one night, sheets may not be changed more often than every four days except for health or safety reasons or at the guest’s express request.
- What to verify
- Confirm stay length, guest request, and any health or safety exception; the resolution addresses sheets, not every linen item.
- Operating decision
- Fixed-amount and recycled-water arrangements
- Official October 1 treatment
- The resolution includes delivery-reduction, curtailment, recycled-water, and year-round 10 a.m.–6 p.m. outdoor-watering provisions for specified agreements.
- What to verify
- Review the actual agreement and water source. Do not apply the standard inside-city rate model to a fixed contract, wholesale, recycled, or nonpotable arrangement.
- Operating decision
- Compliance and enforcement
- Official October 1 treatment
- Willful violations can trigger the applicable enforcement tools, including fines up to $2,000, a flow restrictor, service suspension, or tap-license revocation.
- What to verify
- Do not predict a fine or enforcement sequence for an account. Confirm current Denver Water guidance and the actual facts.
Official 2026 inside-city schedule
Inside-city treated-water charges separate the fixed meter line from AWC tiers
These tables reproduce only Denver Water’s 2026 inside-city treated-water schedule. Outside-city Read & Bill, Total Service, wholesale, irrigation-only, fireline, fixed-contract, and nonpotable arrangements use other published treatments and must be checked separately.
Inside-city monthly fixed charges used to classify the meter line
| Meter size | Monthly fixed charge |
|---|---|
| 5/8 or 3/4 inch | $20.91 |
| 1 inch | $31.30 |
| 1 1/2 inch | $60.88 |
| 2 inch | $102.31 |
| 3 inch | $220.76 |
| 4 inch | $386.50 |
| 6 inch | $860.29 |
| 8 inch | $1,522.47 |
| 10 inch | $2,375.18 |
| 12 inch | $3,418.41 |
The published drought charge on these fixed lines is $0.00. A change in the declared usage quantity does not change the fixed meter charge.
Inside-city nonresidential treated-water volume rates
Denver Water 2026 inside-city nonresidential rates per 1,000 gallons, including the current drought layer where applicable.
- Tier
- Tier 1
- Monthly consumption
- 0 to AWC
- Base rate
- $3.55/kGal
- Drought charge
- $0.00/kGal
- Current total
- $3.55/kGal
- Tier
- Tier 2
- Monthly consumption
- Above AWC through 4 × AWC
- Base rate
- $4.97/kGal
- Drought charge
- $1.10/kGal
- Current total
- $6.07/kGal
- Tier
- Tier 3
- Monthly consumption
- Above 4 × AWC
- Base rate
- $5.68/kGal
- Drought charge
- $2.20/kGal
- Current total
- $7.88/kGal
Denver Water defines nonresidential AWC as the average billed water use for January, February, and March. Small multifamily accounts from duplex through five-plex are included in the nonresidential class.
This is not a complete Denver utility bill. Wastewater or sewer, stormwater, taxes, penalties, balances, credits, account adjustments, and every other unlisted line remain separate or unknown.
Authority and timing
The August resolution adds October 1 restrictions to Stage 1
Denver Water’s Board adopted and approved Resolution #002A-2026 on August 26. The action says everyone receiving the Board’s water must participate in conservation measures designed to support a systemwide 20% reduction in consumption.
That 20% is a systemwide target, not a statement that every individual account must cut exactly 20%. The specific operating restrictions, contracts, water budgets, variances, and account terms determine what a site must do.
Account classification
Service area and class come before rate arithmetic
Denver Water publishes different treated-water schedules for inside-city, outside-city Read & Bill, outside-city Total Service, and wholesale arrangements, plus separate irrigation-only, fireline, and nonpotable treatments. The actual bill and agreement must establish which schedule applies.
For a nonresidential account, AWC is the average of billed January, February, and March water use. Tier 2 extends from AWC through four times AWC; Tier 3 begins above four times AWC. Higher-tier gallons are not automatically waste or technically addressable use.
Enforcement boundary
The resolution lists enforcement tools; it does not predict an account outcome
The resolution says grass watering after September 30 is an unauthorized use and a willful violation. It preserves applicable Operating Rules, licenses, and contracts and lists potential tools including fines up to $2,000, a flow restrictor, service suspension, and tap-license revocation.
Actual enforcement depends on the facts and governing terms. This guide does not predict a penalty, establish an exception, or replace Denver Water’s current direction.
Model boundary
The declared example covers selected inside-city water lines for one month
The model below declares an inside-city treated-water nonresidential account with a 2-inch meter, 20-kGal AWC, and two selected monthly usage inputs. It applies the official fixed and current volume rates without annualizing the result.
Wastewater or sewer, stormwater, taxes, penalties, prior balances, credits, fireline, irrigation-only, wholesale, contract, nonpotable, account adjustments, operational compliance, and technical feasibility are excluded or unknown.
Declared Smart Valve arithmetic — water-only sensitivity
A 100-to-80 kGal inside-city one-month comparison
Declared inputs: inside-city treated-water nonresidential service, 2-inch meter, 20-kGal AWC, one monthly billing period, and billed use of either 100 or 80 kGal. At 100 kGal, Tier 1 is 20 kGal, Tier 2 is 60 kGal, and Tier 3 is 20 kGal. At 80 kGal, no Tier 3 quantity remains.
| Included Denver Water line | 100 kGal | 80 kGal | Arithmetic difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2-inch monthly fixed charge | $102.31 | $102.31 | $0.00 |
| Tier 1: 20 kGal × $3.55 | $71.00 | $71.00 | $0.00 |
| Tier 2: 60 kGal × $6.07 | $364.20 | $364.20 | $0.00 |
| Tier 3 at $7.88/kGal | 20 kGal × $7.88 = $157.60 | $0.00 | $157.60 |
| Declared included water subtotal | $695.11 | $537.51 | $157.60 |
The $157.60 is the arithmetic difference between two declared, selected water-charge subtotals for one month. It is not a complete bill, expected or observed saving, annual projection, compliance result, product outcome, or Denver Water quote. The $102.31 fixed line remains unchanged. All excluded lines, account treatment, operational feasibility, and technical feasibility remain outside the calculation.
Decision checklist
What to confirm on the Denver Water account and operation
- 1Confirm Denver Water is the provider and identify inside-city, outside-city, wholesale, fixed-contract, recycled, nonpotable, or other service treatment.
- 2Record the printed customer class, meter size, separate irrigation or fireline meters, and any governing agreement.
- 3Calculate AWC only from the account’s billed January, February, and March water use, then reproduce the printed tier allocation.
- 4Separate the monthly fixed meter line from Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 3, and drought-charge quantities.
- 5Map each operating use—grass, other plantings, fleet washing, car wash, power washing, food service, lodging, or contract delivery—to the exact October 1 rule.
- 6Collect every approved water budget, variance, health or safety basis, license, and contract term that may govern an exception.
- 7Keep wastewater or sewer, stormwater, taxes, penalties, balances, credits, other meters, and unlisted adjustments outside the water-only model.
- 8Recheck Denver Water’s live resolution and rate page because the Board can take further action.
- 9Reproduce the actual account before evaluating whether any metered-volume exposure is technically feasible to address.
Scope boundary
Where Smart Valve realistically fits
Smart Valve may be evaluated only after the provider, service geography, class, meter, AWC, billed quantities, operating rules, every printed line, and technical feasibility are verified.
Smart Valve does not change Denver Water’s rates, fixed meter charge, AWC, customer class, restrictions, exceptions, enforcement, wastewater or sewer, stormwater, taxes, contracts, or other account terms. The declared sensitivity is not a guaranteed bill result.
Related commercial water decisions
Track Mountain West commercial water decisions
Follow official regional drought, rate, meter, wastewater, and billing actions without transferring one utility’s rules to another.
Separate every Denver Water bill line
Review fixed, usage-linked, wastewater or sewer, stormwater, and other printed charges before modeling the account.
Prepare the Denver bill review
Collect the provider, class, service area, meter, AWC, billed quantities, operating uses, and every printed line.
Keep federal Colorado River decisions separate from local Denver authority
Review the regional operating context without treating it as a Denver tariff or site rule.
Review source and arithmetic boundaries
See how official facts, declared inputs, exclusions, uncertainty, and corrections remain distinct.
Primary source trail
Sources and retrieval details
Published: August 26, 2026; Effective: October 1, 2026; Status checked: September 1, 2026; Retrieved: September 1, 2026
Controlling official source for adoption, authority, recipient scope, October 1 restrictions, contract treatments, compliance tools, and the “until further action” duration. The resolution amends Stage 1 and does not label the action Stage 2.
Source URL: https://www.denverwater.org/drought/board-resolution-002a-2026 (opens in a new tab)
Effective: January 1, 2026; Status checked: September 1, 2026; Retrieved: September 1, 2026
Official source for fixed meter charges, inside- and outside-city treated-water classes, AWC tiers, drought charges, irrigation-only schedules, nonpotable rates, and the separate drought-pricing clock. The declared model uses only the inside-city nonresidential schedule.
Source URL: https://www.denverwater.org/business/billing-and-rates/2026-rates (opens in a new tab)
Editorial contact
Media & product inquiries
Send relevant corrections, launch information, approved assets, or testing opportunities to thesmartwatervalve@gmail.com. Contact does not guarantee coverage, favorable treatment, commercial placement, or a review.
Reproduce the Denver Water account before testing a volume change
Bring the current bill, service geography, class, meter, January–March use, billed quantities, operating uses, approvals, and every non-water line into one review. Keep official rules, published rates, and declared arithmetic separate from an account result.