By State › Michigan

Michigan: Laws & Legal Considerations

Download all of Michigan as PDF Print

Michigan places no state-level restriction on residential rainwater harvesting, and state law specifically encourages it as a cost-efficient practice.

RuleMichigan
Source water Rooftop or other catchment
Permit required No, for typical residential outdoor systems; indoor non-potable systems fall under the Michigan Plumbing Code and require permits
Permitted uses Non-potable: irrigation, and per Plumbing Code Appendix A, certain indoor non-potable fixtures with a permitted system
Potable use Not addressed; the plumbing code requires potable water for drinking, bathing, and cooking fixtures, with no treatment or certification pathway for harvested rainwater
Underlying framework Cost Effective Governmental Energy Use Act; 2018 Michigan Plumbing Code, Appendix A (Non-Potable Water Systems)

A local incentive worth knowing about

Washtenaw County offers a credit for installing a rain barrel or cistern, similar in spirit to Philadelphia’s rainwater subsidy program covered on Pennsylvania’s page, though smaller in scale. Check with your own county or municipality for similar local programs.

Where to find it: the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (michigan.gov/egle) for state guidance; your local municipality for specific plumbing permit requirements.

Water rights: riparian rules that change depending on which shoreline you’re on

Michigan borders four of the five Great Lakes, more than any other state, and its riparian law reflects that: the rules that apply to an inland lake or stream are meaningfully different from the rules that apply to actual Great Lakes shoreline.

Water body typeHow riparian rights work
Inland lakes and streams Standard riparian doctrine: landowners bordering the water have reasonable-use rights, similar to most states covered on this site
The four bordering Great Lakes Many standard riparian rules don't apply the same way; bottomlands ownership and shoreline rights follow a distinct legal framework specific to Great Lakes frontage

Michigan's Great Lakes Compact status, a contrast with Illinois

Michigan is a full member of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact (2008), which treats groundwater and surface water in the Basin as one connected system and prohibits diversions outside it. This is a meaningfully different position from Illinois, which is exempt from certain Compact diversion provisions because of its pre-existing Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal diversion; Michigan has no equivalent historical exemption.

Where to find it: the Michigan Lakes and Streams Association (mymlsa.org) publishes plain-language guidance distinguishing inland riparian rights from Great Lakes shoreline rights.

Concealed carry: shall-issue with a live-fire training requirement

Michigan requires a Concealed Pistol License (CPL) to carry concealed, issued at the county level, with a more demanding training component than some other shall-issue states covered on this site.

RequirementDetail
Standard Shall-issue: the county clerk must issue a CPL to any applicant meeting statutory requirements
Minimum age 21
Residency Michigan resident for at least 6 months prior to application
Training required 8 hours total: at least 5 hours classroom (Michigan firearm law, safe handling/storage, use of deadly force, pistol fundamentals) plus at least 3 hours live-fire, firing a minimum of 30 rounds
Cost $100 state application fee, paid to the county clerk
Processing Fingerprinting within 45 days of application; license issued or denied within 45 days of classifiable fingerprints

Sources