                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

COOPERATIVE STATE-LOCAL PROGRAM (§ 62.1-44.15:67)

A. Healthy state and local economies and a healthy Chesapeake Bay are integrally
related; balanced economic development and water quality protection are not
mutually exclusive. The protection of the public interest in the Chesapeake Bay,
its tributaries, and other state waters and the promotion of the general welfare
of the people of the Commonwealth require that (i) the counties, cities, and
towns of Tidewater Virginia incorporate general water quality protection
measures into their comprehensive plans, zoning ordinances, and subdivision
ordinances; (ii) the counties, cities, and towns of Tidewater Virginia establish
programs, in accordance with criteria established by the Commonwealth, that
define and protect certain lands, hereinafter called Chesapeake Bay Preservation
Areas, which if improperly developed may result in substantial damage to the
water quality of the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries; (iii) the Commonwealth
make its resources available to local governing bodies by providing financial
and technical assistance, policy guidance, and oversight when requested or
otherwise required to carry out and enforce the provisions of this article; and
(iv) all agencies of the Commonwealth exercise their delegated authority in a
manner consistent with water quality protection provisions of local
comprehensive plans, zoning ordinances, and subdivision ordinances when it has
been determined that they comply with the provisions of this article.

B. Local governments have the initiative for planning and for implementing the
provisions of this article, and the Commonwealth shall act primarily in a
supportive role by providing oversight for local governmental programs, by
establishing criteria as required by this article, and by providing those
resources necessary to carry out and enforce the provisions of this article.

C. Each local government in Tidewater Virginia shall publish on its website the
elements and criteria adopted to implement its local plan as required by this
article, including those elements and criteria required by 9VAC25-830-60 for
local programs.

HISTORY: 1988, cc. 608, 891, § 10.1-2100; 2013, cc. 756, 793; 2022, c. 207.