House Bill 23-1075 assigns the Colorado Division of Homeland Security (DHSEM) with the identification and assessment of available technology for wildfire evacuation and clearance time modeling. It also requires the evaluation specifically for developers to perform the evacuation modeling for proposed developments. The bill lays out that for this report the stakeholders are limited to DOLA, DFPC, CDPS and other state agencies.
On August 21, 2023 the Colorado DHSEM approved an agreement to begin work on the act. The scope of work states that the Colorado Office of Emergency Management shall study the efficacy and feasibility of local or interjurisdictional emergency management agencies with jurisdiction in wildfire risk area integrating evacuation and clearance time modeling into the Emergency Management Plan that is required by section 24-33.5-707 (8) for its area.
The study at a minimum must:
- Identify and assess the availability of technology to assist with evacuation and clearance time modeling.
- Evaluate the feasibility of requiring developers to perform evacuation and clearance time modeling for proposed developments in a wildfire risk area.
- The Project Manager will engage all applicable stakeholders to include but not limited to the following:
- The Department of Local Affairs
- The Division of Fire Prevention and Control
- Colorado Emergency Management Association
- Colorado Builders Association County Sheriffs of Colorado
- Work will be completed on or before November 15, 2023
The Colorado DHSEM report must be completed on or before December 1, 2023 and the report findings of the study are due to the Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee and the House of Representatives Agriculture, Water and Natural Resources Committee in the 2024 session.
The work was executed through an option letter on August 21, 2023.