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AB-3164 Fire prevention: wildland-urban interface wildfire risk model: model use guidelines.(2019-2020)

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Date Published: 09/01/2020 09:00 PM
AB3164:v95#DOCUMENT

Enrolled  September 01, 2020
Passed  IN  Senate  August 27, 2020
Passed  IN  Assembly  August 30, 2020
Amended  IN  Senate  August 21, 2020
Amended  IN  Senate  August 08, 2020
Amended  IN  Assembly  May 04, 2020

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2019–2020 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 3164

Introduced by Assembly Member Friedman
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Gabriel and Robert Rivas)
(Coauthors: Senators Dodd and Stern)

February 21, 2020

An act to amend, repeal, and add Section 4201 of, and to add and repeal Sections 4204.1 and 4204.2 of, the Public Resources Code, relating to fire prevention.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 3164, Friedman. Fire prevention: wildland-urban interface wildfire risk model: model use guidelines.
Existing law requires the Director of Forestry and Fire Protection to classify lands within state responsibility areas into fire hazard severity zones and, by regulation, to designate fire hazard severity zones and assign each zone a rating reflecting the degree of severity of fire hazard that is expected to prevail in the zone.
This bill would require the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, by July 1, 2022, to develop a wildland-urban interface wildfire risk model to determine the risk for a community or parcel in a local responsibility area or state responsibility area and guidelines for the proper use of the model, as provided. The bill would require the department to establish, and consult with, an advisory workgroup, with specified members, to develop the model. The bill would require the department to update the model and guidelines when fire hazard severity zones are revised.
This bill would also make a revision to the provision relating to the purpose of the fire hazard severity zones provisions.
This bill would make the implementation of these provisions contingent upon an appropriation by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act or another statute for these purposes.
This bill would also repeal these provisions relating to the wildland-urban interface wildfire risk model and the guidelines and the revisions to the provisions relating to the purpose of the fire hazard severity zones on January 1, 2025.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 Section 4201 of the Public Resources Code is amended to read:

4201.
 (a) The purpose of this article is to provide for the classification of lands within state responsibility areas in accordance with both the severity of fire hazard and risk present for the purpose of identifying measures to be taken to retard the rate of spreading and to reduce the potential intensity of uncontrolled fires that threaten to destroy resources, life, or property.
(b) The implementation of the amendments made to this section by Assembly Bill 3164 of the 2019–20 Regular Session are contingent upon an appropriation by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act or another statute for this purpose.
(c) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2025, and as of that date is repealed.

SEC. 2.

 Section 4201 is added to the Public Resources Code, to read:

4201.
 (a) The purpose of this article is to provide for the classification of lands within state responsibility areas in accordance with the severity of fire hazard present for the purpose of identifying measures to be taken to retard the rate of spreading and to reduce the potential intensity of uncontrolled fires that threaten to destroy resources, life, or property.
(b) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2025.

SEC. 3.

 Section 4204.1 is added to the Public Resources Code, immediately following Section 4204, to read:

4204.1.
 (a) On or before July 1, 2022, the department, in consultation with the State Fire Marshal and the Insurance Commissioner, shall develop a wildland-urban interface wildfire risk model, hereafter referred to as the model, that uses current wildfire hazard severity information known for the local responsibility area and the state responsibility area. The model shall determine the risk for a community or parcel in a local responsibility area or state responsibility area through the input of mitigating factors into the model. The mitigation factors shall include, but are not limited to, all of the following:
(1) Defensible space compliance data.
(2) Whether structures meet building standards for comprehensive site and structure fire risk reduction.
(3) Community fire prevention work, including using natural infrastructure as a community buffer.
(4) Fire prevention, educational, planning, and mitigation infrastructures.
(b) The department may enter into contracts with an independent group to develop the model.
(c) The department shall review other jurisdictions’ applicable models in the development of the model.
(d) The department shall update the model when fire hazard severity zones are revised pursuant to Section 51181 of the Government Code or this article.
(e) (1) The department shall establish, and consult with, an advisory workgroup to develop the model.
(2) The advisory workgroup established pursuant to paragraph (1) shall include all of the following members:
(A) The State Fire Marshal, or the State Fire Marshal’s designee.
(B) The Director of Emergency Services, or the director’s designee.
(C) The Insurance Commissioner, or the Insurance Commissioner’s designee.
(D) The Director of State Planning and Research, or the director’s designee.
(E) Two representatives from insurers and insurance research organizations that have appropriate expertise in wildfire risk modeling, such as exposure measurement, risk modeling, and actuarial expertise, to be appointed by the department.
(F) Two representatives, one a fire chief, or the fire chief’s designee, and the other a fire prevention officer, to be appointed by the department in consultation with the California Fire Chiefs Association and the Fire Districts Association of California.
(G) A representative from the California Professional Firefighters, to be appointed by the department.
(H) A representative from the California Fire Science Consortium, to be appointed by the department.
(I) A representative from the California Building Industry Association, to be appointed by the department.
(J) Two representatives from a local government, with one from a rural city or county, to be appointed by the department.
(3) The members of the advisory workgroup shall serve at the pleasure of their respective appointing powers.
(4) The members of the advisory workgroup shall serve without compensation, but each member shall be reimbursed for their actual and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties.
(5) The chairperson of the advisory workgroup shall be the State Fire Marshal, or the State Fire Marshal’s designee.
(6) The vice chairperson of the advisory workgroup shall be the fire chief specified in subparagraph (F) of paragraph (2), or the fire chief’s designee.
(f) The implementation of this section is contingent upon an appropriation by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act or another statute for this purpose.
(g) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2025, and as of that date is repealed.

SEC. 4.

 Section 4204.2 is added to the Public Resources Code, to read:

4204.2.
 (a) On or before July 1, 2022, the department shall develop guidelines for the proper use of the wildland-urban interface wildfire risk model developed pursuant to Section 4204.1, hereafter referred to as the model. The guidelines shall include, but are not limited to, all of the following:
(1) The type, quality, and collection frequency of the data related to the mitigation factors with which a local agency using the model is required to comply.
(2) Methods for uploading the data for mitigating factors into the model.
(3) Provisions for making the risk determined by the model available to the department, the Insurance Commissioner, and the residents in the community or parcel for which the risk is being modeled.
(b) The department shall make the model available to a local agency that agrees to comply with the guidelines.
(c) A local agency may modify the model to allow for the input of additional mitigation factors that are locally relevant.
(d) The department shall provide technical assistance to a local agency using the model.
(e) The department shall post on its internet website general information about the model and the local agencies using the model.
(f) The department shall update the guidelines when fire hazard severity zones are revised pursuant to Section 51181 of the Government Code or this article.
(g) The implementation of this section is contingent upon an appropriation by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act or another statute for this purpose.
(h) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2025, and as of that date is repealed.