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Connect to municipal water

Grant program offers financial assistance

The Southern Nevada Water Authority Well Conversion Grant Program was established through recommendations from the Advisory Committee for Groundwater Management. This program offers financial assistance to well users who are required by the Nevada State Engineer to connect to a municipal water system. It’s also available to well users who volunteer to connect.

For properties using a quasi-municipal or community well, all homes on the well must agree to connect to the municipal system.

The Well Conversion Grant Program is funded by the Groundwater Management Program fee. Customers applying for the grant program must pay any past-due GMP fee balance owed on the property before grant funding will be awarded. If you have questions about the program, please call 702-258-7288.

The program awards grants to well users to pay:

  • Up to 85 percent of the costs to extend (up to 180 feet) water service to your property.
  • 100 percent of the well plugging and abandonment process.
  • $500 toward costs related to the water service connection on your property (onsite costs).

Individuals on public assistance may qualify for 100 percent of the costs.

How to apply

The following information will assist you through the process of applying for the Well Conversion Grant Program. In addition to the application process below, your municipal water purveyor may require additional documentation. Your service provider will assist you with completing the grant application packet.

Application packet

Note: You must call the Southern Nevada Water Authority at 702-258-7288 to arrange for the pickup of an application packet, or to have that information mailed to you.

The application packet consists of the following:

  • Application for Well Conversion and Southern Nevada Water Authority Groundwater Management Program Grant — This is the formal application that must be completed for the Water Authority to determine eligibility to participate in the financial assistance program. All outstanding Groundwater Management Program fees owed by the property must be paid in full before a grant will be awarded to the property.
  • Well Conversion Estimate Sheet – The Well Conversion Estimate Sheet will be completed by your municipal water purveyor (Las Vegas Valley Water District, City of Henderson or City of North Las Vegas) to detail the costs associated with the conversion. The estimate sheet is divided into three sections: Water Purveyor Offsite Service Installation, Well Abandonment and Plugging, and Credit toward Customer Onsite Property Plumbing.
  • Water Purveyor Offsite Service Installation – This section details the charges by the municipal water purveyor that relate to extension of municipal water service to the street adjacent to the property to be served. The Groundwater Management Well Conversion Grant Program will provide grant funds to pay up to 85 percent of the service extension for up to 180 feet of this offsite service. For distances over and above 180 feet, it is the responsibility of the customer to identify and pay any charges from the municipal water purveyor. Once an estimate is calculated, the costs are subject to change if the municipal water purveyor service fees increase. To ensure the amount you'll pay is not increased, payment of the amount to the municipal water purveyor at the time of the estimate will guarantee that your charges will not increase. The customer share, usually 15 percent of the conversion, is due to the municipal water purveyor prior to grant approval by the Water Authority and prior to the beginning of construction.
  • Well Abandonment and Plugging – The Well Conversion Grant Program will properly plug and abandon the well at no charge once the property is connected to the municipal water system. This process may not occur for six months after the municipal connection, depending upon availability of well plugging and abandonment crews.
  • Credit Toward Customer Onsite Property Plumbing – The Water Authority will provide grant funds in the amount of $500 for charges related to the service connection on the property of the customer. Charges exceeding $500 are the responsibility of the customer.
  • Well Conversion Grant Program Entry Easement — As a condition of the grant, you must sign and notarize an easement allowing the Water Authority and/or its designated contractor on the property to plug and abandon your well after the property is connected to the municipal system. Nevada water law does not allow a groundwater well to continue operation once a municipal water service has been installed. The Water Authority will plug and abandon the well at no charge. Once the well has been properly plugged and abandoned, the Water Authority will relinquish the easement from the property.
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For more information regarding the grant program, please call the Southern Nevada Water Authority at 702-258-7288.

Your well conversion questions answered

If the pump can be replaced with a pump rig, as opposed to a drill rig, you will not be required to connect. If you're within 180 feet of a water line, require a rig to repair your well AND there is financial assistance available, then you will be required to connect to the municipal water supply, assuming your permit is revocable and you use a domestic well or a community well.
The well driller must file a log of work done on the well with the Nevada Division of Water Resources. Well drillers could lose their license if they perform work on a well without submitting the required paperwork.
Offsite costs include all connection charges and fees required to bring a service connection from the existing municipal water line in the street to the meter box at the private property line (the costs include the meter and the box).
Costs can vary widely based upon a number of factors, including the meter size. You may contact the appropriate water purveyor — Las Vegas Valley Water District, Henderson or North Las Vegas — for an estimate.
Yes, this is called a voluntary conversion.
Yes. Under the program, the Southern Nevada Water Authority will pay up to 85 percent of the first 180 feet of offsite costs associated with a voluntary conversion (subject to available funding). Costs to run any additional line beyond 180 feet must be paid fully by the voluntary applicant.
It only takes days to approve an application for connection. However, it takes much longer to complete the actual work, which includes designing the pipelines and other facilities, obtaining all the necessary permits and rights-of-way, constructing the facilities and properly abandoning and plugging the well.