Va. Disaster Assistance Fund; post-disaster recovery, floodplain mitigation and resilience projects.

Plain English Breakdown

The bill's status is marked as 'Enacted' in the metadata but the last action indicates it was left in committee, creating some uncertainty about its current legal standing.

Virginia Disaster Assistance Fund Changes

This bill allows the Virginia Disaster Assistance Fund to be used for post-disaster recovery projects that follow state or local flood safety rules, giving priority to nature-based solutions and green infrastructure.

What This Bill Does

• Allows the Department of Housing and Community Development to use the Virginia Disaster Assistance Fund for rebuilding projects consistent with state or local floodplain management standards.
• Gives priority to projects using nature-based solutions or promoting green infrastructure when awarding money from the fund.
• Requires coordination with the Interagency Resilience Management Team to ensure that new project ideas align with the Commonwealth's resilience principles.

Who It Names or Affects

• The Department of Housing and Community Development
• People who apply for funding from the Virginia Disaster Assistance Fund

Terms To Know

Floodplain management standards

Rules that help prevent damage from floods by controlling how buildings are built in flood-prone areas.

Nature-based solutions

Using natural features like plants and wetlands to solve problems, such as reducing flood risks or cleaning water.

Limits and Unknowns

• The bill does not specify the amount of money available in the Virginia Disaster Assistance Fund.
• It is unclear if this bill has been fully enacted into law yet.

Official Summary Text

Department of Housing and Community Development; Virginia Disaster Assistance Fund; post-disaster recovery; floodplain mitigation and resilience projects.
Requires the Department of Housing and Community Development (the Department) to amend its criteria for awarding money from the Virginia Disaster Assistance Fund (the Fund) to allow for moneys from the Fund to be used for post-disaster recovery projects that are consistent with the state floodplain management standards for state-owned buildings or local floodplain standards, whichever are more stringent. The bill requires the Department to give priority to projects that use nature-based solutions or promote green infrastructure when possible. The bill also requires the Department to coordinate with the Interagency Resilience Management Team when evaluating new applications for awards from the Fund to ensure that such projects are aligned with the Commonwealth's resilience principles.

Current Bill Text

A BILL to direct the Department of Housing and Community Development to allow the Virginia Disaster Assistance Fund be used for post-disaster recovery projects aligned with state or local floodplain management standards.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1.
§ 1.

That the Department of Housing
and Community Development
(the Department)
shall amend its criteria for
awarding
money from the Virginia Disaster Assistance Fund
(the Fund)
to allow for moneys from the Fund to be
used for post-
disaster
recovery projects
that are
consistent with
state
floodplain management
standards
for state
-
owned buildings or local floodplain standards, which
ever
are

more stringent
. The Department shall give priority to projects that
use nature-based solutions or promote green infrastructure when possible. The Department shall coordinate with the Interagency
Resilience Management Team
,

convened

pursuant
to
§
2.2-220.5
of the Code of Vi
rginia, when evaluating new applications for
awards
from the Fund
to ensure
that
such projects are aligned with the Commonwealth's resilience principles.