BILL ANALYSIS �
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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 Le�n, 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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SB 1278
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2
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 P�rez, Portantino, Silva,
Skinner, Smyth, Solorio, Swanson, Torres, Valadao,
Wagner, Wieckowski, Williams, Yamada, John A. P�rez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Roger Hern�ndez
CTW:dm 8/22/12 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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