Guidelines for Exemption Certificate

Please see the guidelines below and review this PDF Guidelines for Exemptions document to determine if you are eligible to receive an Exemption Certificate for having had prior PSL work done or for one of the other exemption reasons allowed by the Regional PSL Ordinance.

To request an Exemption Certificate, please follow the required steps below.

1. Determine if you are exempt
Review applicable sections below to assess your eligibility. If you are unsure if you are exempt, please contact us at psl@ebmud.com. Please note: if there once was a Structure on the parcel served by a PSL, but the Structure has since been demolished and the parcel now contains no Structure(s), then your property is not currently subject to Regional PSL Ordinance requirements for title transfers. If this is the case at your property and you received an enforcement notice in the mail, please email psl@ebmud.com to notify us of this site condition.

2. Apply online
Request an Exemption Certificate online by selecting your property. Provide the requested information and the reason for the exemption request. If you are applying for an exempt title transfer type, select "Other" from the dropdown menu.

3. Provide supporting documentation
EBMUD will request copies of supporting documentation such as deeds, trusts, or birth certificates to establish eligibility for an exempt title transfer type. EBMUD may also request documentation such as septic reports, civil engineering plans, and other records to determine eligibility for other exemption grounds. Documentation can be submitted via email, reviewed in person at the EBMUD Administration Building, or sent via mail (do not send original documents).

4. When approved, print the certificate
If approved, EBMUD will notify you by email that your Exemption Certificate is available online. Select your property and print your certificate. Exemption certificates expire 10 years from the date of the final permit sign-off. If your application is NOT approved, you must obtain a Compliance Certificate or a Time Extension Certificate.

5. Present or retain certificate
If you are buying a property, keep a copy of the Exemption Certificate for your records. If you are selling a property, provide a copy of the Exemption Certificate to the buyer before title transfer. If you are building or remodeling in excess of $100,000, provide a copy of the Exemption Certificate to city permitting staff prior to final permit sign-off. If you are applying for a change in your water meter size, submit a copy of your Exemption Certificate to the EBMUD New Business Office to finalize your Water Service Application. Process is complete.

Exemption Certificate for Prior PSL Work

If your property is in Alameda or Albany and your parcel has a valid and unexpired Compliance Certificate or similar documentation issued by the City of Alameda or Albany, then it may be eligible for an exemption from the Regional PSL Ordinance requirements. EBMUD will ask the permitting agency to verify the sewer lateral replacement and the date of final permit sign-off. The Exemption Certificate issued by EBMUD in these circumstances will expire on the same date that the document issued by Alameda or Albany expires.

Exemption Certificate for Title Transfer Type Not Subject to Ordinance

You may be eligible for a short-term Exemption Certificate if the type of title transfer that occurred at your property is not subject to the Regional PSL Ordinance requirements. The following types of title transfers are not subject to the Regional PSL Ordinance:

• Partial Interest: The sale or transfer of partial interest in a property, such as a leasehold. In this context, "partial interest" is a legal phrase referring to certain categories of possessory interests in real property, such as leases or life estates. In these circumstances the holder of the interest has the right to occupy or possess the property but does not own the underlying real estate. This exemption does not apply to the transfer of percentage ownership interest in a property.
• Will or Inheritance: A transfer to a beneficiary by a fiduciary in the course of the administration of a decedent's estate, guardianship, conservatorship, or trust.
• Existing Cotenants: A transfer from one Cotenant (such as a tenancy in common, a joint tenancy, a partnership, community property, or any other form of cotenancy, co-ownership, or concurrent ownership recognized by California law) to one or more other existing Cotenants.
• Inter Vivos: A transfer made by a trustor to fund or defund an inter vivos trust (sometimes called a living trust).
• Testamentary Trusts: A transfer made by an executor to fund a testamentary trust.
• Intra Family: A transfer made to a spouse, or to a registered domestic partner or between any two persons one of whom is the direct descendent of the other. This includes transfers between parent and child, grandparents and grandchildren, and great-grandparents and great grandchildren, but not those between brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, or cousins. Transfers between an adopter and adoptee qualify for the exclusion, and it is also applicable to parcels transferred upwards, as in child to parent, grandparent, or great grandparent.
• Separation/Divorce: A transfer between spouses or registered domestic partners resulting from a decree of dissolution of marriage or domestic partnership or resulting from a decree of legal separation or from a property settlement agreement incidental to a decree.
• Bank Foreclosure: A transfer from a property owner to a financial institution as a result of a foreclosure or similar process. Note: A transfer from a financial institution to a new property owner is subject to Regional PSL Program requirements.
• Transfer between a business entity and individual or corporation: A transfer in either direction between a business entity (e.g., an LLC) and an individual or corporation, if the individual or corporation owns more than 50 percent of the business entity.

EBMUD will request supporting documentation to verify your eligibility for the stated type of title transfer.

If you are applying for an Exemption Certificate before title transfer, an Exemption Certificate with a duration of 6 months be issued. The certificate will document that the transfer is exempt from the requirements of the PSL Ordinance.

If you are applying for an Exemption Certificate after title transfer, an Exemption Certificate with a 1 month duration will be issued to halt any enforcement action and to document that the transfer is exempt from the requirements of the PSL Ordinance. In both cases, the certificate is only valid for a single title transfer.

Additional Exemptions for Special Circumstances

If there once was a Structure on the parcel served by a PSL, but the Structure has since been demolished and the parcel now contains no Structure(s), then your property is not currently subject to Regional PSL Ordinance requirements for title transfers and no exemption certificate is needed.

Per the Regional PSL Ordinance, a "Structure" is defined as any building or facility that is required to be provided with public sewer service, or that is actually provided with public sewer service, or that is served by a Private Sewer Lateral.

You may be eligible for a short-term Exemption Certificate if any of the following special circumstances apply:

• No sewer lateral has ever existed on your property: If your property contains a Structure but the Structure has never been served by a PSL connected to the public sewer main, EBMUD may request additional documentation, dye tests, official abandonment permits or approval, and/or conduct site visits to verify the site conditions. EBMUD will confirm this with the local permitting agency and will review current/historical wastewater charges if there is a meter serving the property.
• Your sewer lateral or septic system is not connected to the public sewer main: EBMUD will confirm with the County Environmental Health Department that the parcel has a septic system and will review EBMUD records of current/historical wastewater charges for the meter serving the property. If your property contains a Structure but the Structure is not served by a PSL connected to the public sewer main, EBMUD may request additional documentation, dye tests, official abandonment permits or approval, and/or conduct site visits to verify the site conditions.
• The entire PSL associated with your parcel is pressurized: EBMUD will conduct a site visit to confirm that the entire PSL is pressurized. If only a portion of the PSL is pressurized, the unpressurized portion (gravity flow segments) must still be tested and certified and receive a Compliance Certificate. EBMUD may request civil engineering plans for the property.

Parcels or Parcel Groups not Eligible for Exemption Certificates

The Regional PSL Program has two parcel types that are not eligible to obtain an Exemption Certificate upon title transfer:

1. Common interest developments such as condominiums, townhomes and planned unit developments. The exception is when the individual unit owner is responsible for the PSL per the Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions (CC&Rs). In those instances, the individual unit owner may request an Exemption Certificate.
2. Parcels or parcel groups with PSLs totaling greater than 1,000 feet. Visit www.eastbaypsl.com to see the guidelines for parcels in these categories.