Home/Bills/AB 1530California · 2025–2026 Regular Session

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AB 1530: California Disaster Assistance Act.

California · Assembly · 2025–2026 Regular Session · last verified December 7, 2025

What AB 1530 does, verified December 7, 2025

The bill aims to amend emergency services laws in California to support community recovery from emergencies. The Office of Emergency Services will establish a model process to encourage community participation in recovery efforts, including measures for private nonprofit organizations. Private nonprofits will be eligible to receive state assistance for distributing supplies and emergency aid, subject to eligibility requirements. The Office of Emergency Services will issue guidelines to implement these provisions, rather than regulations.

Bill journey

✓IntroducedComplete

✓In CommitteeComplete

✓First Chamber FloorComplete

4Second ChamberCurrent

5GovernorPending

6ChapteredPending

Last action: In committee: Held under submission. (2025-05-23)Alert me

Author and sponsors

Emergency Management CommitteeAuthor · California State Assembly

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Recent actions20 total · showing 5

Aug. 29, 2025	In committee: Held under submission.
Aug. 18, 2025	In committee: Referred to suspense file.
Jul. 08, 2025	From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. with recommendation: To Consent Calendar. (Ayes 15. Noes 0.) (July 8). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
Jun. 18, 2025	Referred to Com. on G.O.
Jun. 05, 2025	In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.

Full action history, 15 earlier actionsConnect Plus

Latest bill textAmended version, May 23, 2025 · 1,473 words

Amended IN Assembly May 23, 2025

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 1530

Introduced by Committee on Emergency Management (Assembly Members Ransom (Chair), Hadwick (Vice Chair), Bains, Calderon, and DeMaio)

March 26, 2025

An act to amend Sections ~~8680.4, 8682.9, 8685, 8687.7, and 8692 of, and to add Section 8680.10 to,~~ 8687.7 and 8692 of the Government Code, relating to emergency services.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 1530, as amended, Committee on Emergency Management. California Disaster Assistance Act.

Existing law, the California Disaster Assistance Act, authorizes the Director of Emergency Services to allocate certain funds to meet the cost of a project, defined as the repair, restoration, or replacement of real property of a local agency used for essential government services that are damaged or destroyed by a disaster, subject to specified conditions. as defined.

This bill would also authorize those funds to be used for unmet needs identified by a local agency that may be immediately required to help individuals and community-based organizations quickly recover from a disaster, and would make related and conforming changes.
~~Existing law requires the director to adopt regulations as necessary to govern the administration of the act in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act.~~
~~This bill would instead require the director to issue guidelines to govern the administration of the act.~~

Existing law authorizes the Office of Emergency Services to establish a model process to assist a community in recovering from an emergency proclaimed by the Governor that includes, among other information, measures to encourage the participation of nongovernmental organizations in the community recovery process to supplement recovery activities undertaken by federal or local agencies.

This bill would instead require the office to establish that model process, and would require the model process to also include measures to encourage the participation of private nonprofit organizations and how they may be eligible to receive state assistance for distribution of supplies and other disaster or emergency assistance activities resulting in extraordinary cost.

Existing law, if a state of emergency is proclaimed, authorizes an eligible private nonprofit organization to receive state assistance for distribution of supplies and other disaster or emergency assistance activities resulting in extraordinary cost subject to specified eligibility and other requirements. Existing law requires the office to adopt regulations to implement those provisions.

This bill would instead require the office to issue guidelines to implement those provisions.

Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NO

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.Section 8680.4 of the Government Code is amended to read:
8680.4.
“Project” means the repair or restoration, or both, other than normal maintenance, or the replacement of, real property of a local agency used for essential governmental services, including, but not limited to, buildings, levees, flood control works, channels, irrigation works, streets, roads, bridges, highways, and other public works, that are damaged or destroyed by a disaster and any other unmet needs as identified by a local agency. “Project” also includes those activities and expenses allowed under subdivisions (a), (c), (d), and (e) of Section 8685. Except as provided in Section 8686.3, the completion of all or part of a project prior to application for funds pursuant to this chapter shall not disqualify the project or any part thereof.
SEC. 2.Section 8680.10 is added to the Government Code, to read:
8680.10.
~~“Unmet needs” means assistance that may be immediately required to help individuals and community-based organizations to quickly recover from a disaster.~~
SEC. 3.Section 8682.9 of the Government Code is amended to read:
8682.9.
The director shall issue guidelines, as necessary, to govern the administration of the disaster assistance program authorized by this chapter. These guidelines shall include specific project eligibility requirements, a procedure for local governments to request the implementation of programs under this chapter, and a method for evaluating these requests by the Office of Emergency Services.
SEC. 4.Section 8685 of the Government Code is amended to read:
8685.
From any moneys appropriated for that purpose, and subject to the conditions specified in this article, the director shall allocate funds to meet the cost of any one or more projects as defined in Section 8680.4. Applications by school districts shall be submitted to the Superintendent of Public Instruction for review and approval, in accordance with instructions or regulations developed by the Office of Emergency Services, prior to the allocation of funds by the director.
~~Moneys appropriated for the purposes of this chapter may be used to provide financial assistance for the following local agency and state costs:~~
(a)Local agency personnel costs, equipment costs, and the cost of supplies and materials used during disaster response activities, incurred as a result of a state of emergency proclaimed by the Governor, excluding the normal hourly wage costs of employees engaged in emergency work activities.
(b)To repair, restore, reconstruct, or replace facilities belonging to local agencies damaged as a result of disasters as defined in Section 8680.3. Mitigation measures performed pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 8686.4 shall qualify for funding pursuant to this chapter.
~~(c)Matching fund assistance for cost sharing required under federal disaster assistance programs, as otherwise eligible under this act.~~
~~(d)Unmet needs identified by a local agency that may be immediately required to help individuals and community-based organizations to quickly recover from a disaster.~~
~~(e)Indirect administrative costs and any other assistance deemed necessary by the director.~~
~~(f)Necessary and required site preparation costs for mobilehomes, travel trailers, and other manufactured housing units provided and operated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.~~

~~SEC. 5.~~SECTION 1.

Section 8687.7 of the Government Code is amended to read:

8687.7.

(a) As used in this section, the following terms have the following meanings:

(1) “Agency” or “office” means the Office of Emergency Services.

(2) “Community” means a geographic area impacted by an emergency proclaimed by the Governor that includes the jurisdiction of one or more local agencies.

(3) “Community recovery partners” means local, state, and federal agencies, private nonprofit organizations, nongovernmental agencies, faith-based organizations, and other private entities.

(b) The office shall establish a model process that would be made available to assist a community in recovering from an emergency proclaimed by the Governor. The model process shall include the following:

(1) The role of the office in the community recovery process.

(2) Procedures for the office to have representation onsite as soon as practicable after the Governor proclaims a state of emergency.

(3) The role of the office to facilitate the use of temporary services, including, but not limited to, direct assistance to individuals, families, and businesses, crisis counseling, disaster unemployment assistance, food and clothing vouchers, communications systems, replacement of personal identification documents, provision of potable water, housing, farm service assistance, tax relief, insurance, and legal services.

(4) The role of the office to facilitate the establishment of temporary structures, including local assistance centers, showers and bathroom facilities, and temporary administrative offices.

(5) Measures to encourage the participation of nongovernmental organizations in the community recovery process to supplement recovery activities undertaken by federal or local agencies.

(6) Measures to encourage the participation of private nonprofit organizations and how they may be eligible to receive state assistance for distribution of supplies and other disaster or emergency assistance activities resulting in extraordinary cost.

(c) The office may refer the model process to the ~~standardized~~ Standardized Emergency Management System (SEMS) Advisory Board, or any other advisory board it deems appropriate, for review and modifications.

(d) It is the intent of the Legislature that the model process assists and complements local procedures. The model process should allow the office to offer additional assistance when that assistance is needed but not available through local agencies.

~~SEC. 6.~~SEC. 2.

Section 8692 of the Government Code is amended to read:

8692.

(a) If a state of emergency is proclaimed, an eligible private nonprofit organization may receive state assistance for distribution of supplies and other disaster or emergency assistance activities resulting in extraordinary cost.

(b) A private nonprofit organization is eligible for assistance under this section if it is eligible for disaster assistance under the federal Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 5121).

(c) An organization is not eligible for assistance under this section if it employs religious content in the provision of emergency assistance.

(d) Any grant of assistance under this section shall comply with Section 4 of Article I and Section 5 of Article XVI of the California Constitution, state and federal civil rights laws, and the First Amendment to the United States Constitution in regard to the funding of religious organizations and activities. These legal constraints include prohibitions on the discrimination against beneficiaries and staff based on protected categories, on the use of public funds for proselytizing of religious doctrine, religious instruction, or worship, and on the use of other religious means to accomplish programmatic goals.

(e) The Office of Emergency Services shall issue guidelines to implement this section.

Text of AB 1530 as amended, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions