2024 -- S 2298 SUBSTITUTE A | |
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LC004275/SUB A/2 | |
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STATE OF RHODE ISLAND | |
IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY | |
JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2024 | |
____________ | |
A N A C T | |
RELATING TO WATERS AND NAVIGATION -- ACT ON COASTS - COASTAL | |
RESILIENCY | |
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Introduced By: Senators Gu, Valverde, DiMario, Kallman, Sosnowski, Euer, Britto, | |
Date Introduced: February 12, 2024 | |
Referred To: Senate Environment & Agriculture | |
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows: | |
1 | SECTION 1. Title 46 of the General Laws entitled "WATERS AND NAVIGATION" is |
2 | hereby amended by adding thereto the following chapter: |
3 | CHAPTER 23.4 |
4 | ACT ON COASTS -- COASTAL RESILIENCY |
5 | 46-23.4-1. Short title. |
6 | This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Act on Coasts -- Coastal Resiliency". |
7 | 46-23.4-2. Rhode Island chief resilience officer (CRO). |
8 | The chief resilience officer (CRO) shall: |
9 | (1) Conduct a comprehensive assessment of the climate risks related to sea level rise for |
10 | coastal and riverine communities. The CRO will conduct an assessment of risk to Providence, Kent, |
11 | Washington, Bristol and Newport counties for the purposes of the development of a statewide |
12 | coastal resilience strategy, building upon and supporting the work of the Rhode Island shoreline |
13 | change special area management plan, hazard mitigation plan and the municipal resilience planning |
14 | program; |
15 | (2) Develop a coastal resilience plan and draft state policies on resilience and implement |
16 | such policies in conjunction with the Rhode Island executive climate change coordinating council |
17 | (the “RIEC4”) to improve coordination among state agencies and local jurisdictions to support |
18 | community and economic recovery efforts and to address risk and vulnerability reduction from sea |
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1 | rise, riverine flooding and urban heat. The CRO shall provide the statewide coastal resilience plan |
2 | to the governor, the RIEC4 and the general assembly no later than October 1, 2025, to be included |
3 | in the state climate plan as outlined in chapter 6.2 of title 42 ("2021 act on climate") which statewide |
4 | plan is due December 31, 2026; |
5 | (3) Coordinate resilience efforts across state agencies, municipalities, businesses, and other |
6 | organizations and to advise the RIEC4, established pursuant to § 42-6.2-1, on the status and |
7 | effectiveness of those efforts; |
8 | (4) Draft state policies on resilience and implement such policies under the direction of the |
9 | RIEC4; |
10 | (5) Serve as the primary voice and advocate for state actions on resilience; |
11 | (6) Build upon the planning assistance provided to municipalities by municipal resilience |
12 | program (“MRP”) workshops, in coordination with partner agencies; |
13 | (7) Work closely with Rhode Island infrastructure bank (“RIIB”) on the MRP action grants |
14 | and the planning and financing of other resilience projects; |
15 | (8) Work with RIIB and coastal resource management council on the implementation of |
16 | the ocean state climate adaptation and resilience fund (“OSCAR”) grant program; |
17 | (9) Plan and implement projects to protect and restore the habitat and recreational resources |
18 | owned or under the stewardship of department of environmental management; |
19 | (10) Aggressively track and apply for federal grants to fund resilience efforts across Rhode |
20 | Island; |
21 | (11) Coordinate resilience efforts with decarbonization programs, activities, and policies |
22 | taken in accordance with the chapter 6.2 of title 42 ("2021 act on climate"); |
23 | (12) Provide technical assistance to municipalities and the state for the implementation of |
24 | resilience planning, including resilience frameworks, vulnerability profiles, risk-reduction plans, |
25 | and economic development strategies; and |
26 | (13) Provide biennial reports to the RIEC4, the governor, the speaker of the house of |
27 | representatives, and the president of the senate on the state of resilience in Rhode Island, with the |
28 | first report to be submitted by December 31, 2026. |
29 | 46-23.4-3. Statewide coastal resilience plan. |
30 | (a) The Rhode Island statewide climate change resilience strategy shall include a coastal |
31 | resilience plan that recommends a specific long-term and short-term strategy for climate change |
32 | resilience and adaptation in the coastal areas of the state including, but not limited to, tidal and non- |
33 | tidal waters, waterfronts, and inland areas along the coast. |
34 | (b) The statewide coastal resilience plan shall include at a minimum: |
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1 | (1) All necessary information and assessments required by the Federal Emergency |
2 | Management Agency (FEMA) advanced mitigation plans that will allow Rhode Island to apply for |
3 | federal funding for coastal resilience preparedness; |
4 | (2) An assessment of the vulnerabilities of communities located within the coastal areas to |
5 | climate change effects such as rising sea levels, increased flooding, and tidal and storm surge |
6 | flooding anticipated by the year 2050, including physical, economic, and social vulnerabilities |
7 | including, but not limited to: |
8 | (i) Power infrastructure; |
9 | (ii) Water and sewage infrastructure including water and sewage treatment facilities and |
10 | private wells and septic systems; |
11 | (iii) Stormwater drainage; |
12 | (iv) Existing hard infrastructure such as seawalls, tidal gates, dams, roads and bridges; and |
13 | (v) Emergency and shelter facilities; |
14 | (3) Comprehensive and detailed information of the investments that the state, along with |
15 | the federal government, local governments, and other organizations, have made or committed to |
16 | make in building the resilience of coastal communities, planning guidance and assistance, and other |
17 | resilience and adaptation measures; |
18 | (4) Recommend methodologies for decision-making for further investment of state or |
19 | federal funds in constructing additional hard or nature-based resilience structures to prevent or |
20 | mitigate impacts of climate change, or in adopting other resilience or adaptation strategies; |
21 | (5) A detailed analysis that includes assessment of highest, immediate and long-term risks |
22 | to the coastal regions; and |
23 | (6) A comprehensive list of any recommendations for actions to be taken by the state to |
24 | prepare coastal communities to plan, mitigate, and adapt to the anticipated impacts of climate |
25 | change including, but not limited to, stormwater drainage, hard infrastructure, nature-based |
26 | solutions, relocation and retreat strategies and for financing strategies to fund the recommended |
27 | resilience and adaptation measures. |
28 | (c) The statewide coastal resilience plan shall be updated as necessary and shall be |
29 | reviewed at least every two (2) years, beginning October 1, 2028, by the CRO. |
30 | SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage. |
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LC004275/SUB A/2 | |
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EXPLANATION | |
BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL | |
OF | |
A N A C T | |
RELATING TO WATERS AND NAVIGATION -- ACT ON COASTS - COASTAL | |
RESILIENCY | |
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1 | This act would require the chief resilience officer (CRO) to be charged with the creation, |
2 | maintenance and updating of the statewide coastal resilience plan. The act would also create a |
3 | statewide climate change coastal resilience plan. |
4 | This act would take effect upon passage. |
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LC004275/SUB A/2 | |
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