Santa Monica, 90402
Electrical contractor in Santa Monica.
North of Montana Avenue, Santa Monica is a neighborhood of custom homes on the same Westside as the Palisades and Brentwood, often with the same builders and architects. County Line Electric wires new houses and major remodels there, with the Lutron lighting, automation and EV charging they are built around.
- SCEElectric utility
- Santa MonicaCity permits
- 90402North of Montana
What is different here
Its own city, its own codes, and Edison rather than LADWP.
Santa Monica is an independent city surrounded on three sides by the City of Los Angeles, and the difference shows up in the electrical paperwork. Permits and inspections come from the City of Santa Monica's building and safety division rather than LADBS, and the electric utility is Southern California Edison, while the Palisades and Brentwood next door are LADWP. A builder moving between Westside jobs files with a different city and a different utility on each side of the city line.
Santa Monica also adopts its own local amendments to the state codes. Its 2024 Energy Performance Approach, which replaced the city's 2022 all-electric requirement, sets a higher energy performance margin for new buildings, electric or mixed-fuel, and its EV charger reach code calls for a dedicated 40-amp, 208/240-volt EV-ready circuit in a new one- or two-family home with an attached garage. The local code in force when the permit is issued governs, and County Line plans the service and the circuits against it rather than against the state minimum.
What we do here
The work, in this area.
New construction electrical
Ground-up custom homes, rough-in to finish, as the electrical sub on the builder's roster.
For buildersLutron lighting and shading
HomeWorks control, Ketra tunable light and motorized shades, designed room by room.
LightingHome automation
Control, security, shades, audio and video, networking, pre-wired at rough-in.
AutomationEV charger installation
Level 2 charging with a load calculation first, permitted and inspected.
EVStandby generators
Generac whole-home backup, sized to the house, permitted, serviced twice a year.
Generator estimateFire rebuild electrical
Complete electrical systems for homes rebuilt after the fires, to current code, with backup power planned in.
RebuildNew construction and remodels
Electrified Westside houses, wired to the local code.
On the Westside, a new house designed around heat pumps for heating, cooling and water, induction cooking, EV charging for two cars, solar and a battery needs its service size and panel layout settled before anything else is drawn. County Line works it out from a load calculation at the start, then carries the Edison service application, rough-in, the Lutron and automation backbone, finish and the Santa Monica final as the electrical subcontractor.
Major remodels of the 1920s to 1950s houses that line these streets bring the other half of the work: an old service replaced, the house rewired to current code while the walls are open, and the lighting and shades planned as a system rather than switch by switch. The new construction page describes how County Line works with builders.
Lighting and automation
Lutron and whole-home automation in Santa Monica houses.
Santa Monica houses on smaller lots with large glass openings are where lighting control and shading earn their keep: Lutron HomeWorks or a wireless Lutron system depending on the wiring, motorized shades on the sun-facing walls, and keypads engraved for how the household lives. County Line installs and programs the Lutron side and runs the low-voltage pathways for the integrator's audio, video, network and security. The lighting and shading page explains the systems.
County Line Electric at a glance
- 20+ yrsIn businessJeff Tucker has run County Line Electric in the Conejo Valley for over 20 years.
- #949580California contractor licenseLicensed, bonded and insured. Check it on the CSLB site any time.
- GeneracStandby generator estimatesA written estimate after a site visit and a load calculation.
- A+BBB Accredited since 2017Rated A+ by the Better Business Bureau. See the profile.
- 5.0HomeAdvisor ratingFive stars from every reviewed job. Read the reviews.
Santa Monica questions
Who provides electricity in Santa Monica?
Southern California Edison provides electricity in Santa Monica. Unlike Pacific Palisades and Brentwood next door, which are City of Los Angeles neighborhoods served by LADWP, Santa Monica is an independent city on Edison's system. Electrical permits are issued by the City of Santa Monica.
Does Santa Monica require all-electric new construction?
Santa Monica no longer requires all-electric new construction. Its 2022 Zero Emission Building Code did; in 2024 the city replaced it with the Energy Performance Approach, a local energy code amendment that sets a higher performance margin for electric and mixed-fuel buildings alike. The city's EV charger reach code still applies, including a dedicated EV-ready circuit in a new one- or two-family home with an attached garage. County Line Electric designs the service and circuits to the local code in force when the permit is issued.
Does County Line Electric work in Santa Monica?
Yes. County Line Electric serves Santa Monica, mainly north of Montana Avenue, with new custom home electrical, major remodels, Lutron lighting control, home automation wiring and EV charging, as the electrical subcontractor for builders and directly for owners.
Official references
Where the facts on this page come from.
County Line links to the authorities rather than restating them. Rules change; these pages are current.
- City of Santa Monica: building and safety, local codes
- Santa Monica Energy Performance Approach: the 2024 energy code amendment
- Santa Monica EV Charger Reach Code: EV-ready circuits
- California Energy Commission: the statewide energy code Santa Monica amends
- Lutron: HomeWorks and shades
- CSLB license check: license #949580
Next step
Pricing a house in Santa Monica? Send it.
Site city, project type, phase and a few lines of scope. Jeff reads every one and calls back on the ones where County Line is the right electrical sub. No plans on the public form, please.
Or call (805) 499-0823. Monday to Friday, 9 to 5.