The Highland Lakes watershed continues to recover from historic flooding in October.
-- Lakes Buchanan, Inks, Marble Falls and Travis are open.
-- Lake LBJ will remain closed until at least Friday, Nov. 16, because of debris and unsafe conditions caused by the recent flooding. Property owners are allowed on Lake LBJ during this time for the limited purpose of recovering or securing damaged property from the recent flood, if the property location is known. Boating on the lakes remains dangerous, and time on the lake recovering property should be minimized. Submerged hazards may be difficult to see, especially at night.
-- LCRA will lower lakes LBJ and Marble Falls for about eight weeks in early 2019. Lake Marble Falls will be lowered about seven feet and Lake LBJ will be lowered about four feet. Lake LBJ is the cooling reservoir for the Thomas C. Ferguson Power Plant and can only be lowered four feet without risking impacting operations at the power plant. As such, LCRA will only lower the lake four feet. Read more.

Residential Rebates

LCRA's WaterSmart Rebates program can help offset the cost of upgrading irrigation systems, maintaining landscapes and pools, and installing rainwater harvesting equipment to help you save water and money.

APPLY FOR A REBATE

Rebate eligibility

You qualify for an irrigation system evaluation and WaterSmart rebates, if:

You are an LCRA domestic use customer.
You are resident who receives water from one of these LCRA water customers. City of Austin customers are eligible for rebates from Austin Water.

Available rebates

LCRA provides rebates of 50 percent of the total cost, up to $600 per residential property, for irrigation evaluations, retrofitting or replacing irrigation system equipment, new pool filters and covers, aeration, compost and mulch, and rainwater harvesting equipment.

Irrigation system evaluations

An irrigation system evaluation will properly assess your sprinkler system's needs, make you aware of any necessary repairs, and could help lower your water use by up to 30 percent.

LCRA domestic use customers: Contact LCRA staff at WaterSmart@lcra.org to schedule a free irrigation evaluation.
Residents who receive water from an LCRA customer: Follow the steps below to be reimbursed for an irrigation system evaluation.

Contact your water provider to see if they have an irrigation evaluation program. If they do not, hire a licensed irrigator. Use TCEQ's Homeowner Landscape Irrigator Search.
Have the irrigator complete this checklist during their assessment.
Complete the application and upload the completed checklist.
After verifying eligibility, we will mail you a check up to $85 for the cost of the inspection.

Irrigation system equipment, pool, landscape and rainwater harvesting rebates

Pressure-reducing heads and nozzles	50 percent of the cost of devices up to $5 per head or nozzle
Pressure-reducing valves and in-line regulators	50 percent of the cost of devices up to $100
Soil moisture sensors	50 percent of the cost of devices up to $250
Rain sensors	50 percent of the cost of devices up to $20
WaterSense smart controllers	50 percent of the cost of devices up to $100
Pool filters	Up to $250 per high-efficiency cartridge filter
Pool covers	50 percent of the purchase price up to $50 per manual or solar ring, and up to $200 for permanent mechanical cover
Aeration	Up to $50 for equipment rental or contractor costs
Compost and mulch	50 percent of cost up to $150 per household. No activated sewer sludge.
Rainwater harvesting equipment	$0.25 per gallon of storage capacity for a non-potable system, 100 gallons or greater, up to $600 or until sizing capacity is met, whichever is less

Information needed to complete the rebate application

Itemized receipt(s)
Photos of the upgraded equipment
Information on items eligible for rebates, including:

Number of soil moisture sensors
Type of WaterSense smart controller and the type and number of stations it controls
Number of pressure-regulating heads and nozzles installed and operating pressure before
Pool filter brand and model
Number of cubic yards of compost of mulch
Rainwater harvesting equipment:

Tank size (in gallons)
Pump brand, model and cost
Roof area, landscape area by water use, and amount of sand, pavers and gravel used for pad (in square feet)

Acknowledgement of the WaterSmart Rebates rules:

Applicant must have a water account with LCRA or one of LCRA's firm water customers.
Applicant must provide a copy of itemized receipts supporting this application.
Rebates are available on a first-come, first-serve basis. LCRA does not guarantee sufficient program funding or that all applicants will receive a rebate.
Applicant must submit this application within 90 calendar days of completing the work.
Rebates cover equipment costs, not labor or tax, unless otherwise specified.
Work on the irrigation system has to be done by the system's owner or an irrigator licensed with the State of Texas.
LCRA and its firm water customers are in no way responsible for the installation or operation of the irrigation equipment.
All rebates are for non-potable uses and should not connect to local or potable water systems.
LCRA and its firm water customers have the right, but not the obligation, to inspect the equipment installed to verify installations meet manufacturer requirements.
LCRA and its firm customers have not made and do not make any representations, warranties or promises, either expressed or implied, with the respect to any irrigation equipment, including but not limited to any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose, or quality, reliability, durability, water savings or compatibility with your existing irrigation system.
LCRA can terminate the WaterSmart Rebates program at any time.

You also may print, complete and mail the application to:

LCRA
Attn: Brett Briant WMF 120E
P.O. Box 220
Austin, TX 78767

If you have questions, please contact LCRA staff at WaterSmart@lcra.org.