Section 12994 Of Part 9. Delta Levee Maintenance From California Water Code >> Division 6. >> Part 9.
12994
. (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(1) The CALFED Bay-Delta Program has identified as a core action
the need for emergency levee management planning for delta levees to
improve system reliability.
(2) Even with active levee maintenance, the threat of delta levee
failures from earthquake, flood, or poor levee foundation, will
continue to exist.
(3) Because of this threat of failure, and the potential need to
mobilize people and equipment in an emergency to protect delta levees
and public benefits, the department needs authority that will enable
it to act quickly.
(b) The department may do all of the following:
(1) In an emergency, as defined by Section 21060.3 of the Public
Resources Code, that requires immediate levee work to protect public
benefits in the delta, the department may use funds pursuant to this
part without prior approval of a plan by the board or the Department
of Fish and Wildlife, in which case the requirements of Sections
12314 and 12987, and the memorandum of understanding pursuant to
Section 12307, shall be carried out as soon as possible.
(A) The amount of funds that may be expended each year on
emergency levee work under this section shall not be greater than two
hundred thousand dollars ($200,000) and the amount that may be
expended per emergency levee site shall not be greater than fifty
thousand dollars ($50,000). The local agency shall fund 25 percent of
the total costs of the emergency repair at a site or shall fund an
appropriate share of the costs as approved by the board and based
upon information of the local agency's ability to pay for the
repairs.
(B) Department contracts executed for emergency levee work under
this section shall be exempted from Department of General Services
approval required under the Public Contract Code.
(C) As soon as feasible after the emergency repair, the department
shall submit a report to the board describing the levee work, costs
incurred, and plans for future work at the site, including any
necessary mitigation.
(D) This section is intended to supplement emergency services
provided by the state or the United States. Nothing in this section
overrides or supersedes the authority of the Director of Emergency
Services under the California Emergency Services Act (Chapter 7
(commencing with Section 8550) of Division 1 of Title 2 of the
Government Code) or the Disaster Assistance Act (Chapter 7.5
(commencing with Section 8680) of Division 1 of Title 2 of the
Government Code).
(2) Prepare and submit to the board for adoption a delta emergency
response plan for levee failures. The plan is exempt from Chapter
3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title
2 of the Government Code. The plan may include recommendations of the
multiagency response team established pursuant to paragraph (3) and
may include, but not be limited to, the following:
(A) Standardized contracts for emergency levee work to be executed
by the department, local agencies, or other appropriate entities.
(B) Criteria for eligible emergency levee work.
(C) Definition of an emergency levee site.
(D) Documentation requirements.
(E) Proposals for complying with the federal Endangered Species
Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. Sec. 1531 et seq.) and the California
Endangered Species Act (Chapter 1.5 (commencing with Section 2050) of
Division 3 of the Fish and Game Code) in an emergency.
(F) Stages of emergency response that may occur in various
situations.
(3) Establish a multiagency emergency response team, consisting of
representatives from the department, the board, the Department of
Fish and Wildlife, the California Conservation Corps, the Office of
Emergency Services, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the
United States Army Corps of Engineers, and the United States Fish and
Wildlife Service to advise on methods to ensure that levee
emergencies will be resolved as quickly and safely as possible.