Officials intend to push back enforcement of Southern Nevada’s ‘nonfunctional’ grass ban

The Southern Nevada Water Authority has asked a judge to allow enforcement of the state’s ban on grass it has deemed “nonfunctional” to continue, citing its proposal to delay levying water waste fines until 2028.

According to a court document filed Tuesday, the water authority plans to ask its board to approve a resolution on Nov. 19 that will set a clear timeline for final, case-by-case appeals to mandated grass removal. If the board agrees, the water authority would ask its member agencies to not levy water waste fines until Jan. 1, 2028.

“A preliminary injunction may issue only where harm is imminent and non-speculative,” the agency’s lawyers wrote in the filing. “And, here, the enforcement Plaintiffs fear is over a year away.”

Judge Anna Albertson was expected to decide this week whether to issue an injunction that could have halted the water authority’s enforcement of a 2021 state law that makes it illegal to use Colorado River water to irrigate nonfunctional turf beginning in 2027.

The water authority has argued the law allows officials to shift those deadlines. Grass removal is a responsibility left to business owners and homeowners associations rather than specific homeowners.

Attorneys have also asked Albertson to allow the lawsuit to become a class-action, allowing any party who meets certain definitions to join in the lawsuit.

Sam Castor, who is representing a diverse array of challengers that includes a Catholic church, golfers and homeowners associations, said he believes this is yet another tactic to stall relief for his clients.

Castor said the fines are far from the only issue and that a brief pause doesn’t resolve larger concerns he has raised about his clients’ constitutional rights and what he finds to be an insufficient appeals process.

“This is just a circus, and I don’t say that lightly,” Castor said in a Wednesday phone interview.

Final waiver, appeals process laid out in resolution

Water authority spokesman Bronson Mack said this month that the agency estimates about 20 million square feet of grass that it believes is nonfunctional remains in the valley.

Officials argue that the conservation measure, while uncomfortable for some, is more necessary than ever. The state of Nevada has sued over the Trump administration’s plan to slash the state’s share of the Colorado River by 71 percent in a worst-case scenario at some point in the next 10 years.

The resolution that the water authority’s board will consider sets specific deadlines for final waiver requests and appeals.

By April 1, all waiver requests would have to be received, and the water authority would process them by July 1. Appeals to the water authority’s decisions would need to be made by Sept. 1, with final determinations made by Dec. 1. Water waste fines, levied by individual water districts rather than the water authority, would begin on Jan. 1, 2028.

A declaration from Deputy General Manager Colby Pellegrino states the water authority will encourage its member agencies in the cities of Las Vegas, Henderson, North Las Vegas, Boulder City and Laughlin to forgo penalties until then.

That is a distinct change from what the water authority has said until now. At a hearing on Oct. 28, water authority attorneys failed to answer Albertson’s direct question about what options people have if the agencies deny their appeal.

“Nobody knows what happens now on this side?” Albertson asked. “That’s what you’re telling me, genuinely?”

“I don’t think those decisions have been made by the purveyor agencies yet,” said attorney Kelly Evans.

Castor said he intends to file an objection to the water authority’s motion and that he hopes Albertson will proceed with a favorable decision on the injunction.

Contact Alan Halaly at [email protected]. Follow @AlanHalaly on X.