Key committee OKs Wolk flood protection bills

Bills promote smart flood protection, water planning at both state and local level

SACRAMENTO –The Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Water today approved Assembly Bills 5 and 224, two flood protection bills by Assemblywoman Lois Wolk (D-Davis) that promote smarter planning at the state and local level.

“California’s flood protection efforts can not rest solely on building and maintaining levees,” said Wolk. “Comprehensive flood protection requires smart planning that anticipates the state’s future water supply and flood protection needs, and uses both common sense and the best available science to meet those needs. These bills promote that kind of forward thinking.”

AB 5, the flagship of Wolk’s package of flood protection legislation, requires the state to develop a comprehensive flood protection plan for the central valley that includes flood protection standards and floodplain mapping. The bill also provides incentives for local communities that adopt the principles of the proposed state plan, giving these communities priority in receiving allocations of state funding, including current and future bond funds.  

“Voters did not sign a blank check last November. They approved almost $5 billion in bond funds, trusting that the state would use that money wisely to protect the thousands of Californians currently at risk of a catastrophic flood,” said Wolk. “They expect us to solve the problem.  They certainly did not expect us to make it worse by allowing more people to be put in harm’s way. But unless we do something about it, local governments in the deep floodplains of the central valley will continue to approve projects that put people and their lifetime investments at risk.”

Wolk’s AB 224 integrates the anticipated effects of climate change into all local and state water plans, including the California Water Plan and State Plan of Flood Control.

“The connection between climate change and our state’s water resources is very real, and must be taken into account in our future water plans if we are to adapt to our changing environment,” Wolk said.  “California faces serious risks to its water supply resulting from climate change, including reduced water storage in the state’s reservoirs. AB 224 will help California begin to address those risks by taking the very first step toward incorporating climate change information into California’s existing water planning efforts.”

AB 5 will next be heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee. The bill is supported by a number of groups including the Planning and Conservation League, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, East Bay Municipal Utility District, Natural Resources Defense Council, California League of Conservation Voters, Friends of the River, the City of Sacramento, American Planning Association, Sierra Club California, The Nature Conservancy, and Gray Panthers.         

AB 224, which will next be heard in the Senate Committee on Environmental Quality, is being sponsored by the Sonoma County Water Agency, Marin Municipal Water District, Planning and Conservation League, and Natural Resources Defense Council. The bill’s other supporters include the Solano County Water Agency, California Public Utilities Commission, Water ReUse Association, East Bay Municipal Utility District, California Association of Sanitation Agencies, City of Los Angeles, Inland Empire Utilities Agency, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, Sierra Club California, and The Nature Conservancy.