BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 1278
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Date of Hearing: June 20, 2012
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT
Cameron Smyth, Chair
SB 1278 (Wolk) - As Amended: June 12, 2012
SENATE VOTE : 38-0
SUBJECT : Planning and zoning: flood protection: Sacramento-San
Joaquin Valley
SUMMARY : Revises flood hazard planning and development
requirements for those cities and counties located in the
Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley. Specifically, this bill :
1)Defines "undetermined risk area" to mean "an urban or
urbanizing area within a moderate flood hazard zone, as
delineated on an official flood insurance rate map issued by
the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which has not been
determined to have an urban level of protection."
2)Includes within the definition of "urban level of flood
protection" the "level of protection that is necessary to
withstand flooding from a leveed riverine system," as
specified.
3)Requires the Department of Water Resources (DWR), on or before
July 1, 2013, to issue maps for areas protected by the State
Plan of Flood Control.
4)Requires DWR, prior to July 2, 2013, to issue draft 200-year
floodplain maps for areas protected by the State Plan of Flood
Control that contain sufficient information and supporting
data to allow a determination to be made as to whether an area
protected by the State Plan of Food Control has an urban level
of flood protection.
5)Requires DWR to publish two notices of the draft 200-year
floodplain maps in newspapers widely circulated within the
area shown on the draft 200-year floodplain maps.
6)Requires a 90-day public comment period to begin on the date
of the second publication during which scientific or technical
appeals and protests may be submitted to the Central Valley
Flood Protection Board.
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7)Requires appeals to be based on scientific or technical data
that show draft maps to be scientifically or technically
incorrect, and requires any person who makes an appeal to
include the method, data, and analysis used to support their
claim.
8)Requires DWR to prepare and publish final 200-year floodplain
maps, following resolution of all appeals by the Central
Valley Floor Protection Board.
9)Provides that if no appeals are received during the 90-day
comment period, the draft maps will be considered final.
10)Revises the existing requirement for each city and county
within the Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley to amend its general
plan by requiring each city and county within the Sacramento-
San Joaquin Valley, within 24 months of July 2, 2013, to amend
its general plan to additionally contain both of the
following:
a) Revises the requirement to include the data and analysis
contained in the Central Valley Flood Protection Plan,
including, but not limited to, the locations of the
facilities of the State Plan of Flood Control and the
locations of the real property protected by those
facilities, pursuant to existing law; and,
b) Adds in a new requirement to include the locations of
flood hazard zones, including, but not limited to,
locations mapped by the FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Map or
the Flood Hazard Boundary Map, locations that participate
in the National Flood Insurance Program, locations of
undetermined risk areas, and locations mapped by a local
flood agency or flood district.
1)States that an undetermined risk area shall be presumed to be
at risk for a flood hazard unless deemed otherwise by the
State Plan of Flood Control, an official National Flood
Insurance Program rate map issued by FEMA, or a finding made
by a city or county based on a determination of substantial
evidence by a local flood agency.
2)Revises the due date for each city and county within the
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Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley to amend its zoning ordinance so
that it is consistent with the amended general plan, to occur
not more than 12 months after the amendment of its general
plan.
3)Adds a new exception to the existing prohibition that a
legislative body of a city or county within the Sacramento-San
Joaquin Valley cannot enter into a development agreement for
property that is located within a flood hazard zone, unless
the city or county finds, based on substantial evidence in the
record, that the property in an undetermined risk area has met
the urban level of flood protection based on substantial
evidence in the record provided by the developer.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires each city and county within the Sacramento-San
Joaquin Valley to amend its general plan, within 24 months of
the adoption of the Central Valley Flood Protection Plan by
the Central Valley Flood Protection Board, as specified, to
include the following:
a) The data and analysis contained in the Central Valley
Flood Protection Plan, including, but not limited to, the
locations of the facilities of the State Plan of Flood
Control, the locations of other flood management
facilities, the locations of the real property protected by
those facilities, and the locations of flood hazard zones;
b) Goals, policies, and objectives, based on the data and
analysis, for the protection of lives and property that
will reduce the risk of flood damage; and,
c) Feasible implementation measures designed to carry out
the goals, policies and objectives.
2)Requires each city and county, both general law and charter,
within the Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley comply with
requirements contained in the Government Code related to
general plans.
3)Requires each city and county within the Sacramento-San
Joaquin Valley to amend its zoning ordinance to be consistent
with the amended general plan, within 36 months of the
adoption of the Central Valley Flood Protection Plan by the
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Central Valley Flood Protection Board, as specified.
4)Prohibits, after the general plan and zoning ordinances are
amended, the legislative body of a city or county within the
Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley from entering into a development
agreement for property that is located within a flood hazard
zone unless the city or county finds, based on substantial
evidence in the record, one of the following:
a) The facilities of the State Plan of Flood Control or
other flood management facilities protect the property to
the urban level of flood protection in urban and urbanizing
areas of the national FEMA standard of flood protection in
nonurbanized areas;
b) The city or county has imposed conditions on the
development agreement that will protect the property to the
urban level of flood protection in urban and urbanizing
areas of the national FEMA standard of flood protection in
nonurbanized areas; or,
c) The local flood management agency has made adequate
progress on the construction of a flood protection system
that will result in flood protection equal to or greater
than the urban level of flood protection in urban or
urbanizing areas or the national FEMA standard of flood
protection in nonurbanized areas for property located
within a flood hazard zone, intended to be protected by the
system, as specified.
5)Required DWR, by July 1, 2008, to develop preliminary maps for
the 100- and 200-year flood plains protected by project
levees, as specified.
6)Required DWR, by July 1, 2008, to give notice to cities in the
Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley outside areas protected by
project levees regarding maps and other information as to
flood risks available from FEMA or another federal, state, or
local agency.
7)Required DWR, on or before December 31, 2010, to prepare a
status report on the progress and development of the Central
Valley Flood Protection Plan, as specified.
8)Requires DWR to prepare, and the board shall adopt, a plan
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identified as the Central Valley Flood Protection Plan in
accordance with this part.
9)Required DWR, no later than January 1, 2012, to prepare the
Central Valley Flood Protection Plan, as specified.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, minor and absorbable costs from Prop. 84 or Prop. 1E
bonds (General Fund) in 2012-13 for the development of maps
indicating areas protected by the State Plan of Flood Control.
COMMENTS :
1)The State Plan of Flood Control is a document of existing
state and federal flood control works, protection systems,
lands, programs, plans, conditions, modes of operations, and
maintenance of the Sacramento River Flood Control Project,
Sacramento River, and San Joaquin River watersheds. By July
1, 2012, the Central Valley Flood Protection Board must adopt
the Central Valley Flood Protection Plan, an integrated flood
management plan for the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Flood
Management System.
SB 5 (Machado), Chapter 364, Statutes of 2007, required DWR
and the Central Valley Flood Protection Board to prepare and
adopt a Central Valley Flood Protection Plan by 2012, and
established certain flood protection requirements for certain
local land-use decisions consistent with the Central Valley
Protection Plan.
Under SB 5, each city and county within the Sacramento-San
Joaquin Valley is required to amend its general plan within
two years of the Central Valley Flood Protection Board's
adopting the Flood Plan. A city or county within the
Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley must amend its zoning ordinance
to make it consistent with its general plan within 36 months
of the Board's adopting the Flood Plan. Once a city or county
completes the update to its general plan and amendment to the
zoning ordinance, it is prohibited from entering into a
development agreement for property located within a flood
hazard zone, unless a city or county makes specific findings.
2)This bill revises flood hazard planning and development
requirements for those cities and counties located in the
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Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley. The bill requires each city
and county to amend its general plan, within 24 months of July
2, 2013, with additional information about the locations of
flood hazard zones, locations of undetermined risk areas, as
the bill defines, and other locations, as specified. This
bill also requires each city and county to amend zoning
ordinances to be consistent with the amended general plan, no
more than 12 months from the amendment of the general plan.
Additionally, the bill adds a new exception to the existing
prohibition that a legislative body of a city or county within
the Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley cannot enter into a
development agreement for property that is located within a
flood hazard zone, unless the city or county finds, based on
substantial evidence in the record, that the property in an
undetermined risk area has met the urban level of flood
protection based on substantial evidence in the record
provided by the developer.
This bill is author-sponsored.
3)According to the author, "cities and counties within the
Central Valley currently do not have access to reliable
information on flood risks to their communities?.this bill
will help ensure that these communities are able to work with
the state to develop the flood risk information necessary to
make informed and responsible land use decisions."
4)In their joint "support if amended" letter, the California
State Association of Counties (CSAC), Regional Council of
Rural Counties (RCRC), League of California Cities (League),
and the California Chapter of the American Planning
Association (APA) note that significant implementation
challenges for cities and counties within the Sacramento-San
Joaquin Valley have been identified (since the enactment of SB
5). They raise the following concerns:
a) "The law as written can be interpreted to trigger
200-year protection for discretionary permits including
those involving changes in use and other actions that are
not associated with new construction, such as the
installation of a drive-through window at a fast food
restaurant, or the addition of outdoor seating at a coffee
shop."
CSAC, RCRC, the League and APA believe that existing law
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must be clarified so that it is clear that it applies to
new construction permits, and to state exactly what types
of project permits would be included as originally intended
in SB 5.
b) "Under the provisions of SB 5, infill development
occurring within the Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley would
have to demonstrate 200-year protection. Because this
would very likely discourage, if not entirely prohibit
infill development from occurring, we are requesting an
exception for this type of development."
The Committee may wish to ask the author to discuss these
outstanding issues and any continuing negotiations with CSAC,
RCRC, the League, and APA.
5)Support arguments: The Association of California Water
Agencies (ACWA) writes that this bill provides cities and
counties within the Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley with the
necessary tools so that they may effectively implement the
Central Valley Flood Protection Plan, and will allow for a
more comprehensive execution of the Plan.
Opposition arguments: CSAC, RCRC, the League, and APA have
identified several outstanding issues that they believe should
be addressed in SB 1278, as enumerated above.
6)This bill is double-referred to the Assembly Water, Parks, and
Wildlife Committee.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
Association of California Water Agencies
American Planning Association, California Chapter Ŭif amended]
Butte County Board of Supervisors Ŭif amended]
Cities of Sacramento and Stockton
California State Association of Counties Ŭif amended]
Regional Council of Rural Counties Ŭif amended]
San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors Ŭif amended]
Opposition
None on file
SB 1278
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Analysis Prepared by : Debbie Michel / L. GOV. / (916)
319-3958