Wolk bills for smart flood protection, land-use planning move forward

Bills to strengthen flood protection planning now move to Senate Floor

SACRAMENTO–The Senate Appropriations Committee voted 10-7 today to approve legislation by Assemblywoman Lois Wolk (D-Davis) to strengthen flood protection in California by connecting plans for flood protection and local land use. Wolk lauded the passage of Assembly Bills 5 and AB 162 as “a major step toward enacting meaningful legislation to protect Californians’ lives and property from flooding.”

“These bills encourage local communities to develop and implement the smart, informed flood protection strategies needed not only to ensure adequate protection for those already living at risk, but to also minimize the number of people living in this state’s deep floodplains,” she said.

Wolk’s AB 5 requires the state to develop a comprehensive flood protection plan for the Central Valley that includes flood protection standards for new development and floodplain mapping.

Her AB 162 requires cities and counties in California to incorporate flood hazards in their general plans in order to minimize risk in flood-prone areas, just as local governments are required under current law to consider the risk posed in areas prone to fire and earthquake.  

“Every time we place subdivisions in floodplains, we put communities at risk and we take flood management options off the table. And every year we delay action, thousands more homes are approved in the state’s floodplains—homes without flood protection, without even a plan for future protection,” Wolk said. “We jumped a major hurdle today.”