Bill intended to speed up Pajaro levee maintenance takes a step forward.

As the Pajaro Regional Flood Management Agency prepares for the unknowns of an El Niño winter, state legislators are working to give the agency more tools to complete levee maintenance projects.

Senate Bill 1055 by Sen. John Laird, D-Santa Cruz, passed the California Assembly and Senate on Aug. 13 and 17, respectively. 

The PRFMA currently has limited construction procurement methods, such as awarding design and construction projects separately and to the lowest bidder.

The bill opens up four more procurement methods for the PRFMA, including what is known as “design-build,” where one contractor is awarded the design and construction project at once.

“SB 1055 gives the Pajaro Regional Flood Management Agency more flexibility to deliver critical levee and flood control improvements faster, helping better protect families, businesses and farmland from future flooding,” Laird said in a statement.

The bill is going through final proofreading before it goes to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk for his consideration.

On Aug. 12, PRFMA Executive Director Mark Strudley presented a report to the agency’s board, outlining the winter preparation plan. That includes more than $900,000 for ongoing vegetation clearing and sediment removal. The agency is also investing in a plan to fortify the levees on the Monterey County side, similar to what it did in 2024 when it brought in new soil to reconstruct a portion of the levee and bring it back up to its original height.

PRFMA is also looking at building what is known as “seepage berms,” which are large masses of rocks placed on the sides of the levees to help fortify it and allow water to seep through without taking sediment with it and undermining the levee walls.