§90.2. Revision of flood information database by the Floodplain Evaluation and Management Commission

A. Provided that sufficient funds are specifically appropriated to the office, no later than March 1, 2022, and at least once every five years thereafter, the Floodplain Evaluation and Management Commission, consisting of the Department of Transportation and Development, the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority, the office of community development, the Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, the Department of Environmental Quality, a member from the House Committee on Transportation, Highways and Public Works, a member from the Senate Committee on Transportation, Highways, and Public Works, and the secretary of the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries or his designee shall review and revise the statewide flood information database. The secretary of the Department of Transportation and Development or his designee shall serve as chairman of the commission. The database will be developed for the purpose of the systematic evaluation of drainage and flooding problems in the state. The commission shall review the development proposals in each area to ensure that no development in one parish or municipality will have a negative or detrimental effect in any other parish or municipality. In addition, the commission shall ensure that maintenance in any basin area across parish or municipal boundaries, including the clearing and de-snagging of the Amite and Comite Rivers, are performed according to any contractual obligations and state law.

B. The revision shall be based upon the most recent distribution of flood hazard areas and flood damages based on, but not limited to, the following:

(1) Drainage patterns within hydrologic units.

(2) Floodprone areas as defined by the one-hundred-year flood.

(3) Current development patterns and population density.

(4) Major drainage projects constructed within the preceding four years and identification of problem areas which could be improved.

(5) Estimates of economic impact of the loss sustained in the inundated areas.

(6) Coordinated statewide watershed evaluations.

C. If the Floodplain Evaluation and Management Commission fails to perform the review and revision of the statewide flood information database as required in Subsection A of this Section, the commission shall submit a written report to the committee prior to the beginning of the next regular legislative session to inform the committee of the specific reason for such failure.

Added by Acts 1982, No. 351, §1; Acts 2017, No. 360, §1; Acts 2018, No. 437, §1.