Related Plans & Programs

Regional plans and programs related to public safety include the State Seismic Hazards Mapping Act, the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Law and Guidelines, California Noise Insulation Standards (Title 24), and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Flood Insurance Program. Other plans and programs are important to consider to ensure that the city has strong, comprehensive, and compatible tools to guide development decisions. Also, pursuant to state law, the city has developed a comprehensive emergency response plan.

Standardized Emergency Management System

Monterey Park participates in the Standardized Emergency Management System (SEMS) that provides a framework for coordinating multi-agency emergency responses. The city's SEMS incorporates mutual aid agreements, establishes lines of communication during emergencies, and standardizes incident command structures.

Seismic Hazards Mapping Act

California's Seismic Hazards Mapping Act of 1990 requires the state geologist to compile maps identifying and describing seismic hazards zones throughout California. Guidelines prepared by the state Mining and Geology Board identify the responsibilities of state and local agencies in the review of development within seismic hazard zones. Development on a site that has been designated as a seismic hazard zone requires a geotechnical report and local agency consideration of the policies and criteria established by the Mining and Geology Board. Over the years, the program has expanded to include mapping of seismic-related hazards such as landslide-prone areas.

California Environmental Quality Act

The state legislature adopted California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) in 1970 to ensure that environmental protection received due consideration in the planning and development process. CEQA requires a thorough analysis of potential environmental consequences which could result from a development project or plan that guides future development. CEQA provides a means by which city officials and the public can identify the potential impacts a project will have on a community, and to allow for mitigation or avoidance of such impacts.

California Noise Insulation Standards

In 1974, the California Commission on Housing and Community Development adopted noise insulation standards for residential buildings (Title 24, Part 2, California Code of Regulations). Title 24 establishes standards for interior room noise (attributable to outside noise sources). The regulations also specify that acoustical studies must be prepared whenever a residential building or structure is proposed to be located near an existing or adopted freeway route, expressway, parkway, major street, thoroughfare, rail line, rapid transit line, or industrial noise source, and where such noise source or sources create an exterior CNEL (or Ldn) of 60 dB or grater. Such acoustical analysis must demonstrate that the residence has been designed to limit intruding noise to an interior CNEL (or Ldn) of at least 45 dB.

FEMA Flood Insurance Program

The National Flood Insurance Act includes provisions for the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). Participating jurisdictions must exercise land use controls and purchase flood insurance as a prerequisite for receiving funds to purchase or build a structure in a flood hazard area. The NFIP provides federal flood insurance subsidies and federally financed loans for eligible property owners in flood-prone areas.

Monterey Park is identified on the National Flood Insurance Program's Flood Insurance Rate Maps as being within Zone X. Zone X is defined as an area subject to minimal flooding. Thus, stormwater flood hazards are not a concern in the city.

Environmental Protection Agency Superfund

The federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is charged with the authority of identifying the nation's most polluted properties and developing strategies to clean up the sites. Congress enacted the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, also known as CERCLA or "Superfund", to direct the EPA's efforts. In Monterey Park, the Operating Industries, Inc. landfill has been designated a Superfund site.

Insurance Services Office, Inc.

Insurance Services Office, Inc. (ISO) is a company licensed throughout the United States to provide advisory services to more than 1,500 participating insurers, including the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). Services include supplying statistical, actuarial, and underwriting information to insurance providers.