63K-4-201 - Authority of governor -- Federal assistance -- Fraud or willful misstatement in application for financial assistance -- Penalty.
63K-4-201. Authority of governor -- Federal assistance -- Fraud or willfulmisstatement in application for financial assistance -- Penalty.
(1) In addition to any other authorities conferred upon the governor, if the governorissues an executive order declaring a state of emergency, the governor may:
(a) utilize all available resources of state government as reasonably necessary to copewith a state of emergency;
(b) employ measures and give direction to state and local officers and agencies which arereasonable and necessary for the purpose of securing compliance with the provisions of this actand with orders, rules and regulations made pursuant to this act;
(c) recommend and advise the evacuation of all or part of the population from anystricken or threatened area within the state if necessary for the preservation of life;
(d) recommend routes, modes of transportation, and destination in connection withevacuation;
(e) in connection with evacuation, suspend or limit the sale, dispensing, or transportationof alcoholic beverages, explosives, and combustibles, not to include the lawful bearing of arms;
(f) control ingress and egress to and from a disaster area, the movement of persons withinthe area, and recommend the occupancy or evacuation of premises in a disaster area;
(g) clear or remove from publicly or privately owned land or water debris or wreckagethat is an immediate threat to public health, public safety, or private property, including allowingan employee of a state department or agency designated by the governor to enter upon privateland or waters and perform any tasks necessary for the removal or clearance operation if thepolitical subdivision, corporation, organization, or individual that is affected by the removal ofthe debris or wreckage:
(i) presents an unconditional authorization for removal of the debris or wreckage fromprivate property; and
(ii) agrees to indemnify the state against any claim arising from the removal of the debrisor wreckage;
(h) enter into agreement with any agency of the United States:
(i) for temporary housing units to be occupied by victims of a state of emergency orpersons who assist victims of a state of emergency; and
(ii) to make the housing units described in Subsection (1)(h)(i) available to a politicalsubdivision of this state;
(i) assist any political subdivision of this state to acquire sites and utilities necessary fortemporary housing units described in Subsection (1)(h)(i) by passing through any funds madeavailable to the governor by an agency of the United States for this purpose;
(j) subject to Sections 63K-4-401 and 63K-4-406, temporarily suspend or modify byexecutive order, during the state of emergency, any public health, safety, zoning, transportation,or other requirement of a statute or administrative rule within this state if such action is essentialto provide temporary housing described in Subsection (1)(h)(i);
(k) upon determination that a political subdivision of the state will suffer a substantialloss of tax and other revenues because of a state of emergency and the political subdivision soaffected has demonstrated a need for financial assistance to perform its governmental functions,in accordance with Utah Constitution, Article XIV, Sections 3 and 4, and Section 10-8-6:
(i) apply to the federal government for a loan on behalf of the political subdivision if theamount of the loan that the governor applies for does not exceed 25% of the annual operating
budget of the political subdivision for the fiscal year in which the state of emergency occurs; and
(ii) receive and disburse the amount of the loan to the political subdivision;
(l) accept funds from the federal government and make grants to any political subdivisionfor the purpose of removing debris or wreckage from publicly owned land or water;
(m) upon determination that financial assistance is essential to meet expenses related to astate of emergency of individuals or families adversely affected by the state of emergency thatcannot be sufficiently met from other means of assistance, apply for, accept, and expend a grantby the federal government to fund the financial assistance, subject to the terms and conditionsimposed upon the grant; or
(n) recommend to the Legislature other actions the governor considers to be necessary toaddress a state of emergency.
(2) A person who fraudulently or willfully makes a misstatement of fact in connectionwith an application for financial assistance under this section shall, upon conviction of eachoffense, be subject to a fine of not more than $5,000 or imprisonment for not more than one year,or both.
Amended by Chapter 370, 2010 General Session