BILL NUMBER: SB 1290 INTRODUCED
BILL TEXT
INTRODUCED BY Senator Kehoe
FEBRUARY 19, 2010
An act to amend Section 8685.9 of the Government Code, relating to
disaster assistance.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 1290, as introduced, Kehoe. Disaster assistance: certification.
Existing law, the California Disaster Assistance Act, limits the
state share for any eligible project to no more than 75% of total
state eligible costs, except that the state share may be up to 100%
for costs connected with certain events only if the local agency has
adopted a local hazard mitigation plan in accordance with specified
federal law.
This bill would additionally require, in response to a fire
disaster, a local agency, as defined, on or after January 1, 2012, to
choose whether or not to obtain and pay the actual costs for a
certification by the Director of Forestry and Fire Prevention to be
eligible to receive a percentage for a state share in excess of 75%.
This bill would require the Director of Forestry and Fire Prevention
to specify the possible percentage a local agency may receive in
excess of the 75% based upon certain criteria and regulations to be
promulgated by the director on or before July 1, 2011.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 8685.9 of the Government Code is amended to
read:
8685.9. (a) Notwithstanding any other
provision of law, including Section 8686, for any eligible project,
the state share shall not exceed 75 percent of total state eligible
costs unless the local agency is located within a city, county, or
city and county that has adopted a local hazard mitigation plan in
accordance with the federal Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000 (P.L.
106-390) as part of the safety element of its general plan adopted
pursuant to subdivision (g) of Section 65302. In that situation, the
Legislature may provide for a state share of local costs that exceeds
75 percent of total state eligible costs.
(b) (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, for any
eligible project that is in response to a fire disaster, and
including the requirements of subdivision (a), the state share shall
not exceed 75 percent of total state eligible costs unless the local
agency chooses to obtain a certification by the Director of Forestry
and Fire Prevention that the local agency was in compliance with all
of the following requirements at the time of the fire disaster:
(A) The local agency had at least one of the following for each
state responsibility area within its jurisdiction:
(i) Its own structural fire protection services.
(ii) A contract providing structural fire protection services by
the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection that requires all
state costs to provide structural fire protection be included in the
contract, including, but not limited to, salaries and wages,
benefits, retirement, distributed administrative costs, workers'
compensation, equipment, and costs associated with entering into the
contract.
(iii) Structural fire protection services from another local
agency.
(B) The local agency was in compliance with Chapter 6.8
(commencing with Section 51175) of Part 1 of Division 1 of Title 5.
(C) If a local agency had land designated as a very high fire
hazard severity zone or state responsibility area within its
jurisdiction, the local agency had a fire risk reduction public
education program that may include, but not be limited to,
recommendations for ignition-resistant landscaping, creating and
maintaining defensible space around homes and other structures, and
ignition-resistant construction principles.
(2) (A) A certification by the Director of Forestry and Fire
Prevention shall include the specific percentage for the possible
state share in excess of 75 percent based on the quality of
compliance with all of the requirements of paragraph (1).
(B) If the Director of Forestry and Fire Prevention is unable to
complete an evaluation of a local agency's compliance with the
requirements of paragraph (1) for any reason other than the failure
of the local agency to provide necessary information in a timely
manner, then the local agency is deemed to be in compliance with all
of the requirements of paragraph (1) and certified for 100 percent of
the possible state share.
(3) The Director of Forestry and Fire Prevention shall adopt
regulations on or before July 1, 2011, to specify the standards for
meeting the requirements of this subdivision that result in the
certification of a percentage for the possible state share in excess
of 75 percent. The regulations shall specify objective criteria for
determining a local agency's compliance with this subdivision. The
regulations shall set forth an administrative appeals process for a
local agency to challenge the certification or denial of
certification by the Director of Forestry and Fire Prevention.
(4) Paragraphs (1) and (2) shall apply to any local agency on or
after January 1, 2012.
(5) For purposes of this subdivision, the following definitions
shall apply:
(A) "Local agency" means any city, city and county, county, county
office of education, community college district, school district,
special district, or other political subdivision of the state.
(B) "Structural fire protection services" means the protection of
homes or other structures from fire.
(6) If a local agency chooses to obtain a certification under this
subdivision, the local agency shall pay to the Department of
Forestry and Fire Prevention all actual costs for the Director of
Forestry and Fire Prevention to issue the certification from any
disaster assistance funds provided by the state that are related to
the fire disaster for which the local agency sought certification.