§29-31-11. West Virginia Flood Resiliency Trust Fund disbursement.

Upon the development of a new state Flood Resiliency Plan, the State Resiliency Officer shall have the power to disburse funds from the Flood Fund for the purposes of implementing the Flood Resiliency Plan to any person, political subdivision, or local organization in such amounts and in such manner, and to take such other actions, as the State Resiliency Officer may determine is necessary or appropriate and is outlined within the Flood Resiliency Plan. All assistance to any person, political subdivision, or local organization shall be for the purposes of building flood resiliency in the face of current and projected future flood disaster events: Provided, That except as provided hereafter in this section, requisitions for payment shall not be made or authorized for payment by the Auditor without the express approval of the State Resiliency Officer: Provided, however, That all disbursements shall require the express approval of the State Resiliency Officer, which approval shall be contingent on the proposed activity appearing as a valid proposed flood resiliency activity and prioritized for implementation within the most recent Flood Resiliency Plan as reviewed and approved by the State Resiliency Office Board.

Following the development and approval of a new state Flood Resiliency Plan, the State Resiliency Officer is granted the power to disburse funds from the Flood Resiliency Trust Fund. In accordance with these powers, the following provisions and conditions shall be adhered to:

(1) Disbursements from the Flood Fund shall be used solely for the purposes of enhancing flood prevention or protection as required by this article. The State Resiliency Office shall manage the Flood Fund and may disburse from the Flood Fund its reasonable costs and expenses incurred in the management of the Flood Fund; 

(2) Disbursements shall be prioritized to the benefit of low-income geographic areas, and not less than 50 percent of all funds disbursed through the Flood Resiliency Trust Fund shall be disbursed to the benefit of low-income geographic areas and low-income households;

(3) Disbursements shall be prioritized toward the implementation of nature-based solutions, and not less than 50 percent of all funds disbursed through the Flood Resiliency Trust Fund shall be disbursed to implement nature-based solutions. Of disbursements made to implement nature-based solutions, not less than 25 percent of these disbursements shall be utilized for the acquisition of single-family primary residences and multifamily residences in areas currently or projected to be subjected to significant flood impacts, assistance to residents relocating outside of the floodplain, and floodplain restoration activities on properties acquired through the Flood Fund;

(4) Disbursements to the benefit of a political subdivision may only be allowed upon the verification to the State Resiliency Officer that the recipient political subdivision has adopted, or will adopt within 24 months, the following programs or measures:

(A) Town road and bridge standards consistent with or exceeding those listed under the most current version of standards published by the West Virginia Department of Transportation;

(B) A flood hazard bylaw, or an adopted interim flood hazard bylaw as an intermediary step to secure enrollment and participation in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), if applicable;

(C) A local Hazard Mitigation Plan that meets the provisions of 44 CFR § 201.6 that has been approved by the local community, and is approved or in the process of securing final approval by FEMA. The local mitigation plan may be part of a larger multijurisdictional or regional mitigation plan;

(D) Adoption of a local Emergency Operations Plan (EOP) in accordance with state standards; and,

(E) Attainment of an active rate classification (class #1 through #9) under FEMA’s Community Rating System (CRS) that includes activities that prohibit new structures in mapped flood hazard zones; and

(5) Prioritization and conditions for disbursements at the discretion of the State Resiliency Officer and upon approval of the State Resiliency Office Board.