Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

Enrolled Copy                                                                         S.B. 33
                                  DISASTER AMENDMENTS
                                      2023 GENERAL SESSION
                                           STATE OF UTAH
                            Chief Sponsor: Ronald M. Winterton
                              House Sponsor: Jefferson S. Burton
 6
 LONG TITLE
 General Description:
        This bill concerns funding for a disaster.
 Highlighted Provisions:
        This bill:
        < creates and modifies definitions;
        < modifies provisions related to the State Disaster Recovery Restricted Account
 including to:
            C    allow for certain emergency management expenses under certain conditions;
 and
            C    provide funding for the Response, Recovery, and Post-disaster Mitigation
 Restricted Account;
        < renames the Post Disaster and Mitigation Restricted Account as Response,
 Recovery, and Post-disaster Mitigation Restricted Account;
        < modifies the procedures and requirements for funds in the Response, Recovery, and
 Post-disaster Mitigation Restricted Account;
        < modifies standards and requirements for receiving a grant from funds originating
 from the Response, Recovery, and Post-disaster Mitigation Restricted Account;
        < grants rulemaking authority to the Division of Emergency Management; and
        < makes technical and conforming changes.
 Money Appropriated in this Bill:
        This bill appropriates in fiscal year 2023:
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        < to Response, Recovery, and Post-disaster Mitigation Restricted Account:
             C   from State Disaster Recovery Restricted Account, One-time, $10,000,000.
        < to Department of Public Safety - Emergency Management:
             C   from Response, Recovery, and Post-disaster Mitigation Restricted Account,
 One-time, $10,000,000.
 This bill appropriates in fiscal year 2024:
        < to Department of Public Safety - Emergency Management:
             C   from State Disaster Recovery Restricted Account, $750,000.
 Other Special Clauses:
        This bill provides a special effective date.
 Utah Code Sections Affected:
 AMENDS:
        53-2a-603, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2022, Chapters 111, 373
        53-2a-606, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2013, Chapter 117 and renumbered and
 amended by Laws of Utah 2013, Chapter 295
        53-2a-1301, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2019, Chapter 306
        53-2a-1302, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2019, Chapter 306
        53-2a-1303, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2019, Chapter 306
        53-2a-1305, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2019, Chapter 306
        63J-1-314, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2017, Chapter 210
        63J-1-602.1, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2022, Chapters 48, 191, 255, 335, 415,
 and 451
 REPEALS AND REENACTS:
        53-2a-1304, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2019, Chapter 306
53
 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
        Section 1. Section 53-2a-603 is amended to read:
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         53-2a-603. State Disaster Recovery Restricted Account.
         (1) (a) There is created a restricted account in the General Fund known as the "State
 Disaster Recovery Restricted Account."
         (b) The disaster recovery account consists of:
         (i) money deposited into the disaster recovery account in accordance with Section
 63J-1-314;
         (ii) money appropriated to the disaster recovery account by the Legislature; and
         (iii) any other public or private money received by the division that is:
         (A) given to the division for purposes consistent with this section; and
         (B) deposited into the disaster recovery account at the request of:
         (I) the division; or
         (II) the person or entity giving the money.
         (c) The Division of Finance shall deposit interest or other earnings derived from
 investment of account money into the General Fund.
         (2) [Subject to being appropriated by the Legislature, money] Money in the disaster
 recovery account may only be expended or committed to be expended as follows:
         (a) (i) subject to Section 53-2a-606, in any fiscal year the division may expend or
 commit to expend an amount that does not exceed $500,000, in accordance with Section
 53-2a-604, to fund costs to the state of emergency disaster services in response to a declared
 disaster;
         (ii) subject to Section 53-2a-606, in any fiscal year the division may expend or commit
 to expend an amount that exceeds $500,000, but does not exceed $3,000,000, in accordance
 with Section 53-2a-604, to fund costs to the state of emergency disaster services in response to
 a declared disaster if the division:
         (A) before making the expenditure or commitment to expend, obtains approval for the
 expenditure or commitment to expend from the governor;
         (B) subject to Subsection (5), provides written notice of the expenditure or
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 commitment to expend to the speaker of the House of Representatives, the president of the
 Senate, the Division of Finance, the Executive Offices and Criminal Justice Appropriations
 Subcommittee, the Legislative Management Committee, and the Office of the Legislative
 Fiscal Analyst no later than 72 hours after making the expenditure or commitment to expend;
 and
        (C) makes the report required by Subsection 53-2a-606(2);
        (iii) subject to Section 53-2a-606, in any fiscal year the division may expend or commit
 to expend an amount that exceeds $3,000,000, but does not exceed $5,000,000, in accordance
 with Section 53-2a-604, to fund costs to the state of emergency disaster services in response to
 a declared disaster if, before making the expenditure or commitment to expend, the division:
        (A) obtains approval for the expenditure or commitment to expend from the governor;
 and
        (B) submits the expenditure or commitment to expend to the Executive Appropriations
 Committee in accordance with Subsection 53-2a-606(3); [and]
        (iv) in any fiscal year the division may expend or commit to expend an amount that
 does not exceed $500,000 to fund expenses incurred by the National Guard if:
        (A) in accordance with Section 39A-3-103, the governor orders into active service the
 National Guard in response to a declared disaster; and
        (B) the money is not used for expenses that qualify for payment as emergency disaster
 services; and
        (v) in any fiscal year, the division may expend an amount that does not exceed
 $750,000 to fund expenses incurred to develop or enhance emergency management capabilities
 if:
        (A) the money is used for personnel, equipment, supplies, contracts, training, exercises,
 or other expenses deemed reasonable and necessary to:
        (I) promote and strengthen the state's level of resiliency through mitigation,
 preparedness, response, or recovery activities; or
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         (II) meet federal grant matching requirements; and
         (B) the disaster recovery account has a balance of funds available to be utilized while
 maintaining a minimum balance of $5,000,000;
         (b) money not described in Subsections (2)(a)(i), (ii), and (iii) may be expended or
 committed to be expended to fund costs to the state directly related to a declared disaster that
 are not costs related to:
         (i) emergency disaster services;
         (ii) emergency preparedness; or
         (iii) notwithstanding whether a county participates in the Wildland Fire Suppression
 Fund created in Section 65A-8-204, any fire suppression or presuppression costs that may be
 paid for from the Wildland Fire Suppression Fund if the county participates in the Wildland
 Fire Suppression Fund;
         (c) to fund:
         (i) the Local Government Emergency Response Loan Fund created in Section
 53-2a-607; and
         (ii) the Response, Recovery, and Post-disaster Mitigation Restricted Account created in
 Section 53-2a-1302;
         (d) the division may provide advanced funding from the disaster recovery account to
 recognized agents of the state when:
         (i) Utah has agreed, through the division, to enact the Emergency Management
 Assistance Compact with another member state that has requested assistance during a declared
 disaster;
         (ii) Utah agrees to provide resources to the requesting member state;
         (iii) the agent of the state who represents the requested resource has no other funding
 source available at the time of the Emergency Management Assistance Compact request; and
         (iv) the disaster recovery account has a balance of funds available to be utilized while
 maintaining a minimum balance of $5,000,000; and
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         (e) to fund up to $500,000 for the governor's emergency appropriations described in
 Subsection 63J-1-217(4).
         (3) All funding provided in advance to an agent of the state and subsequently
 reimbursed shall be credited to the account.
         (4) The state treasurer shall invest money in the disaster recovery account according to
 Title 51, Chapter 7, State Money Management Act.
         (5) (a) Except as provided in Subsections (1) and (2), the money in the disaster
 recovery account may not be diverted, appropriated, expended, or committed to be expended
 for a purpose that is not listed in this section.
         (b) Notwithstanding Section 63J-1-410, the Legislature may not appropriate money
 from the disaster recovery account to eliminate or otherwise reduce an operating deficit if the
 money appropriated from the disaster recovery account is expended or committed to be
 expended for a purpose other than one listed in this section.
         (c) The Legislature may not amend the purposes for which money in the disaster
 recovery account may be expended or committed to be expended except by the affirmative vote
 of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house.
         (6) The division:
         (a) shall provide the notice required by Subsection (2)(a)(ii) using the best available
 method under the circumstances as determined by the division; and
         (b) may provide the notice required by Subsection (2)(a)(ii) in electronic format.
         Section 2. Section 53-2a-606 is amended to read:
         53-2a-606. Reporting.
         (1) By no later than December 31 of each year, the division shall provide a written
 report to the governor and the Executive Offices and Criminal Justice Appropriations
 Subcommittee of:
         (a) the division's activities under this part;
         (b) money expended or committed to be expended in accordance with this part;
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       Enrolled Copy                                                                             S.B. 33
        (c) the balances in the disaster recovery fund; and
        (d) any unexpended balance of appropriations from the disaster recovery fund.
        (2) (a) The governor and the Department of Public Safety shall report to the Legislative
 Management Committee an expenditure or commitment to expend made in accordance with
 Subsection 53-2a-603(2)(a)(ii) or 53-2a-1302(5)(b)(ii).
        (b) The governor and the Department of Public Safety shall make the report required
 by this Subsection (2) on or before the sooner of:
        (i) the day on which the governor calls the Legislature into session; or
        (ii) 15 days after the division makes the expenditure or commitment to expend
 described in Subsection 53-2a-603(2)(a)(ii) or 53-2a-1302(5)(b)(ii).
        (3) (a) Subject to Subsection (3)(b), before the division makes an expenditure or
 commitment to expend described in Subsection 53-2a-603(2)(a)(iii) or 53-5a-1302(5)(b)(iii),
 the governor and the Department of Public Safety shall submit the expenditure or commitment
 to expend to the Executive Appropriations Committee for its review and recommendations.
        (b) The Executive Appropriations Committee shall review the expenditure or
 commitment to expend and may:
        (i) recommend that the division make the expenditure or commitment to expend;
        (ii) recommend that the division not make the expenditure or commitment to expend;
 or
        (iii) recommend to the governor that the governor call a special session of the
 Legislature to review and approve or reject the expenditure or commitment to expend.
        Section 3. Section 53-2a-1301 is amended to read:
           Part 13. Response, Recovery, and Post-disaster Mitigation Restricted Account
        53-2a-1301. Definitions.
        As used in the part:
        (1) "Account" means the [Post Disaster Recovery and] Response, Recovery, and
 Post-disaster Mitigation Restricted Account created in Section 53-2a-1302.
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         (2) "Affected community" means a community directly affected by an ongoing or
 recent disaster.
         (3) "Affected community member" means a resident, property owner, business,
 nonprofit, or other individual or entity that is:
         (a) located within an affected community; and
         (b) suffered damage due to the ongoing or recent disaster in the affected community.
         [(3) "Chief executive officer" means the same as that term is defined in Section
 53-2a-203.]
         (4) "Community" means a county, municipality, local district, or special service
 district.
         [(5) "Costs not recoverable" include:]
         [(a) the county threshold; and]
         [(b) costs covered by insurance or federal government grants, including funding
 provided to the state by FEMA's Public Assistance grant program described in 44 C.F.R.
 Chapter 1, Subchapter D, Part 206.]
         [(6) "County threshold" means, for each county, the countywide per capita indicator
 established by FEMA for the state, multiplied by the population of the county as determined by
 the division.]
         [(7)] (5) "Disaster response and recovery" means:
         (a) action taken to respond to and recover from a disaster, including action taken to
 remove debris, implement life-saving emergency protective measures, or repair, replace, or
 restore facilities in response to a disaster; and[.]
         (b) post-disaster hazard mitigation directly related to the recovery from the disaster
 described in Subsection (5)(a).
         [(8)] (6) "Disaster response and recovery grant" means money granted to an affected
 community for disaster response and recovery [that amounts to not more than 75% of the
 difference between the cost of disaster recovery, as determined by the division after reviewing
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 the official damage assessment, and costs not recoverable].
          [(9) "FEMA" means the Federal Emergency Management Agency.]
          (7) "Minimum threshold payment amount" means the amount of costs that an affected
 community or an affected community member shall pay before the affected community or
 affected community member is eligible to receive money from a disaster response and recovery
 grant.
          [(10)] (8) "Post-disaster hazard mitigation" means action taken, after a natural disaster,
 to reduce or eliminate risk to people or property that may occur as a result of the long-term
 effects of the natural disaster or a subsequent natural disaster, including action to prevent
 damage caused by flooding, earthquake, dam failure, wildfire, landslide, severe weather,
 drought, and problem soil.
          [(11) "Post hazard mitigation grant" means money granted to a community for post
 hazard mitigation that amounts to not more than 75% of the costs deemed necessary by the
 division to complete the post hazard mitigation.]
          [(12)] (9) "Official damage assessment" means a financial assessment of the damage to
 an affected community, caused by a disaster, that is conducted under the direction of the
 governing body of the affected community, in accordance with the rules described in Section
 53-2a-1305.
          Section 4. Section 53-2a-1302 is amended to read:
          53-2a-1302. Response, Recovery, and Post-disaster Mitigation Restricted
 Account.
          (1) There is created a restricted account in the General Fund known as the ["Post
 Disaster Recovery a