Existing law requires the State Fire Marshal to identify areas in the state as moderate, high, and very high fire hazard severity zones based on consistent statewide criteria and based on the severity of fire hazard that is expected to prevail in those areas. Existing law requires a local agency to designate, by ordinance, moderate, high, and very high fire hazard severity zones in its jurisdiction within 120 days of receiving recommendations from the State Fire Marshal, as provided.

Existing law authorizes specified state agencies, including the Department of Water Resources, subject to an appropriation, to make grants and direct expenditures for interim or immediate relief in response to conditions arising from a drought scenario to address immediate impacts on human health and safety or on fish and wildlife resources or to provide water to persons or communities that lose or are threatened with the loss or contamination of water supplies.

This bill would establish in the department the Urban Water Community Drought Relief program and the Small Community Drought Relief program to provide grants for similar interim or immediate drought relief. These programs, upon a specified appropriation, would authorize funding for benefits in addition to drought relief, including, among other projects, projects that reduce the risk of wildfire for entire neighborhoods and communities through water delivery system improvements for fire suppression purposes in high fire hazard severity zone communities or very high fire hazard severity zone communities, as designated by the State Fire Marshal or by a local agency.