OPR staff have released a draft Evacuation Planning Technical Advisory to guide cities and counties updating the safety element of their general plans pursuant to the evacuation requirements mandated by SB 99 (2019), AB 747 (2019), and AB 1409 (2021), and subsequently codified in GC § 65302(g) and 65302.15. In general, these laws require local governments to identify the following in their safety elements:
- “Residential developments in any hazard area identified in the safety element that do not have at least two emergency evacuation routes.” (GC § 65302(g)), and
- “Evacuation routes and their capacity, safety, and viability and evacuation locations under a range of emergency scenarios.” (GC § 65302.15).
General Plan Guidelines and Technical Advisories
OPR will accept public comment from Oct 5, 2023 to Nov 30, 2023. We encourage you to submit a comment using OPR’s Public Comment Form or by attending a listening session on November 13, 2023
OPR staff are committed to reviewing and reflecting on all comments we receive and will consider public input when developing the final Evacuation Planning Technical Advisory, which we expect to release in Winter or Spring 2024.