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The Vermont Statutes Online
Title
10
:
Conservation and Development
Chapter
032
:
FLOOD HAZARD AREAS
§
754. Flood hazard area rules; uses exempt from municipal regulation
(a) Rulemaking
authority.
(1) On or before
November 1, 2014, the Secretary shall adopt rules pursuant to 3 V.S.A. chapter
25 that establish requirements for the issuance and enforcement of permits
applicable to:
(i) uses exempt
from municipal regulation that are located within a flood hazard area or river
corridor of a municipality that has adopted a flood hazard bylaw or ordinance
under 24 V.S.A. chapter 117; and
(ii) State-owned
and -operated institutions and facilities that are located within a flood
hazard area or river corridor.
(2) The
Secretary shall not adopt rules under this subsection that regulate
agricultural activities without the consent of the Secretary of Agriculture,
Food and Markets, provided that the Secretary of Agriculture, Food and Markets
shall not withhold consent under this subdivision when lack of such consent
would result in the State's noncompliance with the National Flood Insurance
Program.
(3) The Secretary
shall seek the guidance of the Federal Emergency Management Agency in
developing and drafting the rules required by this section in order to ensure
that the rules are sufficient to meet eligibility requirements for the National
Flood Insurance Program.
(b) Required
rulemaking content. The rules shall:
(1) set forth
the requirements necessary to ensure uses exempt from municipal regulation are
regulated by the State in order to comply with the regulatory obligations set
forth under the National Flood Insurance Program.
(2) be designed
to ensure that the State and municipalities meet community eligibility
requirements for the National Flood Insurance Program.
(3) require that
the Secretary provide notice to a municipality in which a use exempt from municipal
regulation will occur of an application received under this section and a copy
of the permit issued, unless a use is authorized to occur without notification
of or reporting to the Secretary.
(c)
Discretionary rulemaking. The rules may establish requirements that exceed the
requirements of the National Flood Insurance Program for uses exempt from
municipal regulation, provided that any rules adopted under this subsection
that exceed the minimum requirements of the National Flood Insurance Program shall
be designed to prevent or limit a risk of harm to life, property, or
infrastructure from flooding.
(d) General
permit. The rules authorized by this section may establish requirements for a
general permit to implement the requirements of this section, including
authorization under the general permit to conduct a specified use exempt from
municipal regulation without notifying or reporting to the Secretary or an
agency delegated under subsection (g) of this section.
(e) Consultation
with interested parties. Prior to submitting the rules required by this section
to the Secretary of State under 3 V.S.A. § 838, the Secretary shall solicit the
recommendations of and consult with affected and interested persons and
entities such as: the Secretary of Commerce and Community Development; the
Secretary of Agriculture, Food and Markets; the Secretary of Transportation;
the Commissioner of Financial Regulation; representatives of river protection
interests; representatives of fishing and recreational interests; representatives
of the banking industry; representatives of the agricultural community;
representatives of the forest products industry; the regional planning
commissions; municipal interests; and representatives of municipal
associations.
(f) Permit
requirement. Beginning March 1, 2015, no person shall commence or conduct a use
exempt from municipal regulation in a flood hazard area or river corridor in a
municipality that has adopted a flood hazard area bylaw or ordinance under 24
V.S.A. chapter 117 or commence construction of a State-owned and -operated
institution or facility located within a flood hazard area or river corridor,
without a permit issued under the rules required under subsection (a) of this
section by the Secretary or by a State agency delegated permitting authority
under subsection (g) of this section.
(g) Delegation.
(1) The
Secretary may delegate to another State agency the authority to implement the
rules adopted under this section, to issue a permit under subsection (f) of
this section, and to enforce the rules and a permit.
(2) A memorandum
of understanding shall be entered into between the Secretary and a delegated
State agency for the purpose of specifying implementation of requirements of
this section and the rules adopted under this section, issuance of a permit or
coverage under a general permit under this section, and enforcement of the
rules and permit required by this section.
(3) Prior to
entering a memorandum of understanding, the Secretary shall post the proposed
memorandum of understanding on its website for 30 days for notice and comment.
When the memorandum of understanding is posted, it shall include a summary of
the proposed memorandum; the name, telephone number, and address of a person
able to answer questions and receive comments on the proposal; and the deadline
for receiving comments. A final copy of a memorandum of understanding entered
into under this section shall be sent to the chairs of the House and Senate
Committees on Natural Resources and Energy, the House Committee on Fish,
Wildlife and Water Resources, and any other committee that has jurisdiction
over an agency that is a party to the memorandum of understanding.
(h) Municipal
authority. This section and the rules adopted under it shall not prevent a
municipality from adopting substantive requirements for development in a flood
hazard area bylaw or ordinance under 24 V.S.A. chapter 117 that are more
stringent than the rules required by this section, provided that the bylaw or
ordinance shall not apply to uses exempt from municipal regulation. (Added
2011, No. 138 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. May 14, 2012; amended 2013, No. 107 (Adj.
Sess.), § 1, eff. April 18, 2014.)
