DATE:
June 24, 2025 and August 26, 2025
FP01
TO:
Board of Directors, San Diego County Fire Protection District
SUBJECT
Title
NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING:
AN ORDINANCE TO ADOPT THE LOCAL RESPONSIBILITY AREAS FIRE HAZARD SEVERITY ZONE MAP (6/24/25 - FIRST READING: 8/26/25 - SECOND READING UNLESS ORDINANCE IS MODIFIED ON SECOND READING) (DISTRICTS: 2 AND 5)
Body
OVERVIEW
On September 27, 2022, the State of California enacted Assembly Bill (AB) 211, which established a requirement for the Office of the State Fire Marshal (Fire Marshal) to complete a fire hazard severity zone map update in the Local Responsibility Area (LRA). Once completed by the Fire Marshal, local agencies could make findings that increase the fire hazard severity within their LRA but not decrease it. Within 120 days of the revised LRA maps being made available, the local agency's governing body must adopt, through an ordinance, the fire hazard severity zone map.
On March 24, 2025, the Fire Marshal released the revised fire hazard severity zone map for the San Diego County Fire Protection District (SDCFPD). The fire hazard severity zone maps have been updated to more accurately reflect the zones in California that are susceptible to wildfire. The update incorporates new science in local climate data and improved fire assessment modeling in determining hazard ratings. Responsibility for wildland fire response differs from structural fire protection and emergency medical services. For residential and commercial fires, medical calls, or vehicle accidents, the responsibility is with the local fire agency in the entirety of their jurisdiction. However, for wildland fire, the State and Federal governments provide fire protection and have certain financial responsibilities in their designated areas. If a wildfire occurs in an LRA, the local fire agency is financially and legally responsible for response and coordination duties. Every year these boundaries are reviewed for updates. SDCFPD has ...
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