SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom today signed Senate Bill 1055 by Senator John Laird, legislation to help accelerate critical flood protection projects along the Pajaro River by expanding the contracting tools available to the Pajaro Regional Flood Management Agency (PRFMA).

“Pajaro Valley communities know firsthand the devastating consequences of flooding, and we have a responsibility to keep moving these critical protection projects forward,” said Laird. “SB 1055 gives the Pajaro Regional Flood Management Agency more flexibility to get this work done efficiently and responsibly. I thank Governor Newsom for signing this bill and for continuing to support our work to better protect families, businesses, and farmland throughout the Pajaro Valley.”

SB 1055 authorizes PRFMA to use additional construction procurement methods, including Job Order Contracting, Design-Build, Best Value, and Construction Manager/General Contractor contracting, helping the agency deliver levee repairs and flood control improvements more efficiently.

Currently, PRFMA is limited in the construction procurement methods it can use to deliver projects. SB 1055 expands the agency’s contracting authority from three procurement methods to seven, providing greater flexibility to reduce costs, shorten construction timelines, and complete critical flood protection improvements more efficiently.

The Pajaro River levee system was originally constructed by the federal government in 1949 to protect the communities of Pajaro and Watsonville. The system has been breached multiple times over the decades, most recently during the March 2023 floods, when a roughly 400-foot levee breach forced approximately 3,500 residents to evacuate and caused an estimated $300 million in damage.

SB 1055 is sponsored by the Pajaro Regional Flood Management Agency, which oversees flood protection infrastructure along the Pajaro River.

“Senator Laird stepped up without hesitation to carry SB 1055 given his long-time interest and active legislative support of the Pajaro River flood project. In fact, his engagement goes back decades,” said Dr. Mark Strudley, Executive Director of the Pajaro Regional Flood Management Agency. “SB 1055 paves the way for a more timely and cost-effective means of seeing the project to completion all for the benefit of the families, farms, and businesses of the Pajaro Valley. Providing our agency with the ability to use alternate project delivery methods puts us on par with other similarly situated public agencies. We thank Senator Laird for his leadership and commitment to the project and the people it will ultimately protect.”

SB 1055 builds on Laird’s longstanding work to improve flood protection along the Pajaro River. While serving in the California State Assembly, Laird authored AB 2348 (2006), which authorized the state to share in the costs of flood control projects along the Pajaro River. More recently, Laird authored SB 496 (2021), which authorized the California Department of Water Resources to cover 100% of the state’s cost share for Pajaro River flood control projects, and SB 489 (2022), which authorized the state to advance funding for the Pajaro River Flood Risk Management Project. Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas coauthored both measures.

In 2024, legislation authored by Rivas and coauthored by Laird helped expedite flood control improvements along the river by streamlining certain environmental review requirements.

SB 1055 takes effect January 1, 2027.