BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                      



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          |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE            |                  SB 1278|
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                              UNFINISHED BUSINESS


          Bill No:  SB 1278
          Author:   Wolk (D)
          Amended:  8/20/12
          Vote:     21

           
           SENATE NATURAL RESOURCES AND WATER COMM.  :  8-0, 4/10/12
          AYES:  Pavley, La Malfa, Cannella, Fuller, Kehoe, Padilla, 
            Simitian, Wolk
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Evans

           SENATE GOVERNANCE & FINANCE COMMITTEE  :  7-0, 4/25/12
          AYES:  Wolk, Dutton, DeSaulnier, Hancock, Hernandez, Kehoe, 
            La Malfa
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Fuller, Liu

           SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE  :  7-0, 5/24/12
          AYES:  Kehoe, Walters, Alquist, Dutton, Lieu, Price, 
            Steinberg

           SENATE FLOOR  :  38-0, 5/30/12
          AYES:  Alquist, Anderson, Berryhill, Blakeslee, Calderon, 
            Cannella, Corbett, Correa, De León, DeSaulnier, Dutton, 
            Emmerson, Evans, Fuller, Gaines, Hancock, Harman, 
            Hernandez, Huff, Kehoe, La Malfa, Leno, Lieu, Liu, 
            Lowenthal, Negrete McLeod, Padilla, Pavley, Price, Rubio, 
            Simitian, Steinberg, Vargas, Walters, Wolk, Wright, 
            Wyland, Yee
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Runner, Strickland

           ASSEMBLY FLOOR  :  79-0, 8/22/12 - See last page for vote


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           SUBJECT  :    Planning and zoning:  flood protection:  
          Sacramento-
                      San Joaquin Valley

           SOURCE  :     Author


           DIGEST  :    This bill revises flood hazard planning and 
          development requirements for those cities and counties 
          located in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley. 

           Assembly Amendments  require, on or before July 2, 2013, and 
          for the purpose of providing information to cities and 
          counties necessary for their determinations relating to 
          level of flood protection, the Department of Water 
          Resources (DWR) to release floodplain maps that identify at 
          a minimum the facilities of the State Plan of Flood Control 
          and the available data as to the water surface elevation of 
          flooding in urban areas in the event of the failure of the 
          facilities of the State Plan of Flood Control during 
          flooding that has a 1-in-200 chance of occurring in any 
          given year. 

           ANALYSIS  :    

          Existing law:

          1. Requires each city and county within the Sacramento-San 
             Joaquin Valley to amend its general plan, as specified, 
             within 24 months of the adoption of the Flood Plan by 
             the Central Valley Flood Protection Board.  Existing law 
             requires the Central Valley Flood Protection Board, the 
             DWR, and local flood agencies to collaborate with cities 
             or counties by providing the cities and counties with 
             information and other technical assistance to assist 
             with complying with these requirements.

          2. Prohibits a city or county within the Sacramento-San 
             Joaquin Valley from entering into a development 
             agreement for property that is located in a flood hazard 
             zone unless the city or county makes specified findings, 
             including, among others, that certain conditions have 
             been imposed by the city or county.


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          3. Requires the DWR to develop preliminary maps for the 
             100- and 200-year flood plains protected by project 
             levees, as specified, and to provide the preliminary 
             maps to cities and counties within the Sacramento-San 
             Joaquin Valley.

          4. Specifies that DWR shall provide financial assistance 
             for the purpose of mapping flood protection of 
             nonproject levees, not all flood-related general plan 
             update costs.

          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 
             (FEMA), 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, and states that "urban level of flood 
             protection" shall not mean "shallow flooding of flooding 
             from local drainage that meets the criteria of the 
             national Federal Emergency Management Agency standard of 
             flood protection." 

          3. Defines "National Federal Emergency Management Agency 
             standard of flood protection" to mean "the level of 
             flood protection that is necessary to withstand flooding 
             that has a 1-in-100 chance of occurring in any given 
             year using criteria development by the Federal Emergency 
             Management Agency for application in the National Flood 
             Insurance Program." 

          4. 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: 


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             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. 

          5. States that an undetermined risk area shall be presumed 
             to be at risk during flooding that has a 1-in-200 chance 
             of occurring in any given year 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. 

          6. Clarifies that the bill's provisions shall not be 
             construed to limit or remove any liability of a city or 
             county prior to the amendment of the general plan or the 
             zoning ordinance, except as provided. 

          7. Revises the due date for each city and county within the 
             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. 

          8. 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 

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             evidence in the record. 

          9. Requires, on or before July 2, 2013, and for the purpose 
             of providing information to cities and counties 
             necessary for their determinations relating to level of 
             flood protection, DWR to release floodplain maps that 
             identify at a minimum the facilities of the State Plan 
             of Flood Control and the available data as to the water 
             surface elevation of flooding in urban areas in the 
             event of the failure of the facilities of the State Plan 
             of Flood Control during flooding that has a 1-in-200 
             chance of occurring in any given year. 

          10.Requires, concurrent with the release of these maps and 
             for the purposes of assisting local agencies in 
             determining their level of flood protection, DWR to make 
             available levee reliability data for the facilities of 
             the State Plan of Flood Control identified in the maps. 

          11.States that DWR's issuance of floodplain maps shall not 
             be subject to any of the following, including the review 
             and approval of the Office of Administrative Law, the 
             California Environmental Quality Act, or the California 
             Endangered Species Act, as specified. 

          12.States that the state, or any state agency, shall not be 
             liable for any claim based upon the exercise or 
             performance of a discretionary or ministerial function 
             or duty on the part of a state agency or a state 
             employee or officer in carrying out the provisions of 
             the bill. 

           Background
           
          In 2007, Governor Schwarzenegger signed a six-bill flood 
          package with the general purposes of identifying the areas 
          of the state with the greatest flood risk and to reduce 
          those risks.  Among the package was SB 5 (Machado) Chapter 
          364, Statutes of 2007 that requires the Central Valley 
          Flood Protection Board to adopt the Flood Plan, an 
          integrated flood management plan for the Sacramento-San 
          Joaquin River Flood Management System, by July 1, 2012.  
          Within 24 months of the adoption of the Flood Plan (i.e. no 
          later than July 1, 2014), cities and counties are required 

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          to amend their general plans to incorporate data and 
          analysis from the Flood Plan. And within 12 months of 
          amending its general plan (i.e. no later than July 1, 
          2015), a city or county must also update their zoning 
          ordinances to be consistent with the revised general plan.  
          Once the general plan and zoning ordinances have been 
          updated, the local government is prohibited from allowing 
          development on property within a flood hazard zone unless 
          the city or county makes certain determinations.

          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 the San Joaquin River 
          watersheds.

           FISCAL EFFECT  :    Appropriation:  No   Fiscal Com.:  Yes   
          Local:  No

          According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, this 
          bill contains the following costs: 

          1. Minor and absorbable costs to DWR to develop the 
             detailed maps required in this bill (General Fund (GF), 
             special fund, bond funds). 

          2. Unknown cost pressures, likely in the millions of 
             dollars, beginning in 2013-14 through 2015-16, for 
             financial assistance to cities and counties to update 
             their General Plans pursuant to the Central Valley Flood 
             Protection Plan. 

           SUPPORT  :   (Verified  8/22/12)

          American Planning Association 
          Association of California water Agencies 
          California Building Industry Association 
          California State Association of Counties 
          Central Valley Flood Control Association 
          City of Sacramento 
          City of Stockton 
          Counties of Contra Costa, Sacramento, and San Joaquin
          League of California Cities 

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          Regional Council of Rural Counties 

           ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT  :    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.  SB 1278 helps 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."


           ASSEMBLY FLOOR  :  79-0, 8/22/12
          AYES:  Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Beall, 
            Bill Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bonilla, Bradford, 
            Brownley, Buchanan, Butler, Charles Calderon, Campos, 
            Carter, Cedillo, Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Davis, Dickinson, 
            Donnelly, Eng, Feuer, Fletcher, Fong, Fuentes, Furutani, 
            Beth Gaines, Galgiani, Garrick, Gatto, Gordon, Gorell, 
            Grove, Hagman, Halderman, Hall, Harkey, Hayashi, Hill, 
            Huber, Hueso, Huffman, Jeffries, Jones, Knight, Lara, 
            Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mansoor, Mendoza, Miller, 
            Mitchell, Monning, Morrell, Nestande, Nielsen, Norby, 
            Olsen, Pan, Perea, V. Manuel Pérez, Portantino, Silva, 
            Skinner, Smyth, Solorio, Swanson, Torres, Valadao, 
            Wagner, Wieckowski, Williams, Yamada, John A. Pérez
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Roger Hernández

          CTW:dm  8/22/12   Senate Floor Analyses 

                         SUPPORT/OPPOSITION:  SEE ABOVE

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