BILL ANALYSIS
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UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Bill No: SB 27
Author: Simitian (D), et al
Amended: 8/19/08
Vote: 21
PRIOR VOTES NOT RELEVANT
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 78-0, 8/21/08 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Emergency
Preparedness
Act of 2008
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill requires the Office of Emergency
Services to establish an interagency Multi-Hazard
Coordination Task Force" to develop an emergency response
strategy for the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
Assembly Amendments delete the Senate version which stated
the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation to begin
implementing a program for sustainable management of the
Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. This bill now enacts
the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Emergency Preparedness Act
of 2008.
ANALYSIS : Existing law authorizes the Office of
Emergency Services (OES), the Delta Protection Commission
(DPC), the Department of Water Resources (DWR) and the
CONTINUED
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Central Valley Flood Protection Board to respond to
emergencies in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (Delta).
Counties are responsible for saving human life.
This bill:
1.States legislative intent that local governments should
not forfeit existing powers but should work cooperatively
with certain identified state agencies to coordinate
state and local emergency responses to the Delta.
2.This bill enacts the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta
Emergency Preparedness Act of 2008, which requires OES to
establish an interagency Multi-Hazard Coordination Task
Force (Task Force) for the Delta upon funding made
available for that purpose.
3.Designates Task Force membership to include OES, DPC, DWR
and a single representative of each of the five Delta
counties.
4.Requires the Task Force to:
A. Make recommendations on creation of an interagency
unified command system.
B. Coordinate development of a draft emergency
preparedness and response strategy for the Delta
Region.
C. Develop and conduct an all-hazard emergency
response exercise in the Delta to rest regional
coordination protocols already in place.
5.Requires the Task Force to submit a report with its
strategy and recommendations to the Legislature and the
Governor, and to cease existence on or before January 1,
2011.
6.Sunsets the Task Force and repeals statute on January 1,
2011.
Comments
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According to the Assembly Third Reading analysis, this bill
adopts the call of the Delta Vision Blue Ribbon Task Force
to start immediately in preparing for an emergency in the
Delta. The Governor appointed the Delta Vision Task Force
to "develop a durable vision for sustainable management" of
the Delta. The November 2007 Delta Vision recommendations
for immediate action included improvements to emergency
preparedness of state and local agencies in the Delta
In response to those recommendations, the Schwarzenegger
Administration assigned the DPC to implement the emergency
preparedness recommendations. The DPC has convinced the
five Delta counties to execute a Memorandum of
Understanding, committing to coordination of Delta
emergency preparation and response, in conjunction with
state and federal agencies with emergency response duties.
The DPC initiative arose out of Hurricane Katrina and
subsequent legislative hearings showing the serious
deficiencies in Delta emergency preparedness for levee
failures. The DPC is the one Delta agency with links to
both state and local agencies as well as responsibility for
protection of Delta resources, through its resource
management plan. Several provisions of this bill originate
in recommendations from DPC staff.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, costs
of $350,000 to implement the Delta Vision recommendations,
which include the Task Force requirements.
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/22/08)
Counties of Contra Costa, Sacramento, San Joaquin, and Yolo
MWD of Southern California
OPPOSITION : (Verified 8/22/08)
Central Valley Flood Control District
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : This bill implements some of Delta
Vision's November 2007 recommendations for near-term
actions to address immediate and serious flood risks in the
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Delta due to levee failure. Though the Governor has
responded to these recommendations by assigning the DPC to
implement the recommendations related to emergency
preparedness, this bill codifies that action. Delta Vision
also recommended emergency response drills and the
stockpiling of emergency materials and supplies to quickly
respond to a Delta levee breach.
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION : The opposition contends that
this bill will create a great deal of uncertainty for
reclamation districts that are responsible for the
operation and maintenance of project and non-project levees
and emergency response related thereto. The opposition
states that under this bill "Reclamation districts would
not be a member of the taskforce proposed by SB 27." The
opposition asserts that currently the Department of Water
Resources is authorized to establish a multi-agency
emergency response team consisting of various state and
federal agencies to advise on methods to ensure that levee
emergencies will be resolved as quickly and safely as
possible. The opposition asserts that it is unclear how
the SB 27 interagency unified command system would relate
to the current response model for levee emergencies.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Adams, Aghazarian, Anderson, Arambula, Beall,
Benoit, Berg, Berryhill, Blakeslee, Brownley, Caballero,
Charles Calderon, Carter, Cook, Coto, Davis, De La Torre,
De Leon, DeSaulnier, DeVore, Duvall, Dymally, Emmerson,
Eng, Evans, Feuer, Fuentes, Fuller, Furutani, Gaines,
Galgiani, Garcia, Garrick, Hancock, Hayashi, Hernandez,
Horton, Houston, Huff, Huffman, Jeffries, Jones,
Karnette, Keene, Krekorian, La Malfa, Laird, Leno,
Levine, Lieber, Lieu, Ma, Maze, Mendoza, Mullin,
Nakanishi, Nava, Niello, Nunez, Parra, Plescia,
Portantino, Price, Ruskin, Salas, Saldana, Silva, Smyth,
Solorio, Spitzer, Strickland, Swanson, Torrico, Tran,
Villines, Walters, Wolk, Bass
NO VOTE RECORDED: Sharon Runner, Soto
CTW:cm 8/23/08 Senate Floor Analyses
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SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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