Can You Actually Go to Jail for Collecting Rainwater?

3. how rainwater is stored, treated, and connected to household plumbing.

Water intended for drinking or cooking requires appropriate treatment and testing. A rain barrel designed for garden use should not be connected directly to a potable-water system without approved safeguards.

4. Drainage and Property Rules
   Local building codes or neighborhood regulations may also address rain barrels, cisterns, overflow drainage, mosquito prevention, and the placement of collection equipment.

Even when harvesting rainwater is legal, a system that causes flooding, damages neighboring property, or violates building requirements can create a separate legal problem.