Vermont H 778: An act relating to dam safety

Bill Text

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No. 114. An act relating to dam safety.
(H.778)
It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont:
Sec. 1. 20 V.S.A. § 10 is amended to read:
§ 10. REQUEST TO GOVERNOR BY MUNICIPAL AUTHORITIES
The all-hazards event provisions of this chapter shall not be brought into
action unless the municipal director of emergency management, a member of
the legislative body of the municipality, the city or town manager, or the mayor
of a city that is within the area affected by an all-hazards event shall declare an
emergency and request the Governor to find that a state of emergency exists
and the Governor so finds, or unless the Governor declares a state of
emergency under section 9 of this title. This section shall not be construed to
prevent the Governor or the Director of Emergency Management without
municipal approval from requiring the evacuation of an area subject to
inundation from a dam failure when there is a dam failure or an imminent risk
of failure.
Sec. 2. STATE OF VERMONT EMERGENCY OPERATIONS PLANNING
PILOT PROJECT; REPORT
(a)(1) The Division of Emergency Management, in coordination with the
Department of Environmental Conservation, shall conduct a pilot project under
which the Division shall develop a set of emergency operations plans (EOPs)
for two State-owned dams that have been classified as high-hazard potential.

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One of the dams shall have a population at risk of 1,000 or more persons and
the other shall have a population at risk of 100 or more but fewer than 1,000
persons.
(2) The set of EOPs for each dam shall include actions for each
municipality in the inundation zone of the dam.
(b)(1) In preparing the EOPs required under subsection (a) of this section
and in order to ensure the sufficiency of the EOPs to protect public lives and
property, the Division shall coordinate with and collect input from the Whole
Community that would be affected if the dam were to fail. The Division also
shall coordinate with any owner or operator of a hydroelectric generation
facility located at a State-owned dam. As used in this section, “Whole
Community” shall have the same meaning as provided in the Federal
Emergency Management Administration guidance on A Whole Community
Approach to Emergency Management: Principles, Themes, and Pathways for
Action FDOC 104-008-1, December 2011.
(2) The Division of Emergency Management may hire a contractor,
including a regional planning commission, to complete the requirements of this
section, including one or both of the EOPs required under subsection (a) of this
section.
(c) Each EOP required to be completed under subsection (a) of this section
shall:

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(1) be coordinated with each dam’s emergency action plan and shall
utilize each dam’s emergency action plan inundation maps;
(2) identify planned evacuations and evacuation routes based on
possible inundation scenarios, including how to evacuate vulnerable
populations such as medically vulnerable individuals who need access to
electricity or specialized medical equipment;
(3) identify where individuals shall evacuate to, such as a shelter, higher
ground, or reunification location;
(4) engage managers and administrators of facilities that house
vulnerable populations within the Whole Community in the plan development;
(5) plan for the use of mutual aid and State resources, and coordinate
such use between municipalities downstream of the dam;
(6) address how to implement the use of pre-event communication and
early warning systems to alert persons in the inundation areas, including the
use of the VT-Alert system; and
(7) include any additional provisions deemed useful by the Division in
developing the EOP or for inclusion in the EOP.
(d) On or before July 1, 2028, the Division of Emergency Management
shall submit to the House Committee on Environment and the Senate
Committee on Natural Resources and Energy the results of the pilot project
required under subsection (a) of this section, including:
(1) copies of the EOPs for the two dams;

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(2) a summary of the process of developing the EOPs, including
whether the Division completed the EOPs with Division staff, contracted with
regional planning commissions, or hired other contractors to complete the
EOPs;
(3) a summary of who in the area of potential inundation for each dam
that the Division or the Division contractor coordinated with in the
development of the EOP;
(4) the cost of the EOPs completed under the pilot project;
(5) a summary of early warning and communications systems
municipalities may use to communicate recommendations or requests for
evacuation, including the best use of the State’s VT-Alert system; and
(6) a scope, timeline, and budget for the Division to develop an EOP
template or templates and a training on EOP development for municipalities.
(e) As part of the report req