A4574

An Act concerning the mitigation of flooding by local governments and supplementing chapter 27D of Title 52 of the Revised Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. a. The Director of the Division of Housing and Community Resources in the Department of Community Affairs shall establish a sandbag reserve program. The purpose of the program shall be to collect, process, store, and distribute an inventory of sandbags to be used by local governments to mitigate the damage and destruction caused by flooding.

b. As part of the initial establishment of the sandbag reserve program established pursuant to subsection a. of this section, the director, in consultation with the Commissioner of Environmental Protection, shall conduct, or shall contract with another entity to conduct, a study on the prevalence of flooding in the State. The study shall examine, at a minimum, factors to calculate the likelihood of flooding based on a location’s history and geographic information, including: elevation; climate; changes in the environment, including any soil and vegetation removal and the grading or leveling of land surfaces associated with any proposed construction projects; and proximity to bodies of water.

c. To participate in the program established pursuant to subsection a. of this section, the governing body of a local government shall submit an application to the division in a manner and on such forms as determined by the director. An application shall include information detailing, but not limited to:

(1) the specific location or locations where the local government proposes to place the sandbags;

(2) the estimated amount of sandbags, in quantity and tonnage, the local government is requesting; and

(3) the location’s history and geographic information concerning flooding, including: elevation; climate; changes in the environment, including any soil and vegetation removal and the grading or leveling of land surfaces associated with any proposed construction projects; proximity to bodies of water; and the historic damage caused, including, if determinable, the financial impact, of previous flooding in that location.

d. In determining the distribution of sandbags to local governments, the director, in addition to the factors enumerated in subsection c. of this section, shall consult the report conducted pursuant to subsection b. of this section to prioritize sandbag distribution to areas most impacted by potential flooding.

2. a. Within one year of the establishment of the sandbag reserve program pursuant to section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), the Director of the Division of Housing and Community Resources shall submit a report to the Governor, and the Legislature pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1). The report shall contain information on the implementation of the sandbag reserve program including, but not limited to:

(1) the total number of sandbags, in quantity and tonnage, in the reserve’s inventory;

(2) the total number of local government applications received;

(3) the total amount of sandbags, in quantity and tonnage, that were distributed to local governments;

(4) the impact, if determinable, that the sandbag reserve program had in enabling local governments to mitigate flooding and flood damage; and

(5) the average amount of time it took, upon approving a local government’s application, to distribute sandbags to the local government.

b. In addition to submitting the report pursuant to subsection a. of this section, the director shall post the report for public inspection on the division’s Internet website in an easily accessible location.

c. Each year after the date of enactment of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), the Department of Community Affairs shall submit information on the Division of Housing and Community Resources’ needs under the sandbag reserve program as part of the department’s annual budget request.

3. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

This bill requires the Director of the Division of Housing and Community Resources (director) in the Department of Community Affairs (department) to establish a sandbag reserve program. The purpose of the program is to collect, process, store, and distribute an inventory of sandbags to be used by local governments to mitigate the damage and destruction caused by flooding.

As part of the initial establishment of the sandbag reserve program, the director, in consultation with the Commissioner of Environmental Protection, is required to conduct, or to contract with another entity to conduct, a study on the prevalence of flooding in the State. Under the bill, the study, at a minimum, is required to examine factors to calculate the likelihood of flooding based on a location’s history and geographic information, including: elevation; climate; changes in the environment, including any soil and vegetation removal and the grading or leveling of land surfaces associated with any proposed construction projects; and proximity to bodies of water.

To participate in the program, the governing body of a local government is required to submit an application to the division in a manner and on such forms as determined by the director. At a minimum, the application is required to include information detailing:

· the specific location or locations where the local government proposes to place the sandbags;

· the estimated amount of sandbags, in quantity and tonnage, the local government is requesting; and

· the location’s history and geographic information concerning flooding, including: elevation; climate; changes in the environment, including any soil and vegetation removal and the grading or leveling of land surfaces associated with any proposed construction projects; proximity to bodies of water; and the historic damage caused by previous flooding in that location.

In determining the distribution of sandbags to local governments, the director is required to consult the report to prioritize sandbag distribution to areas most impacted by potential flooding.

Under the bill, within one year of the establishment of the sandbag reserve program, the director is required to submit a report to the Governor and the Legislature on the program.

Each year after the enactment of the bill, the department is required to submit information on the division’s needs under the sandbag reserve program as part of the department’s annual budget request.