3860 Department of Water Resources
Program Descriptions

30 - PUBLIC SAFETY AND PREVENTION OF DAMAGE

This program protects life and property from damage by floods, ensures proper construction and maintenance of jurisdictional dams and levees, and provides loans for the construction, improvement and rehabilitation of domestic water systems to meet state standards for drinking water. Activities include assessing the state and regional investment needs to reduce risk, preventive floodplain management to discourage unwise use of areas subject to flooding, protection of floodplains, issuance of flood warnings, operation of flood control facilities, coordination and supervision of flood fight activities, and annual levee and flood channel maintenance and inspection in cooperation with other local, state, and federal partner agencies. This program also buys land, easements, and rights-of-way for federal flood control projects and supervises the design and construction of new dams and periodic inspection and reevaluation of all existing jurisdictional dams for proper operation and maintenance. Fiscal oversight and coordination activities associated with the Disaster Preparedness and Flood Prevention Bond Act of 2006 are administered under this program. The program also reviews federal dam projects in coordination with federal and other state agencies with regard to dam safety.