Just because municipal water is available doesn’t mean it’s the best resource for water, or that the local government has a right to force citizens and businesses to make or maintain a connection. Local ordinances which attempt to restrict a landowner’s right to use the water that is on their land have been deemed unconstitutional in State and Federal Supreme Court cases which uphold the Constitution by favoring land users/owner’s rights over municipal regulations and restrictions.  If the intended use is potable water or irrigation, Atlanta residents and businesses have been hit by a bureaucratic system that denies permits and refuses variance hearings.  All it would take, perhaps, is one simple case to significantly curtail their ability to generate revenue from their citizens. 

There is Precedence:

Here is the Court Order in a 2013 Georgia Superior Court Case in which the City of Sandersville had denied a well permit.  The Complainants were represented by our friend Tom Rawlings, of McMillan and Rawlings, LLP.