§3307 Assessment of Corps of Engineers Levees

Summary

The Secretary must regularly check Corps-managed levees to see if changing them—including moving parts or adding natural features—could better reduce flood risk, make the system more resilient, or restore connections to nearby floodplains for environmental benefits without hurting community protection. For levees run by local or non-Federal groups, the Secretary will do an assessment only if that group asks and pays 50 percent of the cost. Each check must estimate how many people and buildings are protected and at risk, note past emergency help and total repair costs, test how the levee works with heavier rain or changing climate, weigh the costs and benefits of reconnecting floodplains (including environmental and community effects), and use available studies and data. Levees that flooded two or more times in any 10-year span and got emergency help are prioritized. The work should match the cost and scope of an initial assessment under existing rules and use flood damage information already collected. Within 18 months after December 23, 2022, and then from time to time, the Secretary must report to Congress which levees were checked, what modification opportunities were found and their benefits, whether local owners can and will take part (including getting needed land), and a summary of the information used. The report data must be added to the public levee database and posted online. Up to $10,000,000 is authorized to carry out these checks and stays available until spent. The term "levee system" is defined elsewhere.