                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

CHIEF RESILIENCE OFFICER OF THE COMMONWEALTH; INTERAGENCY RESILIENCE MANAGEMENT
TEAM (§ 2.2-220.5)

A. The Governor shall designate a Chief Resilience Officer. The Chief Resilience
Officer shall serve as the primary coordinator of resilience and adaptation
initiatives in Virginia and as the primary point of contact regarding issues
related to resilience, as that term is defined in &#xA7; 10.1-603.28. The Chief
Resilience Officer shall be equally responsible for all urban, suburban, and
rural areas of the Commonwealth. All agencies of the Commonwealth shall assist
the Chief Resilience Officer in the discharge of his duties upon request.

B. The Chief Resilience Officer shall (i) promote communication, coordination,
and cooperation between state agencies, the federal government, local
governments, other political subdivisions of the Commonwealth, and other
interested parties regarding resilience; (ii) lead in developing and in
providing direction and ensuring accountability for a statewide resilience and
adaptation strategy; (iii) seek to ensure that resilience and adaptation
strategies prioritize the protection of Virginia&#8217;s natural resources and
maximize the implementation of nature-based design while supporting
Virginia&#8217;s statutory obligations to clean water; and (iv) initiate and
assist with economic development opportunities associated with adaptation. The
Chief Resilience Officer, in his role, shall also:

   1. Identify and monitor those areas of the Commonwealth that are at greatest
   risk from significant multi-hazard threats and recommend actions that both the
   private and public sectors should consider in order to increase the resilience
   of such areas;

   2. Provide support to local governments, as that term is defined in &#xA7;
   10.1-603.28, that are seeking to promote resilience within their communities
   by providing technical assistance and capacity building support regarding best
   practices for resilience planning, data collection, and project design and
   implementation;

   3. Coordinate with the Department of Emergency Management on all issues
   related to pre-disaster hazard mitigation and post-disaster recovery;

   4. Assist the Department of Conservation and Recreation with the development
   and implementation of a Virginia Flood Protection Master Plan and a Virginia
   Coastal Resilience Master Plan in accordance with &#xA7; 10.1-602;

   5. Seek to maximize the coordination, availability, and use of federal, state,
   and private funding to address resilience challenges, including initiating and
   assisting with the pursuit of funding opportunities at both the state and
   local levels. In order to maximize federal funding, the Chief Resilience
   Officer is authorized to:
   				a. Serve as a non-federal sponsor, as that term is described in 33 C.F.R.
   &#xA7; 203.15, and enter into a legal agreement with the U.S. Army Corps of
   Engineers for the purpose of mitigating flooding and integrating resilience,
   at the request of and in coordination with an eligible funding recipient;
   				b. Enter into and execute agreements with the federal government,
   including the U.S. Department of Defense, for support for flood control
   initiatives to increase resilience related to U.S. Department of Defense
   installations; and
   				c. Make applications on behalf of the Commonwealth for other federal
   funding as directed by the Governor;

   6. Coordinate the collection and dissemination of the best available
   resilience science, legal guidance, planning strategies, best practices, and
   needs assessments to the public. Such needs assessments shall include any
   local government needs assessments that have been submitted to the Chief
   Resilience Officer. Such information shall be made available on a publicly
   accessible website; and

   7. Beginning July 1, 2025, and every two years thereafter, report to the
   Governor and the General Assembly on the status of resilience in the
   Commonwealth. Such report shall include the status of actions undertaken by
   the Chief Resilience Officer and state agencies regarding resilience
   coordination and planning and all resilience funding received and distributed
   by the Commonwealth during the prior two years. In preparing the report, the
   Chief Resilience Officer shall also coordinate with the Director of Diversity,
   Equity, and Inclusion and shall be assisted by all relevant Secretariats and
   agencies.

C. The Chief Resilience Officer shall convene an Interagency Resilience
Management Team (the Team) to support the coordination of planning and
implementation of resilience efforts, and he shall serve as chairman of the
Team. The Team shall meet on the call of the chairman but not less than once
every three months. Membership of the Team shall include representatives from
the Departments of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Conservation and
Recreation, Emergency Management, Energy, Environmental Quality, Forestry,
General Services, Health, Historic Resources, Housing and Community Development,
Transportation, and Wildlife Resources; the Marine Resources Commission; the
Virginia Resources Authority; the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion;
and others as appointed by the Governor. Each agency participating in the Team
shall designate a resilience coordinator to represent such agency in the Team.
The responsibilities of the Team shall include:

   1. Exchanging information and best practices related to resilience, including
   means of integrating common language and practices for resilience work across
   agencies;

   2. Advising the Chief Resilience Officer on strategies for enhancing
   resilience planning and funding coordination across agencies under a unified
   statewide approach to resilience; and

   3. Recommending metrics for measuring the progress of resilience efforts in
   the Commonwealth.

HISTORY: 2022, c. 786; 2024, c. 753.